Custody of children and secundary victimization in case of intimate partner violence (IPV)

Journal title MALTRATTAMENTO E ABUSO ALL’INFANZIA
Author/s Paola Ferro, Immacolata Di Napoli, Caterina Arcidiacono
Publishing Year 2026 Issue 2025/3
Language Italian Pages 17 P. 59-75 File size 129 KB
DOI 10.3280/MAL2025-003004
DOI is like a bar code for intellectual property: to have more infomation click here

Below, you can see the article first page

If you want to buy this article in PDF format, you can do it, following the instructions to buy download credits

Article preview

FrancoAngeli is member of Publishers International Linking Association, Inc (PILA), a not-for-profit association which run the CrossRef service enabling links to and from online scholarly content.

This research examines child custody decisions in case of intimate partner violence (IPV) through a systematic review of the literature on psychological contributions. The selected publications examined, in the international justice system: psychological aspects of custody procedures for children of women victims of domestic violence; the assessments of professionals involved; further factors influencing child custody and visitation decisions; and finally, the professionals’ positions on mediation and father-child contact in IPV cases are also detect. The results indicate the presence of secondary victimization for mothers seeking child custody in cases of intimate partner violence and witnessed violence.

Keywords: Domestic violence, father as violence perpetrator, IPV, custody of children.

