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FAMI LY DYNAMI CS FROM THE PERSPECTI VE OF PARENTS AND CHI LDREN I NVOLVED I N
DOMESTI C VI OLENCE AGAI NST CHI LDREN AND ADOLESCENTS
Cam illa Soccio Mar t ins1 Mar ia das Gr aças Car v alho Fer r iani2 Mar t a Angélica I ossi Silv a3 Nide Regina Zahr4 Kát ia Michelli Ber t oldi Ar one4 Eliana Mendes de Souza Teix eir a Roque5
Mart ins CS, Ferriani MGC, Silva MAI , Zahr NR, Arone KMB, Roque EMST. Fam ily dynam ics from t he perspect ive o f p ar en t s an d ch i l d r en i n v o l v ed i n d o m est i c v i o l en ce ag ai n st ch i l d r en an d ad o l escen t s. Rev Lat i n o - am Enfer m agem 2 0 0 7 set em br o- out ubr o; 1 5 ( 5 ) : 8 8 9 - 9 4 .
We sought, in this investigation, to understand the fam ily dynam ics in the view of parents and children involved in Dom estic Violence against children and adolescents institutionalized in the Center of Assistance to the Victim ized Child and Adolescent (CACAV), in Ribeirão Preto-SP, Brazil. This is a qualitative study with sem i-structured interviews applied t o parent s and children from six fam ilies involved in dom est ic violence. The dat a were analyzed t hrough cont ent analysis. Ecology of hum an developm ent was used as theoretical reference. Dom estic violence was reported, though it is understood as com m on practice for the fam ilies. We identified that the parents’ view favors the denial of the violence perpetrated. The children, on the other hand, point that love ties and affection are m ore significant for their developm ent t han blood relat ions. We believe t hat t he knowledge acquired as how violence is experienced, can cont ribut e wit h intervention strategies capable of breaking the perverse cycle of violent fam ily relationships.
DESCRI PTORS: dom est ic v iolence; fam ily ; child; adolescent
LA DI NÁMI CA FAMI LI AR EN LA VI SI ÓN DE LOS PADRES Y NI ÑOS I NVOLUCRADOS EN
VI OLENCI A DOMÉSTI CA CONTRA NI ÑOS Y ADOLESCENTES
En est a inv est igación, buscam os com pr ender la dinám ica fam iliar par a padr es y hij os inv olucr ados en Violencia Dom éstica contra niños y adolescentes institucionalizados en el Centro de Atención al Niño y al Adolescente Víct im a ( CACAV) , en Ribeirão Pret o- SP, Brasil. El est udio es cualit at ivo, ut ilizándose ent revist as sem iest ruct uradas aplicadas a seis fam ilias, entre padres y hij os involucrados en violencia dom éstica. Tratam os los datos a través del análisis de cont enido. Ut ilizam os com o referencial t eórico la ecología del desarrollo hum ano. La violencia dom ést ica estuvo presente en los discursos, aunque sea com prendida com o práctica usual para esas fam ilias. I dentificam os que la ópt ica de los padres favorece la negación de la violencia perpet rada. Los niños apunt an que vínculos de am or y afección son m ás significativos para su desarrollo que los vínculos fam iliares establecidos m ediante consanguinidad. Creem os que, a part ir del conocim ient o de com o la violencia es vivida, podem os t raer posibles cont ribuciones para pensar est rat egias de int ervención capaces de rom per el ciclo perverso de las relaciones fam iliares violent as.
DESCRI PTORES: v iolencia dom ést ica; fam ilia; niño; adolescent e
A DI NÂMI CA FAMI LI AR NA VI SÃO DE PAI S E FI LHOS ENVOLVI DOS NA VI OLÊNCI A
DOMÉSTI CA CONTRA CRI ANÇAS E ADOLESCENTES
Nest a invest igação buscou- se com preender a dinâm ica fam iliar para pais e filhos envolvidos na violência dom ést ica cont ra crianças e adolescent es inst it ucionalizados no Cent ro de At endim ent o à Criança e ao Adolescent e Vitim izado (CACAV), na cidade de Ribeirão Preto, SP. O estudo é qualitativo, utilizando-se de entrevistas sem i-estruturadas aplicadas a seis fam ílias, entre pais e filhos envolvidos na violência dom éstica. Tratou-se os dados através da análise de conteúdo. Utilizou-se, com o referencial teórico, a ecologia do desenvolvim ento hum ano. A violência dom éstica esteve presente nos discursos, em bora seja com preendida com o prática usual para essas fam ílias. I dentificou-se que a ótica dos pais favorece a negação da violência perpetrada. Já as crianças apontam que vínculos de am or e afeição são m ais significat ivos para seu desenvolvim ent o do que os vínculos fam iliares est abelecidos por m eio de consangüinidade. Acredita-se que, a partir do conhecim ento de com o a violência é experienciada, pode-se trazer possíveis contribuições para se pensar estratégias de intervenção capazes de rom per o ciclo perverso das relações fam iliares violentas.
