Combinations of Parent-Related Risk Factors Explaining Family Violence Toward Children and Spouse

TL;DR

This study explores how combinations of parent-related risk factors contribute to family violence toward children and spouses, using data from a large Finnish survey.

Contribution

The study identifies specific risk factor clusters and quantifies how their accumulation increases the likelihood of family violence.

Findings

Even a single risk factor significantly predicts family violence.

Parents with four or more well-being risk factors are six times more likely to report family violence.

Accumulation of risk factors in the well-being cluster contributes most to family violence risk.

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate parent-related risk factor combinations that explain family violence (FV), which refers to intimate partner violence and child maltreatment (CM). The data were collected from parents with a 4-year-old child using a nationwide retrospective cross-sectional survey conducted in Finland (FinChildren) (N = 10,737). The research questions were as follows: (a) How are parent-related risk factors associated with FV against children and the spouse? (b) How does the accumulation of parent-related risk factors within three risk factor clusters explain FV? Analyses were carried out using cross-tabulations with χ2 tests, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and binary logistic regression analyses. The risk factor clusters built based on the EFA were as follows: parental well-being, parent’s childhood adversities, and parent’s health. Our results indicated that even a single risk factor predicted the likelihood of FV. In the well-being risk factor cluster, the odds for the occurrence of FV in parents with one well-being risk factor were double (odds ratios [OR] = 2.21; confidence intervals [CI]: [1.99, 2.45]) and in parents with at least four risk factors was six times (OR = 6.05; CI: [4.48, 8.18]) compared to those with no risk factor. We concluded that (a) the more different risk factors parents had, the more likely they were to report FV and (b) the accumulation of risk factors for well-being contributes most to the occurrence of the risk of FV. As a result, we emphasize the importance of identifying families with concurrent risk factors. However, any individual concerns must be addressed with parents and they must be supported in coping with their everyday life.

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