Consequences of Exposure to Domestic Violence for Children: A Systematic Review of the Literature

The aim of this study was to carry out a systematic review of the literature on the consequences of exposure to domestic violence – DV for children. The period 2005-2011 was searched in Medline, Lilacs, Scielo, Web of Science, Dialnet, Redalyc, Google Scholar and PsycInfo, using the following descriptors: intimate partner violence , domestic violence , violence descriptors ( physical , sexual, psychological ), and child , exposure or witness . The author, country, methodology, journal and the consequences of exposure to DV were considered. 122 articles were selected. The United States and Brazil accounted for 78.7% of the publications, with children being the main victims (51.6%). The major impacts upon children´s health were posttraumatic stress and insecurity (75.8%).