DESCRI TORES: v iolência dom ést ica; fam ília; cr iança; adolescent e
1
I NTRODUCTI ON
D
ealin g w it h f am ily v iolen ce is a com p lex t ask in t he current societ y, wit h specific charact erist icsand dim ensions r egar ding social, m or al, geopolit ical,
h ist or ical, econ om ic an d p sy ch olog ical asp ect s. For
t h is r eason , st u dies on t h is ph en om en on sh ou ld be
br oaden ed, sin ce it h as disast r ou s con sequ en ces in
all social segm ent s, including t hose concerning healt h
im p air m en t .
Th e f am ily h as been t h e f ocu s of car e an d
concern in nursing, since it has an ext rem ely relevant
r ole in h ealt h p r ev en t ion st r at eg ies, as w ell as in
planning and delivering children and adolescent healt h
car e. I n a cer t ain way, fam ily- cent er ed car e involves
all t he fam ily m em bers and special im port ance is given
t o t he r elat ionships est ablished am ong t hem , w hich
is underst ood as one of t he det erm inant s in t he healt
h-d isease p r ocess.
Violence wit hin t he dom est ic environm ent can
break t he fam ily st ruct ure, which is t he reference for
a f f e ct i v e , p sy ch o l o g i ca l a n d so ci a l d e v e l o p m e n t .
Dom est ic v iolen ce b r eak s t h e essen t ial t r u st b on d
n eed ed t o d ev el o p f a m i l y l i f e, a n d a f f ect s f a m i l y
r elat ionships and t heir m eanings.
Dom est ic v iolence is gener ally char act er ized
by t h e ov er u se of disciplin ar y an d cor r ect iv e pow er
b y p a r e n t s o r g u a r d i a n s, i n w h i ch t h e v i ct i m i s
com plet ely obj ect ified, and his/ her fundam ent al right s,
such as life, freedom and securit y, are disrespect ed( 1). This v iolence br ings about cult ur al and socially built
n o t i o n s , s u c h a s t h a t o f c h i l d h o o d p r o t e c t i o n ,
p u n i sh m e n t a s a p e d a g o g i ca l i n st r u m e n t , f a m i l y
hier ar chy and dom inat ion of t he st r ongest( 2). Alt hough t his t y pe of v iolence is difficult t o
underst and due t o t he cont roversies it im plies, it can
be classified accor ding t o it s for m s and ex pr essions.
Th e r e a r e f o u r m a i n k i n d s o f v i o l e n ce : p h y si ca l
v iolence, sex ual v iolence, psy chological v iolence and
negligence/ abandonm ent . All ar e defined as abusiv e
pract ice, infringing children and adolescent s’ right s( 3). Healt h t eam s, as w ell as ot h er sp ecialt ies,
suffer t he daily effect s of dom est ic v iolence and it s
c o n s e q u e n c e s , w h i c h i n t e r f e r e i n c h i l d r e n a n d
adolescent s’ growt h and developm ent . Therefore, t his
st udy adopt s t he perspect ive of producing know ledge
based on com m on sense, in order t o syst em ize it from
a sociologic and psychological perspect ive, considering
t h e m ean i n g of f am i l y d y n am i cs t o p ar en t s, t h ei r
c h i l d r e n a n d / o r g u a r d i a n s , v i c t i m s o f d o m e s t i c
v i o l en ce, t o m ak e i t p o ssi b l e f o r p r o f essi o n al s t o
r et hink t heir pr act ice and m ak e t heir w or k easier in
t er m s of coping w it h t his phenom enon.
OBJECTI VE
To u n der st an d f am ily dy n am ics f or par en t s
an d ch ild r en in v olv ed in d om est ic v iolen ce ag ain st
ch ildr en an d adolescen t s h ospit alized at t h e Cen t er
for Car e t o Child and Adolescent Vict im s ( CCCAV) in
Ribeirao Pret o, a cit y in t he st at e of Sao Paulo, Brazil.
