Raising a child bereaved by domestic homicide: caregivers' experiences

Abstract

Background: Optimising support for children and families affected by fatal family violence requires understanding all aspects of their experience. So far, little is known regarding the views of those who provide a home to children bereaved due to parental intimate partner homicide.Objective: The aim of the current study was to provide an in-depth exploration of the experiences of caregivers raising children after the loss of a parent due to intimate partner homicide.Method: Within the context of a mixed-methods study among 22 caregivers (16 female, 6 male, aged 33 to 71 years old) related to 35 children and young people (19 female, 16 male), bereaved due to parental intimate partner homicide in the Netherlands, we conducted a reflexive thematic analysis of the qualitative caregiver interviews.Results: Based on caregivers' accounts, we conceptualised four interrelated and ongoing challenges: (1) bringing the children into the family fold; (2) dealing with the perpetrator and relatives; (3) managing underprepared services; and (4) enduring it, mentally and physically. Sticking with their commitment to the children despite these challenges, caregivers also pointed to the potential for positive outcomes or turns of events, and recounted experiences of finding or making meaning.Conclusions: The complexity of the challenges the caregivers in our study faced and their remarkable commitment and perseverance underscore the importance of concerted, continuing efforts to understand and respond to families' needs in the aftermath of parental intimate partner homicide. We discuss practical implications regarding caregivers' assessment of children's needs, mental health care, information provision and agency, mediation of family conflict, provision of respite care, addressing financial and practical needs, and long-term and equitable access to support. We also propose a research agenda involving evaluation of current protocols, in-depth qualitative research, quantitative analyses (where possible based on pooled data), and intervention studies.