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. 2016 Jun;30(4):503-8.
doi: 10.1037/fam0000146. Epub 2015 Sep 7.

Children's exposure to intimate partner violence: Should sexual coercion be considered?

Ernest N Jouriles  1 , Renee McDonald  1 , Nicole L Vu  1 , Kelli S Sargent  1
Affiliations

Children's exposure to intimate partner violence: Should sexual coercion be considered?

Ernest N Jouriles et al. J Fam Psychol. 2016 Jun.

Abstract

This study examined whether male-perpetrated sexual intimate partner violence (IPV) directed at a child's mother is associated with children's adjustment problems and if sexual IPV increases risk for children's adjustment problems over and above the risk associated with physical IPV alone. Participants were a community sample of 539 mothers and their children (age 7-10 years). Mothers and children reported on children's externalizing and internalizing problems. Mothers reported on recent male-perpetrated physical and sexual IPV and on their own psychological distress (depressive symptoms, relationship dissatisfaction). Four groups were formed on the basis of mothers' reports of IPV: nonviolent, physical only, sexual only, and sexual + physical. Children in the physical-only, sexual-only, and sexual + physical groups exhibited greater levels of externalizing problems than did children in the nonviolent group. Levels of externalizing problems among children in the physical-only and sexual-only groups did not differ. Including sexual IPV in the conceptualization of children's exposure to IPV may offer a more comprehensive understanding of how children are affected by IPV. (PsycINFO Database Record

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