Data brief on violence against children at home
Violence against children can take many forms and occur in any setting where children spend time. But when violence occurs in the home – a place that should offer safety, comfort and protection – it is especially damaging.
Highlights
Even when children do not directly experience violence themselves at home, but are exposed to it among their caregivers, the impact can be equally harmful.
Violent discipline by parents and other caregivers
Supporting the development of self-regulation in children is an integral part of parenting in all countries and cultures. That said, many caregivers rely on violent methods when disciplining children. Caregivers rarely do so with the deliberate intention of causing harm. Rather, violent forms of discipline can oftentimes stem from anger and frustration, lack of understanding of the damage they can cause, or limited familiarity with effective non-violent disciplinary methods.
A large body of evidence confirms that violent discipline is both ineffective and can have negative consequences – ranging from immediate impacts to long-term harm. Yet, such discipline is not always perceived as violence due to prevailing societal and cultural norms and expectations and beliefs around parenting. It is therefore not surprising that violent discipline is the most common and widespread form of violence against children.
Around the world, 1.6 billion children (or 2 in 3) experience violent punishment by caregivers at home. While it is universal in nature, the largest numbers of children affected are found in Central and Southern Asia and in sub-Saharan Africa, which together account for more than half the global burden. In most regions, more than half of children regularly endure physical punishment or psychological aggression in the context of discipline at home.
Children’s exposure to intimate partner violence
Living in violent households is harmful to children even if they do not directly experience violence themselves. Indeed, it is well documented that children who witness intimate partner violence are at heightened risk of carrying violence into adulthood, either as victims or perpetrators.
Worldwide, 1 in 4 children (around 610 million) live with mothers who have experienced intimate partner violence within the past year. This figure would be even higher if children exposed to such violence at an earlier point in their lifetime were also counted. While prevalence is highest in Oceania, where just over half of children are living with a mother who has recently experienced intimate partner violence, the burden is greatest in Central and Southern Asia, which accounts for one third of the global burden. Sub-Saharan Africa has the second highest proportion and burden with around 1 in 3 children (about 187 million) living in households where intimate partner violence has recently occurred.
How violent discipline at home and intimate partner violence intersect
Violence against children and violence against women intersect in a number of ways. One manifestation is when both types of violence occur within the same household. A growing body of research from low- and middle-income countries provides evidence of the co-occurrence of intimate partner violence and violence against children, particularly corporal punishment.
In some countries in Southern Africa, children living in households affected by intimate partner violence are significantly more likely to experience all types of violent discipline than children living in households where such violence is not present.
