Children's Appraisals of Conflict, Beliefs About Aggression, and Externalizing Problems in Families Characterized by Severe Intimate Partner Violence

This research examined whether children’s threat and self-blame appraisals regarding interparental conflict and their beliefs about the justifiability of aggression  predicted children’s externalizing problems in families in which there had been recent severe intimate partner violence (IPV). Participants were 106 children (62 boys, 44 girls) aged 7 to 10 and their mothers. Families in which there had been recent severe IPV were recruited during their stay at a domestic violence shelter. Children completed measures of threat, self-blame, beliefs about the justifiability of aggression, and externalizing problems. Mothers completed a measure of  children’s externalizing problems. Measures were completed at 3 time points, spaced 6 months apart. In multilevel modeling analyses, threat appraisals and beliefs bout the justifiability of aggression were positively associated with children’s reports of externalizing problems concurrently, and self-blame appraisals were positively associated with mothers’ reports of externalizing problems concurrently. In prospective analyses, beliefs about the justifiability of aggression at 1 time point were positively associated with children’s reports of externalizing problems 6 months later. The results provide partial support for the modified cognitive-contextual framework.