“It shakes you for the rest of your life”: Low-income fathers’ understanding of domestic violence and its impact on children.

Abstract

Objective: Responsible fatherhood groups (RFGs) are evidence-informed interventions that educate and support low-income fathers, the majority of whom are system-involved men of color. RFGs have the potential to be powerful vehicles for domestic violence (DV) education; however, this content is not a universal or substantial focus across RFGs. The aim of this study was to explore RFG participants' understanding of DV and its impact on the children exposed to it. Such information is essential to ensure that efforts to educate this population about DV reflect their needs and life experiences. Method: Utilizing a practitioner-researcher approach, we conducted five focus groups with a racially and educationally diverse sample of low-income, urban fathers (n ϭ 38) recruited from RFGs. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis, guided by Massey's (2011) framework for coding focus group data. Results: Fathers articulated a nuanced understanding of DV and its impact on children, which they developed largely through their own nearly ubiquitous childhood experiences of DV and abuse by a father figure. Additionally, fathers tended to foreground physical violence over other forms of DV, feel powerless and profiled by systems, conceptualize childhood DV exposure as life-altering and devastating, and understand that the impact of DV "depends" on the person. Conclusions: Findings can bolster the transformative educational power of RFGs and inform the development of new initiatives that resonate with low-income, system-involved fathers. These efforts, however, should co-occur with opportunities for fathers to process their own traumatic childhood experiences.