  1. Mathis, R. D., & Tanner, Z. (1998). Effects of unscreened spouse violence on mediated agreements. American Journal of Family Therapy, 26(3), 251-260. DOI: 10.1080/01926189808251104
  2. WHO (World Health Organization) (2018). Violence against women: Prevalence estimates 2018. Geneva: WHO.
  3. Al Saleem, R. (2023). Custody, violence against women and violence against children. United Nations, Human Rights Council (disponibile online: https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/thematic-reports/ahrc5336-custody-violence-against-women-and-violence-against-children).
  4. Beck, C. J. A., & Raghavan, C. (2010). Intimate partner abuse screening in custody mediation: The importance of assessing coercive control. Family Court Review, 48(3), 555-565.
  5. Bemiller, M. (2008). When battered mothers lose custody: A qualitative study of abuse at home and in the courts. Journal of Child Custody: Research, Issues, and Practices,5, 3-4. DOI: 10.1080/15379410802583742
  6. Bow, J. N., & Boxer, P. (2003). Assessing Allegations of Domestic Violence in Child Custody Evaluations. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 18(12), 1394-1410. DOI: 10.1177/088626050325803
  7. Brownridge, D. A. (2006). Violence against women post-separation Aggression and Violent Behavior, 1; 514-530.
  8. WHO (World Health Organization) (2020). Global status report on preventing violence against children. Geneva: WHO.
  9. Consiglio d’Europa. (2011). Convenzione sulla prevenzione e la lotta contro la violenza nei confronti delle donne e la violenza domestica (STE No. 210) (disponibile online: https://rm.coe.int/council-of-europe-convention-on-preventing-and-combating-violence-agai/1680462537).
  10. Davies, B., & Ralph, S. (1998). Client and counsellor perceptions of the process and outcomes of family court counselling in cases involving domestic violence. Family & Conciliation Courts Review, 36(2), 227-245.
  11. Dim, E.E., & Lysova, A. (2021). Male Victims’ Experiences With and Perceptions of the Criminal Justice Response to Intimate Partner Abuse. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(15-16), NP13067-NP13091. DOI: 10.1177/08862605211001476
  12. Dragiewicz, M., (2010). Gender Bias in the Courts: Implications for Battered Mother and their Children. In M. Hannah & B.Goldstein (Eds.). Domestic Violence, Abuse, and Child Custody. DOI: 10.1177/1077801209331409
  13. Edleson, J. L. (1999). Mothers and children: Understanding the links between woman battering and child abuse. Sage Publications.
  14. Fehlberg, B., Kaspiew, R., Millbank, J., Kelly, F., & Behrens, J. (2015). Australian family law: The contemporary context (2nd ed.). South Melbourne, Australia: Oxford University Press.
  15. Feresin, M., Folla, N., Lapierre, S., & Romito, P. (2018). Family mediation in child custody cases and the concealment of domestic violence. Affilia: Journal of Women & Social Work, 33(4), 509-525. DOI: 10.1177/088610991876665962
  16. Feresin, M. (2020). Parental alienation (syndrome) in child custody cases: Survivors’ experiences and the logic of psychosocial and legal services in Italy. Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, 42(1), 56-67. DOI: 10.1080/09649069.2019.1701924
  17. Forssell, A. M., & Cater, Å. (2015). Patterns in child-father contact after parental separation in a sample of child witnesses to intimate partner violence. Journal of Family Violence, 30(3), 339-349.
  18. Galántai, J., Ligeti, A. S., & Wirth, J. (2019). Children exposed to violence: Child custody and its effects on children in intimate partner violence related cases in Hungary. Journal of Family Violence, 34(5), 399-409.
  19. Gardner, R. A. (1985). The Boys and Girls Book about Divorce: For Children and Their Divorced Parents - The Essential Book. Bantam Books.
  20. Georgsson, A., Almqvist, K., & Broberg, A. G. (2011). Dissimilarity in vulnerability: Self-reported symptoms among children with experiences of intimate partner violence. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 42(5), 539-556.
  21. Gutowski, E., & Goodman, L. A. (2020). Like I’m invisible’: IPV survivor-mothers’ perceptions of seeking child custody through the family court system. Journal of Family Violence, 35(5), 441-457.
  22. Hamel, J., Nicholls, T. L., Desmarais, S. L., Malley-Morrison, K., & Aaronson, J. (2009). Domestic violence and child custody: Are family court professionals’ decisions based on erroneous beliefs?. Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research, 1(2), 37-52. DOI: 10.1108/17596599200900011
