Citation

Poehacker S, Phillips D, Riggs J, Lauterbach D. J. Interpers. Violence 2017; ePub(ePub): 886260517707309.

Affiliation

Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0886260517707309

PMID

29294755

Abstract

Psychological intimate partner violence (P-IPV) refers to verbal abuse from one partner to another and abuse of power or control from one partner to another. To date, no studies have examined the longitudinal course of P-IPV exposure among mothers or the effect that witnessing P-IPV can have on their children. Using latent class growth analysis, the current study identified five trajectory groups with the following intercept and growth characteristics: low stable, low-increasing, moderate-decreasing, high-decreasing, and consistently elevated. Membership in the four groups characterized by higher P-IPV exposure was predicted by maternal race and exposure to physical abuse. The children of mothers in the low-increasing and consistently elevated groups had elevated scores on the Internalizing and Externalizing scales of the Childhood Behavior Checklist. These findings remained after controlling for child sex, race, cumulative trauma exposure, and maternal depression.

Language: en

Keywords

Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN); child internalizing and externalizing symptoms; latent class growth trajectories; maternal psychological interpersonal violence