The impact of domestic violence on urban preschool children - Battered mothers' perspectives

Applying focus group methodology, this article explores urban battered mothers' perceptions of their preschool children's exposure to domestic violence. It also examines mothers' reports about their young children's functioning and traumatic stress symptoms and the connections women make between their own experiences of victimization by partners and their children's difficulties. Finally this research describes the challenges abused mothers relate in their efforts to parent in the context of domestic violence, The sample consists of 43 Women from diverse sociodemographic backgrounds who participated in five focus groups in New York City. Findings suggest that battered mothers have a wide range of awareness of their children's exposure to domestic violence and its possible effects on their preschoolers, including traumatic impact. Women identified parenting burdens related to domestic violence including efforts to prevent aggression and victimization in their children. The implications for intervention with battered women and their preschool children are presented.