Witnessing domestic violence: Effects on child development and clinical implication for paediatricians [Violenza domestica assistita: Effetti sullo sviluppo del bambino e implicazioni cliniche per i pediatri]

Witnessing domestic violence may have serious negative consequences for the health, development and well-being of children. Only recently, witnessing domestic violence has been evaluated as a form of child maltreatment, considering the effects it may have within the family. Domestic violence is a complex and lasting experience that often results in interruptions, losses and challenges for the meaningful relationships of children. Children have very often feelings of fear, worry, guilt, helplessness and sadness and adopt strategies to deal with such traumatic situations. Moreover, children exposed to domestic violence have a high risk of having delays in cognitive, psychic, emotional and physical development with school and social interaction difficulties, internalising and externalising problems, learning disorders, aggressive behaviour and post-traumatic symptoms. Therefore, it is critical to early identify the signals that children show to help them and their family get out of the violent and abusive environment.