THEORETI CAL FRAMEW ORK
To b e t t e r u n d e r s t a n d h o w a f a m i l y i s
st r u ct u r ed in v iew of dom est ic v iolen ce, in a br oad
and syst em ic way, t he analysis in t his st udy was based
o n a n e x t r a ct o f t h e e co l o g i ca l m o d e l o f h u m a n
dev elopm en t( 4 ).
The st udy of violent social relat ionships wit hin
t he fam ily r equir es a t heor et ical st r uct ur e capable of
e x p l a i n i n g t h e ca u sa l v a r i a b l e s i n t h e i r b r o a d e st
con t ex t . I n t h is sen se, Br on f en b r en n er ’s Ecolog ical
Syst em s Theory( 4) provides support t o underst and t he f am ily in it s dev elopm en t con t ex t an d t h e com plex
r elat ionship am ong it s m em ber s.
Th e t er m “ Eco l o g i ca l ” r ef er s t o a n a t u r a l
en v ir on m en t , ev er y day lif e obj ect s an d act iv it ies in
t he cont ext of t he research. On t he ot her hand, hum an
d e v e l o p m e n t i s u n d e r s t o o d a s a l o n g - l a s t i n g
t r ansfor m at ion r egar ding t he w ay one per ceiv es and
d ea l s w i t h t h e en v i r o n m en t . Th e h u m a n b ei n g i s
co n si d e r e d a g r o w i n g a n d d y n a m i c e n t i t y, w h i ch
p r og r essiv ely p en et r at es t h e en v ir on m en t in w h ich
( s) he liv es and r est r uct ur es it .
Acco r d i n g t o t h i s f r a m e w o r k , t h e m i cr o
-sy st em is a set of r oles per for m ed and int er per sonal
r e l a t i o n s h i p s e x p e r i e n c e d b y t h e p e r s o n u n d e r
dev elopm ent in a cer t ain env ir onm ent , w it h specific
phy sical and m at er ial char act er ist ics.
The m icro- syst em is t he first environm ent in
w h i c h t h e d e v e l o p i n g h u m a n b e i n g i s i n s e r t e d
accor ding t o social st andar ds. This env ir onm ent has
act iv it ies an d r elat ion sh ips t h at ar e associat ed w it h
cer t ain behav ior s and ex pect at ions; for inst ance, t he
m ot her- child relat ionship. Fact s t hat occur in a m
icro-sy st em ar e r elat ed and ent w ined w it h w hat happens
Sim ilar t o a sy st em of f it t in gs con t ain ed in
each ot h er, a m icr o- sy st em is in ser t ed in b r oad er
syst em s t hat influence and are influenced by t he first .
Th e ot h er sy st em s ar e called : m es sy st em , ex
o-sy st em , an d m acr o- o-sy st em .
The m eso- sy st em consist s of t he int er act ion
bet ween t wo or m ore environm ent s which one act ively
part icipat es in. Therefore, a m eso- syst em is a syst em
of m icr o- sy st em s.
The ex o- sy st em com pr ises t he env ir onm ent s
in which one or m ore fam ily m em bers m aint ain direct
relat ionships. However, t hese relat ions indirect ly reflect
on t he ot her m em bers w ho do not part icipat e in t his
en v ir on m en t( 4 ).
Th e m acr o- sy st em is t h e b r oad est sy st em ,
w h i ch co v er s al l o t h er s. I t i s f o r m ed b y a g l o b al
st andar d of ideas, beliefs, values and com m on social
or ganizat ions of a det er m ined cult ur e.
Social p olicies f or com b at in g v iolen ce an d
p r o m o t i n g ed u ca t i o n a n d h ea l t h a r e ex a m p l es o f
m a cr o - sy st e m s t h a t d i r e ct l y i n f l u e n ce t h e f a m i l y
sy st em dev elopm en t . Dom est ic v iolen ce is in ser t ed
in t h e m icr o sy st em b ecau se it ap p ear s in p ar en t
-c h i l d r e l a t i o n s h i p s . H o w e v e r, i t s -c a u s e s a n d
consequences m ay appear in t he subsequent syst em ,
or ev en in t he m acr o- sy st em .
