[Children and domestic fights. A review of 105 social reports]

The object of this investigation was to describe the conditions for children in families with domestic rows on the basis of 105 social reports made by the Copenhagen police during a period of one year. A total of 162 children were involved in domestic rows. The typical family had 1-2 children. In 14% of the cases, the domestic rows were reported by the child. In connection with the domestic rows, violence to the women occurred in just under half of the cases and to the children in 6%. In 77% of the cases of domestic rows, at least one of the adults was under the influence of alcohol/medicine/narcotics. The mental and somatic conditions of the children were not fully described in the social reports. The investigation revealed that the children were primarily the victims of passive violence which may damage their ability to form emotional relationships with others and thus may injure development of their personalities. The legal compulsory notification according to Danish Law is emphasized and it is pointed out that notification is only relevant in this connection when it results in action from the social and health authorities.