Developmental Consequences of Intimate Partner Violence on Children

Abstract

Numerous studies associate childhood exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) with adverse adjustment in the domains of mental health, social, and academic functioning. This review synthesizes this literature and highlights the critical role of child self-regulation in mediating children's adjustment outcomes. We discuss major methodological problems of the field, including failure to consider the effects of prenatal IPV exposure and the limitations of variable-oriented and cross-sectional approaches. Finally, we present a comprehensive theoretical model of the effects of IPV on children's development. This model includes three mechanistic pathways—one that is unique to IPV (maternal representations) and two that are consistent with the effects of other stressors (maternal mental health and physiological functioning). In our model, the effects of these three pathways on child adjustment outcomes are mediated through parenting and child self-regulation. Future research directions and clinical implications are discussed in the context of the model.