  23. Hans, J. D., Hardesty, J. L., Haselschwerdt, M. L., & Frey, L. M. (2014). The effects of domestic violence allegations on custody evaluators’ recommendations. Journal of Family Psychology, 28(6), 957-966.
  24. Hardesty, J. L., Ganong, L. H., & Lloyd, S. (2006). How women make custody decisions and manage co-parenting with abusive former husbands. Journal 63 of Social and Personal Relationships, 23(4), 543-563. DOI: 10.1177/0265407506065983
  25. Hardesty, J. L., Hans, J. D., Haselschwerdt, M. L., Khaw, L., & Crossman, K. A. (2015). The influence of divorcing mothers’ demeanor on custody evaluators’ assessment of their domestic violence allegations. Journal of Child Custody: Research, Issues, and Practices, 12(1), 47-70. DOI: 10.1080/15379418.2014.943451
  26. Harman, J. J., & Lorandos, D. (2021). Allegations of family violence in court: How parental alienation affects judicial outcomes. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 27(2), 184-208.
  27. Haselschwerdt, M. L., Hardesty, J. L., & Hans, J. D. (2011). Custody evaluators’ beliefs about domestic violence allegations during divorce: Feminist and family violence perspectives. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 26(8), 1694-1719. DOI: 10.1177/0886260510370599
  28. Holtzworth-Munroe, A., Beck, C. J., Applegate, A. G., Adams, J. M., Rossi, F. S., Jiang, L. J., Tomlinson, C. S., & Hale, D. F. (2021). Intimate partner violence (IPV) and family dispute resolution: A randomized controlled trial comparing shuttle mediation, videoconferencing mediation, and litigation. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 27(1), 45-64.
  29. Hughes, J., & Chau, S. (2012). Children’s best interests and intimate partner violence in the Canadian family law and child protection systems. Critical Social Policy, 32(4), 677-695. DOI: 10.1177/0261018311435025
  30. ISTAT (2019). La violenza sulle donne dentro e fuori la famiglia. Roma: Istituto Nazionale di Statistica (disponibile online: https://www.istat.it/it/files/2019/11/Istat-audizione-violenza-genere-19-novembre-2019.pdf).
  31. Johnson, N. E., Saccuzzo, D. P., & Koen, W. J. (2005). Child Custody Mediation in Cases of Domestic Violence: Empirical Evidence of a Failure to Protect. Violence Against Women, 11(8), 1022-1053. DOI: 10.1177/1077801205278043
  32. Kernic, M. A., Monary-Ernsdorff, D. J., Koepsell, J. K., & Holt, V. L. (2005). Children in the Crossfire: Child Custody Determinations Among Couples with a History of Intimate Partner Violence. Violence Against Women, 11(8), 991-1021. DOI: 10.1177/1077801205278042
  33. Khaw, L., Bermea, A.M., Hardesty, J.L., Saunders, D., & Whittaker, A.M. (2021). “The System Had Choked Me Too”: Abused Mothers’ Perceptions of the Custody Determination Process That Resulted in Negative Custody Outcomes. J Interpers Violence, 36(9-10), 4310-4334. DOI: 10.1177/0886260518791226
  34. Kirkwood, D., (2012). ‘Just say goodbye’: Parents who kill their children in the context of parental separation. Melbourne: Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria.
  35. Laing, L. (2017). Secondary victimization: Domestic violence survivors navigating the family law system. Violence Against Women, 23(11), 1314-1335. DOI: 10.1177/1077801216659942
  36. Lessard, G., Flynn, C., Turcotte, P., Damant, D., Vézina, J.-F., Godin, M.-F., Paradis, F., Delisle, R., Alcedo, Y., Juneau, L., Rock, L., & Rondeau-Cantin, S. (2010). Child custody issues and co-occurrence of intimate partner violence and child maltreatment: Controversies and points of agreement amongst practitioners. Child & Family Social Work, 15(4), 492-500.
  37. Liberati, A., Altman, D. G., Tetzlaff, J., Mulrow, C., Gøtzsche, P. C., Ioannidis, J. P., Clarke, M., Devereaux, P., Kleijnen, J., & Moher, D. (2009). The PRISMA statement for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of studies that evaluate health care interventions: explanation and elaboration. DOI: 10.2427/5768
  38. Logan, T. K., Walker, R., Jordan, C. E., & Horvath, L. S. (2002). Child custody evaluations and domestic violence: Case comparisons. Violence and Victims, 17(6), 719-742.
  39. Miller, S.L., & Manzer, J.L. (2021). Safeguarding Children's Well-Being: Voices From Abused Mothers Navigating Their Relationships and the Civil Courts. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36(9-10), 4545-4569. DOI: 10.1177/0886260518791599
  40. Morrill, A. C., Dai, J., Dunn, S., Sung, I., & Smith, K. (2005). Child Custody and Visitation Decisions When the Father Has Perpetrated Violence Against the Mother. Violence Against Women, 11(8), 1076-1107. DOI: 10.1177/1077801205278046
