Mother's IPV, Child Maltreatment Type and the Presence of PTSD in Children and Adolescents

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health 2017-09, Vol.14 (9), p.1077
• Main Authors: Castro, Maravillas, Alcántara-López, Mavi, Martínez, Antonia, Fernández, Visitación, Sánchez-Meca, Julio, López-Soler, Concepción
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Aggression; Child; Child & adolescent psychiatry; Child abuse & neglect; Child Abuse - psychology; Child Abuse - statistics & numerical data; Children; Children & youth; Correlation analysis; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diagnostic systems; Discriminant analysis; Domestic violence; Female; Health facilities; Humans; Intimate partner violence; Intimate Partner Violence - psychology; Intimate Partner Violence - statistics & numerical data; Male; Mental disorders; Mental health; Mothers; Mothers - statistics & numerical data; Physical Abuse - psychology; Physical Abuse - statistics & numerical data; Post traumatic stress disorder; Prevalence; Psychological distress; Psychopathology; Quantitative psychology; Sex crimes; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - epidemiology; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - etiology; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - psychology; Symptoms; Teenagers; Trauma; Violence; Women
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph14091077

This correlational cross-sectional study was designed to investigate whether the intimate partner violence (IPV) suffered by mothers (physical and psychological maltreatment), child eyewitness of psychological and physical maltreatment suffered by the mother, the neglect suffered by children, and the maltreatment (physical and psychological) directly suffered by children are statistically associated to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms exhibited by the child. In addition, the prevalence of child PTSD was estimated, as well as the concordance between the PTSD symptoms assessed by the Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, (DSM-IV-TR) criteria for child PTSD. The sample consisted of 152 Spanish children aged 8 to 17 and their mothers, who were recruited from Centers of Specialized Assistance for Women Victims of IPV. PTSD prevalence was 20.4%. The results of a canonical correlation analysis showed that the two types of maltreatment with the largest contribution to the canonical variable were physical maltreatment directly suffered by the child, and child eyewitness of physical maltreatment suffered by the mother. The potential developmental pathway of PTSD when both children and mothers suffer severe maltreatment needs to be examined, and this will contribute to the choice of the most effective type of specialized intervention.