According to a study by the University of Toronto, published in the Journal of Family Violence, children who were subjected to chronic parental domestic violence grow up to be more prone to and have an increased prevalence of depression, anxiety and substance abuse disorders. The study also found that these adults feel a reduced level of social support because many of their peers do not share a similar childhood experience.
The study found that 22.5 per cent of adults who suffered parental abuse as children had a major depressive disorder, if not currently then at some point in life. On the other hand, only 9.1 per cent of children who didn’t suffer parental abuse grew up to have the same disorder.
“Our findings underline the risk of long-term negative outcomes of chronic domestic violence for children, even when the children themselves are not abused,” said author Esme Fuller-Thomson, Director of University of Toronto’s Institute for Life Course and Aging at the University of Toronto and Professor at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW). “Social workers and health professionals must work vigilantly to prevent domestic violence and to support both survivors of this abuse and their children,” she further added.
Around 15 per cent of adults who were subjected to PDV as children reported having developed an anxiety disorder. “Many children who are exposed to their parent’s domestic violence remain constantly vigilant and perpetually anxious, fearful that any conflict may escalate into assault. Therefore, it is not surprising that decades later, when they are adults, those with a history of PDV have an elevated prevalence of anxiety disorders,” co-author Deirdre Ryan-Morissette, a recent Masters of Social Work graduate from the University of Toronto’s FIFSW was quoted by ANI.
Around 26 per cent of adults who went through PDV in childhood developed substance abuse disorders.
However, while being subjected to PDV increased their chances of having mental disorders, a majority of adults were in good health. Around 62 per cent of adults who had abusive parents were doing well now, with no mental health issues per se. Although the number is lower than those adults who had non-violent parents (around 76 per cent), it is still higher than the researchers expected.
“We were encouraged to discover that so many adults overcame their exposure to this early adversity and are free of mental illness and thriving,” said co-author Shalhevet Attar-Schwartz, Professor at Hebrew University’s Paul Baerwald School of Social Work and Social Welfare.
“Our analysis indicated that social support was an important factor. Among those who had experienced PDV, those who had more social support had much higher odds of being in excellent mental health.”