The purpose of this study was to investigate the short-term effects on children of exposure to parental violence. Sixty-five children (ages 6-15), from a psychiatric inpatient facility were divided into three groups based on previous exposure to physical violence between the parents and their own experience of physical abuse by the parents. The groups were compared for aggression, somatic complaints, the presence of depression and peer problems. Mothers and teachers of children from each group were administered the Child Behavior Checklist. Mothers completed the Beck Depression Inventory. A 2 x 3 ANOVA showed a significant main effect for sex across groups, with boys having a higher number of incidents than girls in all groups. A sex x group interaction was found for somatic complaints with girls from violent homes being more likely to somatasize than their male counterparts. Chi square analysis failed to find significant group differences for depression or peer problems. Although younger children in Group 2 (Violent, No Abuse) were more likely than their older counterparts to have peer problems. Mothers from violent homes rated their children as more deviant than control mothers. However, when their BDI scores were used as a covariate, differences disappeared. Teacher ratings across groups were not significantly different. When mother and teacher ratings were compared, there were no differences except for Group 2 (Violent, No Abuse). The study points to the need for ratings of children from sources other than mothers and the importance of attempting to partial out the effects of a child experiencing and witnessing abuse. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-08, Section: B, page: 3540. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1986.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_75930 |
| Contributors | REYES, ELENA., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 73 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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