Domestic violence is manifested in various ways and has been conceptualized by some as taking direct and indirect forms. Indirect abuse can result from inter-parental violence where children are not the direct subject of the abuse. However, children feel the effects. While often characterized as witnessing inter-parental violence and hearing it without necessarily seeing it, children definitely still feel its effects.
While often characterized as witnesses to inter-parental violence, which implies a passive role, children actively interpret, attempt to predict and assess their role in causing the violence. Sometimes they completely internalize it and think that it is all their fault.
The terms direct and indirect abuse are potentially misleading because children are affected by indirect abuse and are not just passive witnesses. They live with it and experience it directly just like adults do and therefore should be recognized as direct victim of violence and abuse. This could improve the professional response to their needs and help them heal.