  41. Naughton, C. M., O’Donnell, A. T., Greenwood, R. M., & Muldoon, O. T. (2015). ‘Ordinary decent domestic violence’: A discursive analysis of family law judges’ interviews. Discourse & Society, 26(3), 349-365. DOI: 10.1177/0957926514564738
  42. Nazioni Unite (1989). Convenzione internazionale sui diritti dell’infanzia e dell’adolescenza (disponibile online: https://www.unicef.it/convenzione-diritti-infanzia/).
  43. Pocar, V. e Ronfani, P.(1996). L’interesse del minore nella legge e nella pratica: esperienze nazionali a confronto. Milano: Guerini Scientifica.
  44. Rosen, L. N., & O’Sullivan, C. S. (2005). Outcomes of Custody and Visitation Petitions When Fathers Are Restrained by Protection Orders: The Case of the New York Family Courts. Violence Against Women, 11(8), 1054-1075. DOI: 10.1177/1077801205278045
  45. Rossi, F. S., Holtzworth, M. A., & Applegate, A. G. (2015). Does level of intimate partner violence and abuse predict the content of family mediation agreements?. Family Court Review, 53(1), 134-161.
  46. Sanders, L., Geffner, R., Bucky, S., Ribner, N., & Patino, A. J. (2015). A qualitative study of child custody evaluators’ beliefs and opinions. Journal of Child Custody: Research, Issues, and Practices, 12(3-4), 205-230. DOI: 10.1080/15379418.2015.1120476
  47. *Saunders, D. G., Tolman, R. M., & Faller, K. C. (2013). Factors associated with child custody evaluators’ recommendations in cases of intimate partner violence. Journal of Family Psychology, 27(3), 473-483.
  48. Saunders, D. G., Faller, K. C., & Tolman, R. M. (2016). Beliefs and recommendations regarding child custody and visitation in cases involving domestic violence: A comparison of professionals in different roles. Violence Against Women, 22(6), 722-744. DOI: 10.1177/1077801215608845
  49. Shepard, M. F., & Hagemeister, A. K. (2013). Perspectives of rural women: Custody and visitation with abusive ex-partners. "Affilia: Journal of Women & Social Work, 28(2), 165-176. DOI: 10.1177/0886109913490469
  50. Smith, C. P., & Freyd, J. J. (2014). Institutional betrayal. American Psychologist, 69(6), 575-587.
  51. Stover, C. S., Van Horn, P., Turner, R., Cooper, B., & Lieberman, A. F. (2003). The Effects of Father Visitation on Preschool-Aged Witnesses of Domestic Violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 18(10), 1149-1166. DOI: 10.1177/0886260503255553
  52. Tishler, C. L., Bartholomae, S., Katz, B. L., & Landry-Meyer, L. (2004). Is Domestic Violence Relevant? An Exploratory Analysis of Couples Referred for Mediation in Family Court. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 19(9), 1042-1062. DOI: 10.1177/0886260504268003
  53. Toews, M.L., & Bermea, A.M. (2017). “I Was Naive in Thinking, ‘I Divorced This Man, He Is Out of My Life’”: A Qualitative Exploration of Post-Separation Power and Control Tactics Experienced by Women. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 32(14), 2166-2189. DOI: 10.1177/0886260515591278
  54. Vivienne, E. (2017). Custody Stalking: A Mechanism of Coercively Controlling Mothers Following Separation. Fem Leg Stud, 25, 185-201.
  55. WHO (World Health Organization) (2002). World report on violence and health. Geneva: WHO.
  56. Wuest, J., Ford-Gilboe, M., Merritt-Gray, M., & Lemire, S. (2006). Using Grounded Theory to Generate a Theoretical Understanding of the Effects of Child Custody Policy on Women’s Health Promotion in the Context of Intimate Partner Violence. Health Care for Women International, 27(6), 490-512. DOI: 10.1080/07399330600770221
  57. Watson, L. B., & Ancis, J. R. (2013). Power and control in the legal system: From marriage/relationship to divorce and custody. Violence Against Women, 19(2), 166-186. DOI: 10.1177/1077801213478027
  58. Yoshihama, M., & Mills, L. G. (2003). When is the personal professional in public child welfare practice? The influence of intimate partner and child abuse histories on workers in domestic violence cases. Child Abuse & Neglect, 27(3), 319-336. DOI: 10.1016/S0145-2134(03)00009-7
  59. Zeoli, A.M., Rivera, E.A., Sullivan, C.M., & Kubiak, S. (2013). Post-Separation Abuse of Women and their Children: Boundary-setting and Family Court Utilization among Victimized Mothers. J Fam Violence, 1, 28(6), 547-560.

Paola Ferro, Immacolata Di Napoli, Caterina Arcidiacono, Custodia dei figli e vittimizzazione secondaria nel caso di IPV in "MALTRATTAMENTO E ABUSO ALL’INFANZIA" 3/2025, pp 59-75, DOI: 10.3280/MAL2025-003004