Violence, Stress and Childhood Development

No one would argue that violence has long term effects on children. A child who is the victim of first-hand violence often suffers impacts to her biopsychosocial development. The Center on the Developing Child out of Harvard University, reminds us that no developmental domain develops in isolation, and traumas that seemingly effect one area, also effect the others. 

For years I have worked with bereaved children and adults. I'm always surprised by resilience that human beings can demonstrate after a significant loss; however, with a child, there is more to be considered. One study found that there is no significant difference in the complicated grief or occurrence of PTSD in children  who have experienced parental loss, whether it be a sudden/traumatic death, or an expected death (McClatchy, Vonk, Palardy, 2009). Studies also indicate that children how have experienced parental loss are more likely to experience psychiatric disorders and/or delinquent behaviors later (Draper & Hancock, 2011). Therefore, it would not be inaccurate to state that children who have experienced violence bi-proxy, in the form of traumatic parental death, are impacted developmentally. 

As an example, I once worked with a family who's teenage son was killed by a hit and run drunk driver. In addition to the deceased son, the family had three additional children, ages 5, 8, and 11. I worked with all of the children and witnessed the diverse grief experiences of each. The youngest, a beautiful 5 year old girl, struggled with the permanence of her brother's death; the 8 year old and the 11 year old demonstrated significant anger over the unfairness of the death; and the 11 year old also struggled with now, very suddenly, being the oldest sibling and what this would mean for him. At 5 years of age, the young girl was at a sensitive period for reading development and language learning. This was particularly significant for her because her family is Latino, and the primary language spoken at home was Spanish. Over the course of 18 months in working with her, she demonstrated significant social withdrawal and isolation, decreased use of English (which she previously was doing great with), and regression in her reading and early academic development (according to her pre-K teacher). I struggled deeply with how best to work with her, and while we made some great success during out time together, it was clear that her developmental status effected her grief, which in turn effected her further development. Three years after the family's loss, I was informed that the children were continuing to adapt, however, the eldest (now 14) was beginning to have risk factors for self-harming behaviors. 

Consider Syria, then, where the number of children who have lost parents due to violence and war continues to rise. One source reports that there are two million child refugees from Syria, and "8,000 children fled Syria without their parents" (International Business Times, 2015).  According to UNICEF, 7.5 million children have been affected by unrelenting violence, crumbling infrastructure, ruined schools and hospitals and shortages of essential supplies (UNICEF, n.d.). The majority of the children who have sough refuge in Turkey live in substandard accommodations (often camps), with little to no money to support basic needs, and do not attend school (AlJazeera, 2016). The effects to the development of these children is enormous and holistic. Provided the child survives, she will likely suffer cognitive delays, PTSD related to toxic stress, and physical issues related to inadequate medical support and malnutrition. While countries like Turkey have made attempts to support the refugees, and families across the world have opened their homes to orphaned children, the conflict continues with no end in sight. This means that it is highly likely that an entire generation of children will suffer the long term effects of this war: physically, cognitively, socially, emotionally, and spiritually. 

References

AlJazeera. (2016). The Orphans of Syria's War. Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/2016/05/orphans-syria-war-160528083608975.html

Center on the Developing Child–Harvard University. (n.d.). InBrief: Early childhood program effectiveness. [Video file]. Retrieved from http://developingchild.harvard.edu/index.php/resources/multimedia/videos/inbrief_series/inbrief_program_effectiveness/
 
Draper, A., & Hancock, M. (2011). Childhood parental bereavement: the risk of vulnerability to delinquency and factors that compromise resilience. Mortality, 16(4), 285-306. doi:10.1080/13576275.2011.613266

International Business Times. (2015). Amid Refugee Debate, Unaccompanied Syrian Children Have Willing US Families Ready to Foster, Experts Say. Retrieve from http://www.ibtimes.com/amid-refugee-debate-unaccompanied-syrian-children-have-willing-us-families-ready-2192977


McClatchy, I. S., Vonk, M. E., & Palardy, G. (2009). The Prevalence of Childhood Traumatic Grief—A Comparison of Violent/Sudden and Expected Loss. Omega: Journal Of Death & Dying, 59(4), 305-323. doi:10.2190/OM.59.4.b

UNICEF (n.d.). Help Syrian Children. Retrieved from https://www.unicefusa.org/donate/help-syrian-children/16078?utm_campaign=2016_misc&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=20160107_google&utm_content=syria&ms=cpc_dig_2016_misc_20160107_google_syria&initialms=cpc_dig_2016_misc_20160107_google_syria