Examining the impact of maternal experiences of domestic violence on the mental health of their adolescent children in India

Abstract

Background Domestic violence (DV) is experienced by one in three women in India and is linked to poor mental health outcomes. We hypothesize that maternal experiences of DV can have negative impacts on the mental health of their children. Previous studies have demonstrated this link in Western countries, however culturally specific manifestations of DV and mental health disorders and socio-cultural differences in parent-child relationships and home environments necessitate deeper understanding of the impacts of maternal experiences of DV on children in the Indian context. Methods This study presents a secondary analysis of data collected from a seven-center study in urban and rural India examining mental health disorders among adolescents aged 12–17 years and psychological, physical, and sexual abuse affecting their mothers. The Indian Family Violence and Control Scale (IFVCS) was used to examine experiences of DV among mothers and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview–Kid (MINI-Kid) was used to examine mental health outcomes among adolescents. Multivariate analyses examined the associations between maternal DV and adolescent mental disorders. Results Data from 2,784 adolescent-mother pairs were analyzed. In bivariate analyses, maternal experiences of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse were significantly associated with adolescent common mental disorders including anxiety and depression (p < 0.05). After adjusting for adolescent gender, site, and education status in the multivariate analysis, physical, sexual, and any DV were significantly associated with adolescent anxiety disorders and common mental disorders. Physical abuse was significantly associated with adolescent depressive disorders. Conclusions These results suggest that exposure to maternal DV significantly impacts adolescent mental health in India and underscore the need to develop trauma-informed school programs and enhance DV prevention for women in India.