I n t h e p r e se n t r e se a r ch , i t i s co n si d e r e d
essent ial t hat not only parent s, but also children and
adolescent s under st and how t he fam ily env ir onm ent
is ex p er ien ced at t h e d if f er en t lev els of ecolog ical
d ev elop m en t .
METHODS
Th e au t h or s ch ose t h e qu alit at iv e an aly sis,
w h ich in clu des all h u m an bein gs, an d con cen t r at es
on hum an ex per ience. Resear ch using t his appr oach
believ es t hat unique hum an beings assign m eanings
t o t heir experiences w hich result from t he cont ext of
life( 5).
Th e p r esen t st u d y sam p le w as select ed at
t he Cent er for Car e t o Child and Adolescent Vict im s
( CCCAV) , locat ed in Ribeirao Pret o, a cit y in t he st at e
of Sao Paulo, Br azil. I t is a shelt er for childr en and
adolescent s ( 2 t o 17 y ear s old) , v ict im s of dom est ic
v iolen ce w h o ar e at ser iou s r isk . Accor d in g t o t h e
t h eor et ical f r am ew or k , sh elt er s ar e t h e im m ed iat e
m i c r o - s y s t e m o f t h e s e v i c t i m i z e d c h i l d r e n a n d
adolescen t s. I t is believ ed t h at , based on r elat ion al
an d b eh av ior al asp ect s, t h e m icr o- sy st em ou t lin es
t hese social act or s’ com pr ehension of fam ily.
Th e su b j e ct s i n v o l v e d i n t h e st u d y w e r e
m em b er s f r om eig h t f am ilies w it h ch ild r en an d / or
adolescen t s in st it u t ion alized at t h e CCCAV in 2 0 0 4 ,
due t o t heir involvem ent in dom est ic violence. These
social act or s ar e essen t ial f or t h e pr esen t r esear ch
b ecau se each r ep r esen t s on e sid e of t h e d om est ic
v iolence issue under st udy.
Dat a w er e collect ed t hr ough sem ist r uct ur ed
int er v iew s. I nt er v iew s w it h childr en and adolescent s’
parent s/ guardians and siblings w ere m arked w it h t he
l e t t e r F t o i n d i c a t e f a m i l y. I n t e r v i e w s w i t h
i n s t i t u t i o n a l i z e d c h i l d r e n a n d a d o l e s c e n t s w e r e
m arked w it h t he let t er A.
Dat a w er e t r eat ed by m eans of t he cont ent
analy sis t echnique, t hem at ic m ode( 6). This t echnique consist s in classifying t he elem ent s t hat com pose t he
in t er v iew , t h u s com posin g t h em at ic gr ou ps u n der a
gener ic t it le, put t ing com m on subj ect s t oget her.
Th e pr esen t r esear ch w as appr ov ed by t h e
I n st it u t ion al Rev iew Boar d of t h e Un iv er sit y of Sao
Pau lo at Rib eir ao Pr et o Colleg e of Nu r sin g , u n d er
p r ot ocol n u m b er 0 1 2 0 / 2 0 0 0 , accor d in g t o Nat ion al
Healt h Council Resolut ion 196 of 1996. All int erview s
used in t his st udy w er e duly aut hor ized.
RESULTS
Them at ic gr oup - t he fam ily cont ex t
I n t he at t em pt t o elucidat e t he dim ension and
c o m p l e x i t y o f t h e i t e m p r e s e n t e d t h r o u g h t h e
st at em en t s of t h e in t er v iew ed su b j ect s, t h is g r ou p
consist ed of t w o sub- t hem es: I deal fam ily ; and Real
f am ily.
Sub- t hem e 1 - ideal fam ily
I n t his sub- t hem e, t he aut hor s at t em pt ed t o
g r o u p d ef i n i t i o n s o f f a m i l y i d en t i f i ed i n su b j ect s’
st at em ent s, fr om an ideal per spect iv e.
Re g a r d i n g f a m i l y c o n f i g u r a t i o n , t h e
perspect ive of t he aggressor parent is t hat of a nuclear
fam ily, t hat is, t he idealizat ion of a fam ily bonded by
biological par ent s and blood bonds. I t is also not ed
t hat t here is a hierarchic relat ionship of parent s over
children. I n a st udy wit h low- incom e Brazilian fam ilies,
based on k inship, on t he bour geoisie nuclear fam ily,
in which t he fat her- m ot her- children st ruct ure prevails.
