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Children and violence; a developmental perspective

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 July 2009

Abstract

A trend of increasing victimization of women and children in situations of war and community violence has emerged in the 20th century. Children are also exposed to violence in their own families, as witnesses of parental violence, targets of physical abuse, and recipients of TV violence. As regards the direct physical effects of violence, children's injuries are no different from those of adults, while indirect effects comprise increases in, for instance, malnutrition. Psychological effects of danger include post-traumatic stress disorder and maladaptations, such as aggression, cognitive impairment, and truncated moral development. Different scenes of violence are interrelated. The cycle of violence lives its own life, but breaking up the cycle is not a hopeless task.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Academia Europaea 1996

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