There is a significant difference between the brain of a child who is currently in a loving and supportive environment than a child who has seen Domestic violence and aggression. These battered children would develop the need of isolation in fear of getting hurt by peers. They are also more prone to psychological dysfunctions such as depression and anxiety.

Causes of Domestic Violence and Aggression

Age

It is influential on a person’s aggressive behavior. Toddlers at the age of one to three years old are aggressive due to the use of physical aggression to acquire ones’ needs and wants.

Gender

Males are more aggressive than females. This does not mean females are never physically aggressive. Females do when provoked by the same species. It’s found that women tend to use physical aggression more than men. But, when men use physical aggression, men are more likely to cause serious injuries and death.

Experiences

More specifically, unpleasant events are sure to cause frustrations and aggression. Unpleasant events such as cramming for class requirements, loud noises, scolded or criticized by people, social withdrawal, etc.

Alcohol

This increases the likelihood of domestic violence and aggression instead of causing this. In other words, alcohol is only one factor that influences a person to be hostile. Intoxicated aggression falls into two categories. This disrupts cognitive processes and the social attitudes of an intoxicated person.

All these factors may influence the hostile behavior of a person.  But there is a theory called, a cycle of violence. It explains the behavior of a person who causes and commits to domestic and family violence. which also explains the effect to the people who continually face these events.

Cycle of Violence: 6 Stages

Build-up stage

It is when a relationship begins, and there is a gradual increase in tension. This will be verbal, emotional, physical, or financial abuse.

Stand over phase

It is when the violence increases inevitably that the people who experience the person’s outbursts feel empty and fearful of causing the situation to worsen.

Explosion

The time when the perpetrator seeks to burst out their tension and is out of control, the person uses violence to control and have power over others.

Remorse phase

The perpetrator feels guilty of the actions and withdraws from the relationship.

Pursuit phase

The stage where the perpetrator promises the person or people affected to treat them better and to not act negatively again.

Honeymoon phase

When the perpetrator and victim are in denial of the abuse and violence that happened but later on, the cycle would begin again.

Children exposed to an aggressive and violent household is more likely to adopt this on ones’ future relationships. The link between being a spectator of the violent behaviors of ones’ parents and bringing it to adulthood still has a vague answer.

According to the researchers from Indiana University’s Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, one of the reasons behind a child carrying out the hostile behaviors witnessed maybe because of these children observed how their parents solve problems in a hostile and destructive manner.

Thus, as these children grow up, the child learns to process that the kind of behavior their parents showed was a good way to handle conflicts.

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Asif Haneef

A writer with passion to share his insights on food, health, sports, and travel. For him, writing was a hobby that turned into a way to share his knowledge to the world.