Research That Matters (January 17 - 20, 2008)

Trying to Escape Agency and Positioning in Children's Narratives of Exposure to Domestic Violence

Purpose. A number of studies have concluded that being exposed to violence by growing up in a family where mother gets beaten by their fathers/stepfathers have strong adverse outcomes on children, resulting in high levels of aggression, depression, anger and anxiety (cf. Jaffe & Wolfe 1990; 2003). Some of the results indicate that it is the most toxic violence children can be exposed to. This paper describes children's own conceptions of domestic violence, i.e. the words they use to describe it and the meaning they ascribe to it. It focuses on how the children are acting in relation to the violence and how they position themselves in relation to their mother, father, and siblings.

Methods. Previous studies have mainly based their understanding on mother's statements or on observations made by other adults. With a few exceptions (cf. Peled 1998) research conducted in the field have not included the voices of the children themselves, other than in checklists and questioners. This study diverges from this trend. It is based on children's own stories of experiencing domestic violence. Three series of children's group therapy sessions have been tape recorded. The children were between 10 and 17 years of age. Each session evolves around themes such as what violence means, feels and what to do. The therapists encourage free speech about what had happened. In addition, personal interviews with the children were conducted. The analytic strategy used in this paper is Narrative Analysis. It is based upon the notion that storytelling is the most important and powerful form used in our culture for creating and communicating meaning of life experiences (Bruner 1998; Mishler 1999; Riessman 1993; Ochs & Capps 2001). Early in life children take part of stories and learn how to use them to explore the world and share experiences (Nelson 1989). The analysis is based on concepts such as narrative structure, narrative plot, agency and positioning.

Results. The analysis yielded detailed information about the number of ways the children were trying to escape the violence. In many cases they were forced to involvement, directly or indirectly by hearing the violence. The children were struggling with their lives, characterized by this involuntary involvment. In most cases their struggles were accompanied by silence from an adult world, perceived as completely powerless to act. Tendencies from professionals, such as social workers and teachers, to individualize their problems caused further problems.

Conclusions and Implications. This paper provides new information for social workers. It offers a detailed picture of children's experiences. The findings highlight the complexity of the problems and call for a research strategy based on a holistic view, with an empasis on the problem as part of society, with several important agents such as siblings, friends, relatives, social workers and teachers. The research field struggles with methodological issues such as informants at a high psychosocial risk or too traumatized to be included.