The effects of exposure to violence on young children.

Abstract

Violence has been characterized as a "public health epidemic" in the United States. At the same time, children's witnessing of violence is frequently overlooked by law enforcement officers, families, and others at the time of a violent incident. Although mothers describe the panic and fear in their children and themselves when violence occurs, little research or clinical attention has focused on the potential impact on children of living under conditions of chronic community violence. The purpose of this article is to present an overview of available research and clinical understanding of the effects of exposure to violence on school-age and younger children. Suggestions for future research and public policy initiatives are offered.

“It Makes Me a Man from the Beating I Took”: Gender and Aggression in Children’s Narratives About Conflict

“…Children in the high-stress neighborhood described more severe violence, but included fewer reports of own or others' emotions or mental states, and gave less explicit moral evaluations in their stories than did the children from the moderate-stress neighborhood. This is consistent with previous research that has suggested that exposure to neighborhood violence presents a significant threat to children's moral development (Farrell et al 2007;Osofsky 1995Osofsky , 1997.…”

Social experience and school bullying

“…Previous studies have suggested that exposure of young people to a violent environment can produce feelings of anger and irritability (Osofsky, 1995) with negative results on academic performance. Young people with problems of self-control find it difficult to negotiate on requests coming from the school.…”

Mutual Antipathies in the Peer Group as a Moderating Factor in the Association Between Community Violence Exposure and Psychosocial Maladjustment

“…For example, children who are characterized by impairments in emotion regulation or maladaptive biases in social information processing may be particularly likely to become involved in high-conflict dyadic peer relationships (Dodge, Price, Coie, and Christopoulos, 1990;Hubbard and others, 2001). These deficits could in turn interfere with children's ability to cope with community violence exposure and other urban stressors (Osofsky, 1995). From this perspective, children who frequently become involved in mutual antipathies with peers might be conceptualized as a vulnerable subgroup.…”