Intimate partner violence and child maltreatment

This chapter considers the child within the context of the family unit and explores the co-occurrence of physical intimate partner abuse (IPV) with child physical abuse (CPA). It presents an overview of the co-occurrence rates, effects on the child, risk factors and theoretical explanations for this overlap and the implications this evidence has for research, policy and practice. It is argued that collectively the results highlight the need to adopt a systemic view and further explore and respond to patterns of family violence and abuse in research and practice. Although it is recognised that both types of family violence can manifest in a range of different forms of aggression, for the most part research has considered physical child and partner abuse in heterosexual relationships. Conducting careful and accurate assessments of family violence is itself a challenge, as most parents are hesitant to be forthcoming in the context of an identifiable assessment.