Child to parent violence - an exploration of non-violent resistance

Acknowledgements . List of Tables . List of Figures . Chapter 1: Introduction to the Study . 1 1.1 A ‘Veil of Silence’ – the need to explore child to parent violence . 1 1.2 Gaps in Practice . 1 1.3 Gaps in Policy and Research . 2 1.4 The Rationale for the Current Study . 3 1.5 The Research Population . 3 1.6 The Research Questions . 4 1.7 The Research Objectives . 5 1.8 Research Methodology . 5 1.9 Structure of the Thesis . 7 1.10 Concluding Summary . 8 Chapter 2: Child to Parent Violence – A Review of the Literature . 9 2.1 Child to Parent Violence: An Emerging Social Problem . 9 2.2 The Literature Review in Grounded Theory Methods Research . 10 2.2.1 The Rationale for a Narrative Review of the Literature . 11 2.2.2 The Aims and Strategy for this Literature Review . 12 2.3 Child to Parent Violence and a range of Meanings . 14 2.3.1 Sociological Perspectives on ‘Family’ and ‘Violence’ . 14 2.3.2 Clarifying a definition of child to parent violence . 16 2.3.3 Making a distinction between child to parent violence and parent/ child conflict . 18 2.3.4 Child to parent violence – an abuse of power to coerce and dominate . 18 2.3.5 An infringement of human rights . 18 2.3.6 Conceptualising child to parent violence – harm, abuse of power, intention, infringement of human rights and self definition . 19 2.4 Child to parent violence – neither seen nor heard . 20 2.4. 1 Child to parent violence and domestic violence policy . 20 2.4. 2 Gaps in the Literature and conceptual challenges . 21 2.5 Child to Parent Violence and ‘Wicked Problems’ – evidence from research? 22 2.5. 1 ‘Wicked Problems’? 22 2.5. 2 Thinking sociologically about data on child to parent violence . 23 2.5. 3 Interpreting the risk factors for child to parent violence within a bio-ecological framework . 25 2.5. 4 The prevalence of child to parent violence . 28 2.5. 5 The ages of children who use child to parent violence . 30 2.5. 6 Family composition, race-ethnicity, socio-economic risk factors . 31 2.5. 7 Alcohol and drug misuse as risk factors . 34 2.5. 8 Individual risk factors . 34 2.5. 9 Mental Health Disorders as risk factors . 35 2.6 Gender, abuse in the family and child to parent violence . 36 2.6. 1 Gender as a risk factor . 36 2.6. 2 Contested measures and outcomes . 38 2.6. 3 Child abuse and neglect as risk factors . 39 2.7 Engaging with violence in families . 41 2.7. 1 Domestic violence and abuse in Ireland . 41 2.7. 2 ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell? Domestic violence behind closed (office) doors . 42 2.7. 3 Is child to parent violence a form of domestic abuse/ violence? 44 2.7. 4 Domestic abuse, cycle of violence theories and child to parent violence . 45 2.7. 5 Similarities between domestic violence/ abuse and child to parent violence . 47 2.7. 6 Child to parent violence is distinctively different to domestic violence and abuse . 48 2.8 Thinking in gender terms about child to parent violence . 48 2.8. 1 Gender, feminism and men . 49 2.8. 2 Gender alone is not sufficient . 50 2.8. 3 Intersectional feminism and child to parent violence . 52 2.9 Child to parent violence and parenting practices in contemporary Western cultures . 53 2.9. 1 Do parents have authority at home? 53 2.9. 2 The authoritative parenting paradigm.55 2.9. 3 The effects of authoritative parenting . 56 2.9. 4 Parental authority and parental engagement/ presence . 57 2.10 Cultural/ social factors and responding to child to parent violence . 58 2.10. 1 A counter-intuitive dynamic . 58 2.10. 2 Child and family agencies/ systems and violence in families . 59 2.10. 3 Focusing on children as ‘victims’ only . 61 2.10. 4 Barriers to/ supports for parents disclosing experiences of child to parent violence . 62 2.11 Conclusion: Sociological perspectives on child to parent violence – increasing options for theory and practice. 64 Chapter 3: The Non Violent Resistance Programme – One Response to Child to Parent Violence . 66 3.1 Child to Parent Violence and Cultural Norms . 66 3.2 First encounters with child to parent violence . 67 3.3 Responses to Child to Parent Violence . 68 3.3.1 The MATTERS ProgrammeA Narrative and Psychodynamic and approach . 68 3.3.2 A Narrative and Solution-Focused Approach . 69 3.3.3 Practice dilemmas-non engagement of the child with the service . 70 3.4 The Non Violent Resistance Programme – Evidence supporting Innovation . 71 3.4. 1 Initial evidence supporting innovation . 71 3.4. 2 First steps in adapting NVR for use in Ireland . 72 3.4. 3 Additional evidence supporting the use of the NVR programme . 74 3.5 Preparing to implement the NVR Programme . 75 3.5. 1 Assessment and Engagement . 75 3.5. 2 Parental presence and a new understanding of ‘authority’ . 77 3.5. 3 The ‘New Authority’ and the Support Network . 78 3.5. 4 Externalising the problem – the problem is the problem . 80 3.6 The core elements of the NVR Programme . 81 3.6. 1 Parental commitment to Non-Violent Resistance . 82 3.6. 2 De-escalation skills . 83 3.6. 3 Increased parental presence . 85 3.6. 4 The Support Network . 86 3.6. 5 The Family Announcement . 87 3.6. 6 Acts of Reconciliation . 89 3.6. 7 Refusing orders and breaking taboos . 90 3.6. 8 The Sit In . 92 3.6. 9 Responding to challenges to the Sit and the NV