VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN

Violence against Children



Violence against Children

Introduction

The main purpose of this report is to discuss the violence against children. This report is about a 10 year old boy Peter, who is working since when he was 7 and his father use to beat him.

Discussion

This violence can create problems for Peter in his future life as children violence can have a negative impact on children. Violence is (and always has been) a part of the human condition. From war to child abuse, murder to school-yard bullying, violence takes its toll, often with children being the innocent victims (or occasionally the not-so-innocent perpetrators) (Arkow, 2008). Researchers are becoming increasingly interested in violence and its effect on children.

Extensive research confirms the devastating impact family violence can have on children's lives and their physical and emotional development.

Violence affects children in many ways, whether it is directed at the children or directed at other members of their family and witnessed by the children (Arkow, 2007). Children in homes where domestic violence occurs may be witnesses to abuse, may themselves be abused, may suffer harm "incidental" to the domestic abuse, and may be used by the batterer to manipulate or gain control over the victim (Arkow, 2005). The Women's Rural Advocacy Program offers a good overview of the ways in which children can be affected by domestic violence.

First, children are often witnesses to domestic violence. As witnesses, children can be harmed psychologically and emotionally. Studies indicate that child witnesses, on average, are more aggressive and fearful and more often suffer from anxiety, depression and other trauma-related symptoms (Arkow, 2003). Children growing up in violent homes often take responsibility for the abuse and may feel guilty for not being able to stop it. They live with constant anxiety that another beating will occur, or that they ...