Children Exposed to Violence

A Handbook for Police Trainers to Increase Understanding and Improve Community Responses

by Linda L. Baker, P.G. Jaffe, S.J. Berkowitz & M. Berkman (2002)
This training manual is designed to assist police officers in the U.S. to understand and effectively respond to children and adolescents exposed to domestic violence at home. Frontline professionals aided the development of this resource which provides useful information on domestic violence, its impact on children at different developmental stages, and guidelines to assist police officers in responding to children where domestic violence is suspected or known. Features include case examples, "at-a-glance" information, community resources, answers to frequently asked questions and references. Development of this resource was funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

Also available: an interactive CD-ROM for Police Officers/Trainers. This companion to the manual is a learning tool for individual study or training workshops.

Download a Copy

Download an electronic copy here

Introduction
MODULE 1: Domestic Violence: What is It?
- Description
- Core characteristics
MODULE 2: Understaning the Needs of Children & Adolescents Exposed to Domestic Violence
- How are children and adolescents affected?
- Potential impacts at different developmental stages
- Interventions
MODULE 3: Special Considerations for Police Officers
- The intimate context of domestic violence
- The presence of children in domestic violence situations
- Risks to children in domestic violence situations
- Risk assessment, risk reduction and safety planning
- Issues related to dual arrest
- Collaborations and coordinated community responses
- Specialized training and cross training initiatives
MODULE 4: Frequently AsKed Questions
Appendix A: Resources
Appendix B: References

Ordering Information

This manual of 93 pages is available from the Centre for $15.00 plus shipping and handling. The CD-ROM is available for $5.00. Check out the order form for more information. We accept credit card purchases. Any problems, contact the Publications Clerk.

The Packard Handbooks

There are three other resources in the Packard Handbook series: for youth justice workers, teachers, and early childhood educators.

Canadian Version

Members of law enforcement in Canada will appreciate this 2004 update and revision, funded by the Department of Justice and the RCMP: Handbook for Police Responding to Domestic Violence.