Policy Issues Paper
Policy Issues Paper
CJA/314
November 15, 2011
Policy Issues Paper
Violence in any form can have a lasting effect on a person. Children who witness violence are permanently scarred because of what they are seeing. Children who witness family or domestic violence are affected in ways similar to children who are physically abused. Children are often unable to establish nurturing bonds with either parent and are at a greater risk for abuse and neglect if he or she lives in a violent home. Statistics show that an estimated 3.3 million children are exposed to violence against their mothers or female caretakers by family members in their home each year (Ackerman & Pickering, 1989). When a spouse, woman or male is abused, and there are children at home, the children will be affected by the abuse. This paper will refer to the video, “Child Exposure to Domestic Violence.” “Child Exposure to Domestic Violence” is a video about personal crime that looks at how children react to witnessing domestic violence. The children in the video have witnessed their father physically abusing their mother and have heard his or her father making death threats toward his or her mother. The video starts off referring to the children of O.J. and Nicole Brown-Simpson. Nicole was a victim of domestic violence and was found murdered with her boyfriend. O.J. was found not guilty of her murder but was found guilty in her civil lawsuit. The video asks what the children saw or heard, if anything. Studies show that child abuse occurs in nearly 30 to 60% of family violence cases that involve families with children. 6,000 American families were surveyed, and it was found that 50% of men who assault their wives, also abuse his children. Research shows that 80 to 90% of children living in homes where there is domestic violence are aware of the violence (American Psychological Association, Violence and the Family: Report of the APA Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family, 1996).
CJA/314
November 15, 2011
Policy Issues Paper
Violence in any form can have a lasting effect on a person. Children who witness violence are permanently scarred because of what they are seeing. Children who witness family or domestic violence are affected in ways similar to children who are physically abused. Children are often unable to establish nurturing bonds with either parent and are at a greater risk for abuse and neglect if he or she lives in a violent home. Statistics show that an estimated 3.3 million children are exposed to violence against their mothers or female caretakers by family members in their home each year (Ackerman & Pickering, 1989). When a spouse, woman or male is abused, and there are children at home, the children will be affected by the abuse. This paper will refer to the video, “Child Exposure to Domestic Violence.” “Child Exposure to Domestic Violence” is a video about personal crime that looks at how children react to witnessing domestic violence. The children in the video have witnessed their father physically abusing their mother and have heard his or her father making death threats toward his or her mother. The video starts off referring to the children of O.J. and Nicole Brown-Simpson. Nicole was a victim of domestic violence and was found murdered with her boyfriend. O.J. was found not guilty of her murder but was found guilty in her civil lawsuit. The video asks what the children saw or heard, if anything. Studies show that child abuse occurs in nearly 30 to 60% of family violence cases that involve families with children. 6,000 American families were surveyed, and it was found that 50% of men who assault their wives, also abuse his children. Research shows that 80 to 90% of children living in homes where there is domestic violence are aware of the violence (American Psychological Association, Violence and the Family: Report of the APA Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family, 1996).
References: Schmalleger, F. (2005). Criminal Justice Today. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Publishing. Sherman, L. W. (1997). Preventing crime: What works, what doesn’t, and what’s promising. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice. Tonry, M. (2002). Implementing, changing, and maintaining sentencing guidelines in the political climate of the 1900’s. Retrieved from http://students.washington.edu/ths123/state.htm. . .