Positioned against the backdrop of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the Istanbul Convention and grounded in a rights-based approach, this chapter celebrates the critical and burgeoning empirical knowledge based on children's experiences of living with domestic violence in Europe. Respecting and upholding children's right to participate in research and have a say in all matters affecting them, this chapter further positions children not only as victims in need but also as subjects and rights holders. To this end, the chapter will highlight the rationale for and challenges of engaging children and young people in research before exposing an increasing body of European research and researchers that engages directly with children as expert informants on their own lives and lived experiences.

Introduction: Refugees face the process of cross-cultural transitions upon arrival in their host country. This process is commonly referred to as acculturation and can be particularly challenging for asylum-seeking children and adolescent unaccompanied by a caregiver. To more effectively facilitate unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) resettlement, this study sought to obtain an enhanced understanding of the acculturation processes of these youth’.

Methods: Thus, interviews with 48 URMs, all of whom arrived before the age of 16 years, were analyzed in two steps. First, how the youth described their host country’s society and culture, followed by how they navigated within this societal and cultural landscape during resettlement.

Results: The youth described how they navigated the Norwegian cultural and societal landscape by gaining cultural competence, adapting and finding ways to contribute, which made it easier for the youth to gain access to the society, to succeed as well as enhance their sense of agency. However, the youths also reported having to navigate between the expectations of their original and host country cultures, struggling with finding a balance between the two cultures.

Discussion: The youth’ acculturation processes seemed to be the result of both their own needs, wishes and behavior as well as specific features in their host country culture, which supports the notion that acculturation processes to some degree are context- and culture-dependent. Knowledge regarding the cultural and societal framework that these youth face and how they navigate within it during resettlement is critical for identifying possible cross-cultural challenges and promoting positive developmental tracks. To understand more about acculturation and integration processes, future research should include specific cultural and societal features as well as immigrants’ own perspectives and experiences during resettlement.

In this chapter we discuss the role of school for children experiencing domestic violence (DV). School has repeatedly been recognised as important, it is one of the few places where a child’s home situation can be identified and reported to authorities, it is also an important arena for violence prevention work. Despite recognition of the importance of school for children experiencing DV, little research has been conducted in this field. We begin by reviewing the existing research on the impact of DV on children’s schooling and school experiences. With the help of the voices of children we have interviewed in our studies, we then explore their perspectives on school attendance and absence, their experiences of “coming and being” at school and their experiences of teacher recognition and school strategies. We conclude by discussing the child’s right to education, to attend school and pursue schooling, to learn, to feel safe at school and to receive help.

Although the police have been identified as a key service provider when responding to domestic violence and abuse (DVA), very few studies have investigated their response in relation to children. This review aims to examine children’s experiences of police response in the context of DVA and to explore how the police understand and respond to children living with DVA. A rapid review of the empirical literature on the police response to DVA involving children was undertaken. PsycINFO, Web of Science and ProQuest were searched. Studies with a qualitative element, concerning children under 18 with experience of police involvement, or police experiences of children, in the context of DVA were included. The final sample comprised of six studies. Using reflexive thematic analysis, four key themes emerged in relation to children: children’s experiences of DVA; fear, uncertainty, and mistrust of police; confronting “childism”: a matter of children’s rights; and going beyond empathy: equality and justice. Regarding the police, three key themes emerged: variability in police response; limited view of police role; lack of professional competence. The findings underscore the need for awareness raising and an urgent review of the training officers receive regarding the impact of DVA on children. They also highlight the pivotal role of police when responding to DVA where children are present, as well as to advance the frontiers of research by including not only adults and professionals but also the most vulnerable DVA victim: the child.