Only t his m odel w ould be capable of pr om ot ing t he
necessary condit ions for a child’s developm ent( 6). The follow ing st at em ent show s t hat idealizat ion.
A group of people t hat are relat ed by blood ( F5) .
Som e st udies in Brazil about fam ily show t he
d iv er sit y in or g an izat ion , com p osit ion an d f or m of
s o c i a b i l i t y. Th e r e a r e c u r r e n t l y d i f f e r e n t f a m i l y
st r u ct u r e s i n o u r so ci e t y, i n cl u d i n g sp o u se s w i t h
ch i l d r e n f r o m p r e v i o u s m a r r i a g e s, y o u n g si n g l e
m ot her s, and divor ced par ent s shar ing t he cost s and
r e sp o n si b i l i t i e s o f r a i si n g t h e i r ch i l d r e n( 8 ). Th e se ch an g es i n f am i l y co m p o si t i o n si g n i f i can t l y af f ect
dom est ic life and st r uct ur al r elat ionships and define
t h e f am ily m od el. Non et h eless, ag g r essor p ar en t s
m ain t ain t h e n u clear f am ily v iew , t h at is, on e t h at
c o n s i s t s o f a f a t h e r, m o t h e r a n d c h i l d r e n . I t i s
underst ood t hat t his fam ily concept ion rem ains socially
and cult urally est ablished in our societ y.
On t he ot her hand, m ost int erviewed children
an d ad olescen t s con sid er t h at f am ily m em b er s ar e
al l t h o se p eo p l e t o w ar d s w h o m t h ey n u r t u r e an y
feeling of affect ion and t rust . They are m ore linked t o
lov e t han blood connect ions. This is r epor t ed in t he
follow ing st at em ent s.
I consider m y fam ily t o be all t hose who help m e, and
also have som e hope t owards m e ( A1) .
People whom I live wit h and I consider a brot her or
sist er t o m e, like people here at t he shelt er ( A4) .
Analyses of t he int er view s suggest t hat , due
t o d om est ic v iolen ce or t o t h e f act t h at t h ey h ad
a l r e a d y b e e n i n s t i t u t i o n a l i z e d , c h i l d r e n a n d
adolescent s built a cer t ain fam ily v iew t hat is based
on an ecologic and psy chological per spect iv e.
Re g a r d i n g f a m i l y f u n ct i o n , ch i l d r e n a n d
adolescents as well as their parents and guardians bear
a load of expectations. They hope their fam ily is capable
of providing all t he affect ive and social support needed
for their m em bers’ developm ent. At the m acro and m
icro-syst em levels, t he fam ily is perceived as a sound and
healt hy inst it ut ion. This is evidenced in t he st at em ent .
…fam ily is union, love, t enderness, it is com prehension
and respect … ( F3) .
Social and econom ic crises can cause changes
in the accepted social pattern, especially regarding fam ily
identifications. This can be evidenced in the statem ent.
I would like t o have a fam ily like before, m y fat her was
rich and I had a bike, and Sant a Claus visit ed m y house and left
t wo boxes of cookies ( A6) .
The relat ion of m at erial goods wit h t he fam ily
c o n c e p t c a n b e e x p l a i n e d i n t h e c o n t e x t o f
i n st i t u t i o n al i zat i o n , w h i ch o f t en i n cl u d es h av i n g a
back gr ound of financial difficult ies, w hich det er m ine
t he dissolut ion of t he fam ily union.
The social det er m inat ions of violence have a
v er y b r o ad d ev el o p m en t sp ect r u m . Po v er t y al o n e
does not explain violence, but it creat es or facilit at es
delinquency and bandit ry in econom y t hat is m arkedly
unem ploy ing, select iv e and ex cluding( 9 ).
The idealizat ion of an absent parent ’s role is
also a m ar k in g f act or. I n st it u t ion alizat ion , in som e
ways and sit uat ions, cont ribut es t o preserve t he im age
of underst anding and t hought ful parent s. Children and
adolescent s hav e a const ant need for v aluing absent
p eop le.
Anot her point w ort h highlight ing is t he view ,
fr om an ideal per spect ive, of how childr en should be
raised by t heir parent s. Most children and adult s st at ed
t hat t he best way t o educat e children is t hrough dialogue
and t hat physical aggression should never exist .
This fact is lik ely an indicat or of pr ot ect ion,
since it encour ages t hese fam ilies t o r econsider t heir
at t it u d es t ow ar d t h e d iscip lin e u sed t o r aise t h eir
ch ildr en , con sider in g t h at t h ey h av e been pot en t ial
aggr essor s an d v ict im s.
