At-risk and maltreated children exposed to intimate partner aggression/violence: what the conflict looks like and its relationship to child outcomes

Despite increasing research on children's exposure to intimate partner aggression/violence (IPAV), and co-occurrence of IPAV and maltreatment, little is known about IPAV in at-risk and maltreating families. We explored the nature of IPAV in 554 homes where children were identified as at risk or reported for maltreatment and examined differences between emotional and behavioral outcomes for children in homes where one or both intimate partners is the alleged perpetrator of IPAV. We found in this sample that IPAV primarily took the form of verbal aggression with differences in perpetrator gender for verbal, minor, and severe violence. There were few child outcomes predicted by perpetrator gender: Significant child behavior problems were found with all types of IPAV and both genders as perpetrators. Results suggest the need for comprehensive assessments of IPAV when assessing risk, safety, and harm issues for children reported as being at risk or victims of maltreatment.