A Scoping Review and Synthesis of Qualitative Evidence Reporting Stakeholders' Conceptualization of Child to Parent...

Child and Adolescent to Parent Violence and Abuse (CAPVA) is a significant social issue, but to date, there is limited understanding of how it is conceptualized by different stakeholders. This scoping review and qualitative synthesis aimed to: (a) Map the concepts used by stakeholders to describe CAPVA and (b) Generate a theoretical model to explain how stakeholders conceptualize CAPVA in terms of context, conditions, mechanisms, and outcomes. Searches were conducted in eleven bibliographic databases in June 2023 and updated in December 2024. Supplementary searches were conducted, including forward citation tracking and grey literature searching. All eligible reports were included in the scoping review and then theoretically sampled for inclusion in the qualitative synthesis. Quality appraisal was conducted with studies included in the synthesis. Sixty reports, linked to 45 studies, were eligible for the scoping review, while 39 reports were included in the synthesis. Common concepts describing the presentation of CAPVA included a range of violent and abusive behaviors. Different contributory factors and causes were identified across different socio-ecological system levels, highlighting heterogeneity. These included societal norms and expectations (n = 16), school struggles (n = 31), parenting (n = 32) and emotional regulation (n = 37). In the study samples included in the review, professionals and biological parents were represented more than children and young people and other parental figures. The synthesis developed four conceptual models utilized by stakeholders to explain CAPVA: patriarchy; family and parenting; symptom of wider conditions; and symptom of trauma. These models can support the development of interventions that respond to different stakeholders' conceptualizations.