Children’s Mental Health Outcomes

Living Through Family Violence in Australia: An Integrative Literature Review

Children’s Mental Health Outcomes

Public Significance

This review advances the idea that children are victims of domestic and family violence in their own right. It found that domestic and family violence affects children’s well-being and development in a range of harmful ways. The review identified an absence of literature on culturally and linguistically diverse children and First Nations children’s experiences of domestic and family violence in Australia and underscores a range of implications for policy and practice

Authors: Patrick Abordo, Alexandra Anastasov, Catherine Bridgeman, Linda Harvey, Carmel Khalili, Titus S. Olorunnisola, Dulcie Surany, and Jennifer Yuill

Children’s Mental Health Outcomes exposed to domestic and family violence (DFV) in Australia has long been constrained by the perception that they are secondary victims to their mother’s experiences.

An integrative literature review was conducted to capture the current understanding and representation of direct child outcomes following experience with DFV in Australia. Australian studies published between 1992 and 2021 were sourced from four databases with the addition of relevant gray articles.

Using a selection criterion that exclusively focused on Australian children’s outcomes from DFV exposure, 27 articles were screened, appraised, coded, and analyzed.

DFV has been shown to impact Australian children’s emotional–behavioral development and mental health. The intergenerational transmission of learned violence was also evident, while prolonged and repeated exposure was associated with the most severe outcomes for children.

Protective factors, such as escaping the abuse and the mother’s well-being, emerged as conducive to child resilience.

Limitations of current Australian research were found, such as the absence of literature on culturally and linguistically diverse Australian children and limited research on First Nations children. Policy implications include emphasis on re-educating parents on the impact of DFV on children, which may influence mothers reluctant to leave violent relationships.

Published: Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice,  Apr 27, 2023