Children and Political Violence from a Social EcologicalPerspective: Implications from Research on Childrenand Families in Northern Ireland

摘要

The effects on children of political violence arematters of international concern, with many negativeeffects well-documented. At the same time, relationsbetween war, terrorism, or other forms of political violenceand child development do not occur in a vacuum. Theimpact can be understood as related to changes in thecommunities, families and other social contexts in whichchildren live, and in the psychological processes engagedby these social ecologies. To advance this process-orientedperspective, a social ecological model for the effects ofpolitical violence on children is advanced. This approach isillustrated by findings and methods from an ongoingresearch project on political violence and children inNorthern Ireland. Aims of this project include both greaterinsight into this particular context for political violence andthe provision of a template for study of the impact ofchildren's exposure to violence in other regions of theworld. Accordingly, the applicability of this approach isconsidered for other social contexts, including (a) anotherarea in the world with histories of political violence and (b)a context of community violence in the US.