| Abstrakt: |
The article discusses communication pattern, expectations, developmental and emotional needs of the children of violent marriages. The dysfunctional patterns of the violent marriage impair the ability of the parents to meet the developmental and emotional needs of their children. With a few exceptions. mental health professionals have overlooked the needs of such children unless they become victims of physical or sexual abuse. One indication of this oversight is the paucity of articles devoted to the impact of conjugal violence on children. Secondly, emphasis on social learning theory as an explanation of the perpetuation of family violence obscures the intensity of the anxiety, fear, conflict, and guilt children experience as they witness parental conflict or are drawn into it. The violent episode not only reinforces the notion that violence is a means of resolving differences, but children also experience anxiety about self-control issues while witnessing the parents' helplessness in the face of their own uncontrolled impulses. |