For children, t here is an expect at ion regarding
t he w ay s t hey can discipline and educat e t heir ow n
children in t he fut ure. Their st at em ent s show a need
t o break free from t he educat ion m odel used by t heir
p ar en t s. Th ey d isap p r ov e p h y sical p u n ish m en t an d
w ish t o adopt dif f er en t f or m s of disciplin e, su ch as
dialogue and r est r ict iv e punishm ent .
I would t reat m y children different ly from what m y
m ot her does, t ot ally. I would be very t hought ful ( F1) .
Sub- t hem e 2 - t he real fam ily
Wh en t h e st u d ied f am ilies ar e ob ser v ed in
t er m s of in t er per son al r elat ion sh ips, t h e in it ial idea
of an id eal f am ily is soon r ep laced b y a v iew t h at
agrees wit h t he t ough realit y of t he violence t hey have
been subj ect t o.
Ch i l d r en an d ad o l escen t s af f i r m ed , i n t h e
previous sub- t hem e, t hat fam ily represent s union and
a source of affect ion. St at em ent s show t hat t he fam ily
m icr o- sy st em is ch ar act er ized by sit u at ion s of loss,
abandonm ent , w it hdr aw al and abuse.
The present st udy findings show considerable
-r elat ionships. The m ot he-r figu-r e is unable t o im pose
au t h or it y an d lim it s, leav in g t h is t o t h e fat h er, w h o
m ay not be t her e t o per for m t hat dut y. This im pair s
t he child’s fam ily m icro- syst em in t erm s of t he respect
t ow ar d im posing lim it s.
Accor ding t o t he t heor et ical fr am ew or k , it is
obser v ed t h at t h e lack of a su ppor t sy st em , w h ich
w ould offer som e backing t hr ough appr opr iat e fam ily
gu idan ce, also pr om ot es con f lict s, as sh ow n in t h is
st at em en t .
The Guardian Council t old m e t hat you can’t hit and
beat your child, so I don’t know what we are supposed t o do
because t he day t he police brought him here, t hey t old m e I
should t each him a lesson ( F2) .
The support net work is charact erized by a set
of sy st em s and significant people w ho ar e par t of a
fam ily cont ext , which is not iced by t he individual. The
absence of t his t ype of net work can cause risk fact ors
for t he developm ent of t he fam ily m icro- syst em .
I t i s i m p o r t an t t o st at e t h at so m e o f t h e
in st it u t ion alized ch ild r en an d ad olescen t s f ou n d it
d if f icu lt t o d ef in e f am ily, in eit h er an id eal or r eal
cont ext . This is explained by t he fact t hat t hey live in
a pr ocess r efer r ed t o as t r ian gu lat ion , t h at is, t h ey
are const ant ly being shelt ered or run away, from hom e
or fr om t he shelt er. This t r iangular dy nam ics, st r eet /
h om e/ sh elt er, im p lies a r u p t u r e w it h t h e f eelin g of
f a m i l y. I t i s a l so v e r i f i e d t h a t i n st i t u t i o n a l i za t i o n
w eak ens t he r efer ence fr am ew or k of or igin.
Consider ing w hat has been pr esent ed in t his
sub- t hem e, t hink ing about r ealit y helps childr en and
adolescen t s t o dev elop fam ily r esilien ce an d sear ch
for r elat ionships based on st abilit y and r ecipr ocit y.
FI NAL CONSI DERATI ONS
Since ancient t im es, but especially at present ,
t h e f a m i l y r e p r e se n t s t h e p r i o r i t y sp a ce a n d t h e
foundat ion on which opport unit ies of socializat ion,
well-b e i n g a n d p r o t e c t i o n a r e e s t a well-b l i s h e d i n h u m a n
r e l a t i o n sh i p s. Th e ch a r a ct e r i st i cs o f e a ch f a m i l y
nucleus, it s com posit ion, condit ions and qualit y of life
im plies a higher or lower degree of vulnerabilit y and,
consequent ly, a higher or low er degr ee of pow er.
Modern life im poses a group of m oral, social,
polit ical and cult ural fact ors t hat com pet e t o organize
fam ilies and societ y, oft en disrespect ing t he essent ial
pr inciples and v alues of life and hum an coex ist ence.
