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A South African retrospective study of children’s exposure to domestic violence as a predisposing factor for revictimization in adulthood

Magister Artium - MA / Domestic violence has reached epidemic proportions worldwide. Every year, 275 million
children globally are exposed to domestic violence. Witnessing domestic violence during
childhood has been linked to various risks such as potential health risks, unemployment, deviant behavior, susceptibility to other subsets of family violence, various psychopathologies, as well as potential perpetration and revictimization. Boys are twice as likely to become perpetrators of abuse in adulthood if they have witnessed domestic violence in comparison to boys from nonviolent homes. Girls exposed to domestic violence were shown to be more accepting of abusive married life than girls from non-violent homes. The aim of the study was to describe the perceptions of childhood exposure to domestic violence as a predisposing factor for revictimization in adulthood. The study used a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional correlational design. The sample consisted of 77 female participants from shelters across Cape Town, Western Cape. The study employed an adapted version of The Child Exposure to Domestic Violence (CEDV) Scale. The questionnaire was divided into three sections, namely
demographic details, types of exposure to domestic violence the adult may have experienced as a child, and lastly current adult experiences of domestic violence. The data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences V21 (SPSS). Results suggest that there is a significant positive relationship between past perceived experiences of domestic violence and present perceived experiences of domestic violence. Limitations and recommendations are stipulated for proposed intervention strategies and further study expansion on this topic

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uwc/oai:etd.uwc.ac.za:11394/3897
Date January 2013
CreatorsRyan Jill
ContributorsRoman, Nicolette, Rich, Edna
PublisherUniversity of Western Cape
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis
RightsUniversity of Western Cape

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