Adolescents' Experiences of Parental Violence in Danish and Finnish Families: A Comparative Perspective

TY - JOUR

T1 - Adolescents' Experiences of Parental Violence in Danish and Finnish Families

T2 - A Comparative Perspective

AU - Ellonen, Noora

AU - Kääriäinen, Juha

AU - Sariola, Heikki

AU - Helweg-Larsen, Karin

AU - Larsen, Helmer Bøving

PY - 2011/12

Y1 - 2011/12

N2 - International comparative analyses enable the identification of specific, national criminal problems and the assessment of the effects of national prevention strategies. We compare the prevalence and a number of background factors of adolescents' experiences of parental violence between Denmark and Finland based on school surveys conducted among ninth-grade students in 2008: these were The Danish Youth Health Survey with 3,943 respondents and The Finnish Child Victim Survey with 5,762 respondents. Experiences of parental violence include being exposed to maternal or paternal violence or being witness to violence against the mother or father at home. Overall, the prevalence of adolescents' experiences of parental psychological aggression and physical violence is relatively similar in Denmark and Finland. However, marked gender differences exist. Finnish girls more frequently report experiences of psychological aggression and physical violence than Danish girls, whereas Danish boys more frequently report experiences of psychological aggression than Finnish boys. Having witnessed physical violence against the mother or father and having been exposed to parental violence are both more frequently reported by Finnish than Danish youth. In both countries, experiencing parental violence is more correlated to a number of family-associated factors, such as inter-parental fighting, little confidentiality between the youth and parents, and poor supervision of the youth, than to traditional socio-economic factors. The study article provides evidence on the context-related nature of violence experiences.

AB - International comparative analyses enable the identification of specific, national criminal problems and the assessment of the effects of national prevention strategies. We compare the prevalence and a number of background factors of adolescents' experiences of parental violence between Denmark and Finland based on school surveys conducted among ninth-grade students in 2008: these were The Danish Youth Health Survey with 3,943 respondents and The Finnish Child Victim Survey with 5,762 respondents. Experiences of parental violence include being exposed to maternal or paternal violence or being witness to violence against the mother or father at home. Overall, the prevalence of adolescents' experiences of parental psychological aggression and physical violence is relatively similar in Denmark and Finland. However, marked gender differences exist. Finnish girls more frequently report experiences of psychological aggression and physical violence than Danish girls, whereas Danish boys more frequently report experiences of psychological aggression than Finnish boys. Having witnessed physical violence against the mother or father and having been exposed to parental violence are both more frequently reported by Finnish than Danish youth. In both countries, experiencing parental violence is more correlated to a number of family-associated factors, such as inter-parental fighting, little confidentiality between the youth and parents, and poor supervision of the youth, than to traditional socio-economic factors. The study article provides evidence on the context-related nature of violence experiences.

U2 - 10.1080/14043858.2011.622076

DO - 10.1080/14043858.2011.622076

M3 - Journal article

SN - 2578-983x

VL - 12

SP - 173

EP - 197

JO - Nordic Journal of Criminology

JF - Nordic Journal of Criminology

IS - 2

ER -