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Children’s Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence and Early Delinquency

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Abstract

Children who experience trauma due to exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) have been shown to exhibit higher than average rates of cognitive, psychological, and emotional impairments. Our research uses the first five waves of the Fragile Families and Child Well-being Study to examine the effects of exposure to intimate partner violence in early childhood (as measured by their mothers’ experiences with physical violence and economic abuse) on delinquency at age nine . It also investigates whether these effects are mediated by parental involvement and exposure to child neglect and physical punishment. Results indicate that children’s exposure to IPV at Year 1 and Year 3 had direct effects on their tendency toward delinquent behavior at Year 9, and that parental involvement, child neglect, and physical punishment also had significant mediating effects. Given the importance of early delinquency to later achievement, the findings may provide implications for early intervention.

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Acknowledgment

The authors would like to thank the Huamin Charity Foundation for its generous support on this study.

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  1. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 536 George Street, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Chien-Chung Huang

  2. School of Social Work, Rutgers, State University of New Jersey, New Jersey, USA

    Juliann H. Vikse, Shuang Lu & Siliai Yi

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  1. Chien-Chung Huang
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Correspondence to Chien-Chung Huang.

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Huang, CC., Vikse, J.H., Lu, S. et al. Children’s Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence and Early Delinquency. J Fam Viol 30, 953–965 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-015-9727-5

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