Violence in the family

Violence against somebody is a big social problem. It is sad that in Lithuania level of violence is quite high. The family is a system, which means that violence in any part of the family equals violence in every part. Usually the victims are women and children and that is not a surprise. Men more often than women use alchohol, are more agressive, feel powerful. Women are the first who feel men agression. Woman abuse is a primary indicator of child abuse and vice versa.



There are some kind of institutions that help these women and children, for example, Mother's and child's lodging-house but there is another problem. Often people who regularly feel violence in the family are afraid to say it for anybody, they keep their mouth shut. In that situation most of all suffer children who also feel abuse. Most people who work with children of alcoholics are well aware that these children often suffer from physical violence against them by a drunken parent. Many children of alcoholics have mothers who are abused and the mother's abuse affects the child in significant ways:



- They are at high risk for alcohol and drug use;

- sexual acting out;

- running away frpm their homes;

- isolation;

- fear ;

- finally, suicide..



Coping with problem of violence, a lot of attention should be payed to chilren psychical problems because children who are raised in violent homes may learn to repeat the family patterns either by becoming abusers or battered themselves as adults. Boys who have witnessed abuse of their mothers are 10 times more likely to batter their female partners as adults ("Women and Violence," Hearings before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, August/December 1990).



To sum it up, i would like to say that social workers often meet with this phenomenon and try to help victims of violence but still The solution to stopping violence in the family is up to each of us. When we understand this critical social issue, we will overcome our fear of working with battered families, and we will be able to reach out and draw them back into a sane and safe world.