Although prior research has established that intimate partner violence (IPV) often leads to increased depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), little is known about how often abusive partners and ex-partners use survivors’ children as an abuse tactic, nor whether this form of IPV also is detrimental to survivors’ mental health. The current study interviewed 299 unstably housed survivors of intimate partner violence shortly after they sought services from a domestic violence agency. All participants were parents of minor children. In-person interviews asked about abuse experienced in the prior six months, including the ways children were used as a form of IPV. Participants were also asked about their current depression, anxiety, and symptoms of PTSD. As hypothesized, the majority of parents reported their abusive partners and ex-partners had used their children as a form of IPV to control and hurt them. Further, after controlling for other forms of IPV, use of the children significantly predicted both increased anxiety and greater number of PTSD symptoms. Results show the importance of focusing on the use of children as a common and injurious form of abuse used against survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV).

Domestic violence (DV) is a leading cause of homelessness for women, yet many DV agencies are just beginning to focus on helping clients stabilize their housing situations.

The veracity of qualitative research is typically measured according to well-established principles of trustworthiness. Adhering to these principles demonstrates that findings are the result of a rigorous methodology and that findings accurately describe the experiences of participants. Member checking is one strategy often utilized to ensure the credibility of the findings, while also generating a valuable opportunity for research participants to actively participate in the analytic process. However, there is limited guidance as to how to conduct member checks that are culturally and contextually relevant to all research participants, particularly if data has been collected in multiple languages with diverse participants. In these instances, researchers must remain vigilant to avoid excluding the voices of participants or designing member checks that might not be culturally and contextually responsive. This article describes a technique — utilizing “I-poems” — as an innovative way to conduct the member checking process with a diverse group of survivors of intimate partner violence who participated in a longitudinal evaluation of the services they received. This inclusive and innovative member checking process was found to be a culturally relevant way to maximize participation, minimize power imbalances, and invite research participants to become active partners in the analytic process.

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