Publication: Domestic Violence and Children’s Mental Health
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Date
2023-05
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Type
Capstone
Abstract
Exposure to domestic violence is a significant predictor of children’s mental health problems. Children exposed to domestic violence will likely develop internalizing and externalizing disorders, substance abuse disorders, poor school outcomes, and a lack of prosocial behaviors (Colizzi et al., 2020). Exposure to family violence contributes to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), which are linked to causing trauma and long-term psychological distress (Lloyd, 2018). Most mental health problems begin during the teenage years when children encounter ACEs and continue to adversely affect them in adulthood (Colizzi et al.). Children's mental health problems become a burden to the guardians, community, and society and are associated with increased healthcare costs (Orr et al., 2020). Therefore, preventing mental disorders development and reinforcing resilience in violence-exposed children is thus relevant to evade these negative consequences. The project aimed to identify the effects of family or domestic violence exposure on children, the protective and risk factors that influence the effects of violence exposure, and the intervention applicable to prevent violence-exposure effects for children aged below thirteen years. The project’s recommended intervention is a public health preventive approach at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels to prevent violence-exposed children from developing mental health problems and disorders. Specifically, the intervention will include mindfulness training, cognitive behavior therapy, psychosocial fulfillment, and learning to regulate social and emotional responses to challenges faced, which will help prevent the development of mental health problems in children and teenagers. The reviewed literature suggests that the intervention should be evidence-based, and population-based, incorporate risk assessments and promotion of protective factors, integrate multisector and multilevel collaboration, and be operationalized within a socio-ecological framework (Carlson et al., 2019; Colizzi et al. ; Eriksson et al., 2022; Fong et al., 2019). Eventually, the intervention will reinforce resilience and positively 3 influence the mental health of at-risk and violence-exposed children to offer a better quality of life. Catering for children facing developmental adversity is essential to prevent negative consequences later in life. Future research should focus on how to best implement this intervention that specifically targets violence-exposed children and their mental health.