Hence, t he fam ily consist s of a space t hat const ant ly
reproduces t he power of hierarchy and subordinat ion,
of d om in at or ov er d om in at ed , of ad u lt d om in at ion
ov er ch ildr en .
I n t er m s of t h e ad v an ces ach iev ed so f ar,
social and polit ical per m issiv eness r em ains r egar ding
v i o l e n c e a g a i n s t c h i l d r e n a n d a d o l e s c e n t s . Th i s
im pedes t he pr oblem fr om being det ect ed, and car e
and int er v ent ion fr om being pr oper ly offer ed.
I t w a s v e r i f i e d t h a t f a m i l y d y n a m i c s i s
u n d e r s t o o d b a s e d o n r e f e r e n c e s r e g a r d i n g t h e
s i n g u l a r i t y o f t h e e x p e r i e n c e d v i o l e n c e , a n d i s
ex p r essed t h r ou g h d en ial or n at u r alizat ion of t h at
v iolence. St at em ent s shift fr om t he im aginar y of an
ideal fam ily t o t he realit y of a concret e fam ily, which
i s f i l l ed w i t h v i o l en ce a n d u su a l l y d o es n o t h a v e
en ou gh fin an cial r esou r ces or a su ppor t n et w or k t o
f a ci l i t a t e t h e e l a b o r a t i o n o f t h e i r p r o b l e m s a n d
in t er v en t ion .
I t is acknowledged t hat t he healt h care facilit y
is a privileged place t o act on dom est ic violence, and
t h a t t h e r e a r e n u m e r o u s d i f f i c u l t i e s f o r h e a l t h
pr of ession als t o deal w it h t h is ph en om en on . Th ese
i n cl u d e t h e p r o f e ssi o n a l s’ l a ck o f k n o w l e d g e a n d
pr eparat ion t o ident ify, assist and r efer v ict im s, and
t he difficult y t o not ify confir m ed cases and deal w it h
ag g r esso r s.
Ther efor e, it is necessar y t o st r engt hen and
c r e a t e n e w s p a c e s f o r v i c t i m c a r e , w i t h
m ult idisciplinary t eam s following t he logic of t he care
an d su p p or t n et w or k t h at , f r om t h e social act or s’
perspect ive, should include great er polit ical effort and
com m it m ent in or der t o be effect iv e.
REFERENCES
1. Guerra VNA, Sant oro M, Azevedo MA. Violência dom ést ica con t r a cr ian ças e adolescen t es e polít icas de at en dim en t o: do silêncio ao com prom isso. Rev Bras Crescim ent o e Desenv. Hu m an o 1 9 9 2 ; 2 ( 1 ) .
2 . Deslan des SF. Pr ev en ir a v iolên cia: u m desaf io par a os p r of ission ais d e saú d e. Rio d e Jan eir o ( RJ) : Fiocr u z/ En sp / Cl a v es; 1 9 9 4 .
3. Minayo MCS. O significado social e para a saúde da violência cont ra cr ianças e adolescent es. I n: West phal MF. Violência e cr iança. São Paulo ( SP) : EDUSP, 2002. p. 95- 114.
4. Bronfenbrenner U. A ecologia do desenvolvim ent o hum ano: ex p er i m en t o s n at u r ai s e p l an ej ad o s. Po r t o Al eg r e: Ar t es Méd i ca s; 1 9 9 6 .
6. Bar din L. Análise de cont eúdo. Lisboa: Edições 70; 1979. 7. Szym anski H. Teorias e “ t eorias” de fam ílias. I n: Carvalho MCB, organizadora. A fam ília cont em porâneo em debat e. São Pau lo ( SP) : EDUC; 1 9 9 7 . p. 2 3 - 2 7 .
8. Rom anelli G. Aut or idade e poder na fam ília. I n: Car v alho MCB, or ganizador a. A fam ília cont em por ânea em debat e. 2 ed. São Paulo ( SP) : EDUC/ Cor t ez; 1 9 9 5 .
9 . Ro q u e EMST, Fe r r i a n i MGC. D e sv e n d a n d o a v i o l ê n ci a d om ést ica con t r a cr ian ças e ad olescen t es sob a ót ica d os op er ad or es d o d ir eit o n a com ar ca d e Jar d in óp olis- SP. Rev Lat in o- am En f er m agem 2 0 0 2 m aio; 1 0 ( 3 ) : 3 3 4 - 4 4 .
