| Child witnesses of domestic violence are often greatly impacted in many domains of functioning. Strong parent-child relationships and secure attachment patterns are crucial components of children's resilience. While it is crucial that mothers provide nurturance and support to their children, their trauma may prevent them from being emotionally available. Although families that seek help at domestic violence shelters receive a multitude of services, little is done in these settings to address the all important parent-child relationship. Dyadic therapies have been shown to be effective in treating traumatized children by strengthening the parent-child relationship and fostering a sense of empowerment and efficacy in mothers. In this study, dyadic therapy adapted to a multi-family group setting is proposed to strengthen parent-child relationships between mothers exposed to domestic violence and their children, given the unique nature of domestic violence shelters, and the challenges of traditional group therapy in this setting. |
