Although we are living in a modern era, there are still a lot of people who consider themselves living in barbaric ages when domestic violence was acceptable and they don’t think about the psychological effects of domestic violence on children.
Emotional responses
The children who are living in homes where domestic violence takes place often feel guilt, fear, sadness, shame, depression and anger.
The subjects of the child’s anger include both parents, the one who is violent and the other one for not putting an end to violence.
Behavioral responses
The children’s effects of domestic violence that are psychological can be seen on all levels. Such experiences change the behavior of the child. He or she may show signs of withdrawal, acting out or being anxious to please. The school life of children is affected as well because usually they have shorter attention spans.
If the domestic violence starts during the early stages of the child’s development, the psychological effects of domestic violence on children may include delays in motor, cognitive and speech skills. It is likely that they will express violence as well or they could try to hurt themselves.
Long term children’s psychological results of domestic violence
The children who witness domestic violence usually are traumatized by it, which leads to psychological scars. If the mother of the child is regularly beaten by the father, the little one can’t possibly have a healthy development. These children have a role model showing them that in a relationship one of the partners can have it their way through violence and intimidation.
When it comes to the psychological effects of domestic violence on children, children have the tendency of identifying themselves with strong people, in this case the abusive father, and they lose respect for the helpless mother. The abusers often use this by telling the children that their mother is stupid and that they don’t have to listen to her.
Because of the model that they have, the domestic violence’s psychological results on children include disrespect towards women, because this is what they see in the behavior of their father. The specialists believe that the children who grow up in such families are raised with the belief that violence is the way to resolve conflicts.
In many cases, the psychological effects of domestic violence on children can only be assessed with time, as the child grows.