Internationally, it is established that many youth experience violence within their romantic intimate relationships (youth intimate partner violence, Youth IPV). In Sweden, however, despite a well-developed research field on domestic violence and violence against children, knowledge about the prevalence of Youth IPV remains lacking. Therefore, taking its starting point in a mixed-method study on youth IPV in Sweden, this study presents incidence rates of Youth IPV victimization in a sample of Swedish youth, as well as associated factors to such victimization. Arenas of violence – i.e. settings where the violence takes place – are also addressed. In total, 59.7% (n = 526) of study respondents reported having experienced some form of IPV either once or multiple times. The results suggest gender differences: girls reported higher rates of victimization, especially for multiple experiences of violence. Markers for IPV victimization are presented. It is shown that Youth IPV happens in arenas to which adults have access. Viable markers for victimization are suggested; furthermore, the belief that ‘only at-risk youth experience IPV’ is challenged. It is critical that Youth IPV be considered a social problem in Sweden, deserving of specific attention and interventions. Youth IPV does not happen behind closed doors, but under the same roof as adults who have the obligation to protect them (i.e. parents and school staff) and this offers unique opportunities to respond and help. Further research should investigate the support offered to IPV-exposed youth, thereby shifting the focus to how this social problem is tackled.

This article focuses on how one staff member at a therapeutic residential institution negotiates his work identity, exploring how he narrates a violent incident, the formation of work identity, and how the adolescent figures within these processes. Mishler argues that when speaking, we perform identity. As social actors, we select and organize language, telling stories that fit the audience, our intentions, and the occasion. The article is framed both theoretically and methodologically through the assumption that narrative is a fundamental human way of giving meaning to our experiences. Identities are understood as being produced and performed within personal narratives. Thus, in an interview situation, narratives provide an interactive space for personal subjectivities to be expressed and enacted. Drawing on Mishler, we find three essential "turning points" that shape Alex’s work identity: (1) the violent incident, (2) the adolescent’s return to the ward, and (3) Alex’s subsequent change of wards. We interpret Alex’s narrative as a "narrative of resistance" that may have practical day-to-day implications for the field of institutional care and help expand the staff’s clinical toolbox. Further, Alex’s narrative is a vital example of stories of violence, which can be incorporated into policy documents on violence management.

Taking its starting point in a mixed methods study on Dating Violence/Youth Intimate Partner Violence (youth IPV), this article emphasizes the social sphere of youth IPV and contributes to a focus shift from consequences and risks to responses, resilience, and resistance. It asks how IPV-exposed youth describe their responses and those of their social networks to violence, and how these responses might be interconnected with resilience. By exploring the concepts of ‘resistance’ and ‘paradoxical resilience’, youth responses in the context of an abusive relationship are highlighted. The empirical data comes from 18 in-depth, ‘teller focused’ interviews with victimized youth (aged 17–23) in Sweden. A theoretical thematic analysis of the interviews surfaced responses from three different types of actors, all described from the youth perspective. Responses are discussed from the point of view that they can promote resilience, but also enable abuse to continue. Overall, the data show youth-specific factors that have meaningful bearing on responses as well as resilience. The article also proposes that responses should be an omnipresent concern for practitioners working with these young people and for the adults involved in their lives.

Key Practitioner Messages

• The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in negative consequences for children exposed to violence and abuse.
• Domestic violence refuge staff were greatly concerned about children both living outside and inside refuges.
• Domestic violence refuges have played a pivotal role during the COVID-19 pandemic and should receive wider acknowledgement and greater support for their work.

Most research on Youth Intimate Partner Violence (YIPV) has focused on prevalence rates and associated factors. Less attention has been given to how victimization manifests itself in young women's lives. The aim of this paper is to further our understanding of the dynamics of violence and abuse by investigating the contextual, situational, and relational aspects of IPV among young women. We specifically ask what meanings are attributed to the abuse and what role digital media plays. Finally, to develop our understanding, we apply Johnson's typology of violence.Semi-structured interviews were performed with 33 young women from Norway and Sweden, aged 15 to 23 years old, who had all experienced some form of IPV in a heterosexual relationship. The analysis included both thematic and narrative analysis.Victimization was characterized by six overarching themes: control, humiliation, fear, sexual coercion, secrecy, and resistance. Meanings attributed to the violence include relating it to the couple's youth and the male partner's personal issues. Digital media played a central role in the victimization, but also in the women's resistance and protection. Applying Johnson's typology suggests that the violence can be understood as patriarchal terrorism.It is crucial that young people's intimate lives, in all their complexities, are acknowledged, if IPV prevention and intervention is to succeed. Researchers need to design their studies to include contextual, situational, and relational aspects. Failing to do so might result in a view of YIPV as isolated instances of conflict, overlooking its often pervasive and severe nature.