Interrupting the Intergenerational Transmission of Violence

Abstract

Children exposed to domestic violence are at increased risk for a wide range of emotional and behavioural disorders. Conduct disorder, in particular, may ultimately lead to the perpetration of further domestic violence in the next generation. Parental characteristics such as warmth and positive attributions may mitigate the risk for intergenerational transmission of violence. Sixty-one children, ages eight to 17, and their parents completed self-report measures of disruptive behaviour, parental warmth and parental attributions in order to determine the extent to which parental warmth and attributions of child behaviours may relate to behaviour problems that serve as risk factors for the intergenerational transmission of violence. Children were also interviewed about stressful life events to which they had been exposed, in addition to domestic violence, in order to better understand results in the context of children's lives. As predicted, parental warmth and positive attributions were related to fewer disruptive behaviour problems, r = À0.35, p = 0.04 and r = À0.32, p = 0 .05, respectively. Results were similar for boys and girls, but specific to adolescents versus younger children. Findings were maintained after accounting for other forms of adversity. Potential implications for interrupting the intergenerational transmission of violence, particularly during adolescence, are discussed. KEY PRACTITIONER MESSAGES:• Children exposed to domestic violence are exposed to a wide range of other forms of adversity.• Cumulative adversity may contribute to disruptive behaviours that may ultimately develop into violent acts, manifesting a transmission of violence from one generation to the next.• Parental warmth and positive attributions of children's behaviours may be one way in which healthy parenting may prevent the intergenerational transmission of violence.• These parenting factors may be particularly critical during adolescence.KEY WORDS: domestic violence; intergenerational; warmth; attributions C hildren who are exposed to domestic violence are at increased risk for a wide range of emotional and behavioural disorders. Conduct disorder (CD), in particular, may ultimately lead to the perpetration of further domestic violence in the next generation (Ehrensaft et al., 2003). Parenting factors are believed to protect children from developing emotional and behavioural problems, which may ultimately prevent the intergenerational transmission of

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