How are Children Affected by Domestic Violence?

Linda Baker and Allison Cunningham (2007) share that “children are not passive witnesses to noise, tension and violence at home. Little eyes and little ears don’t miss much, soaking in sights and sounds.”

Recent Canadian data continue to reinforce this reality. Self-reported victimization surveys indicate that approximately 40–45 per cent of adults who experienced intimate partner violence said that a child saw or heard the violence, a proportion that has remained consistent over time. In addition, in about 4–6 per cent of domestic violence incidents, a child was directly threatened, physically harmed, or otherwise targeted during the incident.

Police-reported data show that children are frequently present in homes where domestic violence occurs, with estimates suggesting that more than 4 in 10 incidents involve children who either witness the violence or live in the household where it occurs.

Between 2018 and 2023, there were an average of 70–90 intimate partner homicide deaths per year in Canada, and approximately 10–15 per cent of victims were children or youth, either killed directly or during incidents involving parental or caregiver violence. In many cases, these deaths occurred alongside the homicide of a parent, most often the child’s mother.