Adolescents point of view on the cooccurrence of domestic violence with parental substance use or mental health issues
For a long time, research on intimate partner violence set aside the children and adolescents who are exposed to this problem. It was only in the 1980s that studies began to demonstrate the extent of the negative consequences of exposure to this type of violence. Studies conducted with adolescents pertained mostly to exposure to intimate partner violence in isolation, whereas it is often experienced in cooccurrence with other parental or family problems. This qualitative study proposes an exploration of the experience of adolescents who are exposed to the cooccurrence of violence with parental substance use or mental health problems, to better understand their point of view and better grasp the perceived consequences of this cooccurrence. The study was conducted with eleven 12- to 16-year-old adolescents who were exposed to these forms of cooccurrence. The data were collated by means of a table presenting the family difficulties and of semi-structured interviews. The results highlighted the participants’ degree of understanding of the family difficulties, their perceptions of the links between these problems, the consequences that they themselves and their family members experienced, as well as the difficulties that exacerbated their exposure. Several new findings, such as the adolescents’ difficulties perceiving the cooccurrence and the richness of their narratives on the consequences of the parental problems, were noted. This study could thus constitute an anchoring point for future, theoretical or practical, research.