ARTICLE SUMMARY INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE
Co-occurrence of Intimate Partner Violence and Child Maltreatment: Service Providers’ Perceptions Coulter, M. L., & Mercado-Crespo, M. C. (2015). Co-occurrence of intimate partner violence and child maltreatment: Service providers’ perceptions. Journal of Family Violence, 30, 255-262.
Issue
Approximately 40 percent of cases involving child maltreatment also involve intimate partner violence. Due to co-occurrence, it is essential that professionals in the fields of child welfare and domestic violence formally assess clients for both types of family violence, whose risk factors are nearly identical. Yet, the under-identification of the co-occurrence of intimate partner violence and child maltreatment persists despite its frequency. Some studies have pointed to the possibility that providers’ attitudes may play a significant role in this under-identification. This study examined the perceptions of professions who work in the fields of child welfare, intimate partner violence, child protection and other related professions that service families where both intimate partner violence and child maltreatment circumstances may occur. The goals were to identify knowledge gaps and perceived competencies, to overcome discrepancies in knowledge and training, to improve knowledge sharing and collaboration and to build capacity to effectively identify and intervene with victims.
Findings
In this cross-sectional research study, data were collected through an online survey questionnaire for child welfare and intimate partner violence service providers, law enforcement personnel, and child protective services investigators serving in Hillsborough County, Florida. Data were collected online through a 15-item, close-ended Likert scale survey that assessed providers’ knowledge, perceptions, and beliefs about child maltreatment and intimate partner violence. Participants were recruited by the local Child Welfare/ Intimate Partner Violence Task Force members from within their networks. Respondents (N = 140) self-identified as employed within child welfare services (47.1%) or child protective services investigators (30.7%); only 10 percent self-identified as working with intimate partner violence victims. About 12 percent specified “other” type of employment, including 3 percent (n = 4) who worked in law enforcement. Significant differences (p ≤ .05) were found by employment type in the study’s primary focus areas: providers’ knowledge, perceptions, and beliefs about child maltreatment and intimate partner violence. Respondents were asked to describe on a scale of 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much) their knowledge and abilities pertaining to intimate partner violence and child maltreatment. Overall, participants felt they had more knowledge and were more comfortable and capable of dealing with child maltreatment than intimate partner violence situations. For example, the lowest total score (M = 3.3, SD = .938) was for the question “Do you feel that you can effectively intervene in intimate partner violence cases?” Child welfare workers felt the least prepared to intervene (M = 3.0, SD = .792). Whereas, the highest total score (M = 4.5, SD = .812) was in response to the question “Do you feel comfortable working with abused children.” Intimate partner violence providers felt the least comfortable (M = 3.9, SD = .949) and child protective services investigators and child welfare providers felt the most comfortable (M = 4.6, SD = .577 and M = 4.6, SD = .610 respectively). Participants report knowing more about child maltreatment (M = 4.3, SD = .774) than intimate partner violence dynamics (M = 3.7, SD = .944) and feeling more capable of identifying abused children (M = 4.2, SD = .787) than battered partners (M = 3.5, SD = .910). Responses to a question regarding the “regular use of an intimate partner violence screening tool during intake” (Strongly Agree to Strongly Disagree) were significantly different by employment type (X2 = 52.229, p < .001). Notably, 85.7 percent of intimate partner violence providers strongly agreed that they used a screening tool compared to 18.6 percent of child protective services investigators and 9.1 percent of child welfare providers.
INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE: behavior in an intimate relationship that causes physical, sexual or psychological harm.
Implications
The authors note that while the studyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s findings are limited to an unrepresentative sample of child protective services investigators, intimate partner violence, and child welfare service providers in Hillsborough County, Florida, they serve to underline the need for further research and interventions in this area. The findings demonstrate the inequitable knowledge, training, and perceived ability to deal with the overlap of intimate partner violence and child maltreatment among professionals from different employment areas. Importantly, despite the known overlap between intimate partner violence and child maltreatment, child welfare service providers feel the least capable of identifying intimate partner violence victims. The authors recommend the findings help to inform the development of needs-based training and collaborative programs that address this public health problem. Furthermore, training on the dynamics of intimate partner violence should be highly prioritized, and joint training across disciplines is recommended. At the policy levels, substantive discussions on the differing perspectives among those in critical decision-making and service provision roles is required. For example, while no statistically significant differences were found by employment type, over a quarter of all participants disagreed that the battered parents should decide what to do about themselves or their children. Further research into the reasons why victims should or should not be empowered with making these decisions must be explored in detail, and differences in the perspectives of service providers from different employment areas must be considered. In conclusion, the authors support the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judgesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Greenbook recommendation1 that the child welfare system could lead in establishing collaborations with law enforcement and the judicial system to ensure the safety of families experiencing both intimate partner violence and child maltreatment. The role of intimate partner violence service providers must also be a component of this collaboration in order to develop responses by informed, multi-disciplinary responders and systems. Because this is an emerging field, new data on effective integrated response systems should be widely disseminated and integrated into training and practice as quickly as possible.
1
Schechter, S., & Edleson, J.L. (1999). Effective intervention in domestic violence and child maltreatment cases: Guidelines for policy and practice. Reno, NV: Family Violence Department, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. Retrieved from http:// www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/otherpubs/ncjfcj.pdf.
INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE: behavior in an intimate relationship that causes physical, sexual or psychological harm.