Does Intimate Partner Violence negatively impact maternal parenting? A meta-analytic review on positive parenting, harsh discipline and parenting stress

The present meta-analytical study aims to deepen the knowledge about the relationship between Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and maternal parenting quality, considering that literature did not provide univocal results. Some studies, consistent with the spillover hypothesis, have documented the negative relationship of IPV and parenting in victimized mothers, including harsh discipline, physical/verbal aggressions or ineffective parenting, which in its turn may lead to poorer children’s adjustment. In contrast, some studies found good parenting behaviors in line with the hypothesis that women may try to compensate for the violence exposure by offering increased nurturing and protection to their child. Primary studies were selected through database searches (on SCOPUS, ERIC and PSYCINFO) and reference lists of eligible studies and review articles about the topic. The study was performed in line with the PRISMA guidelines (1) and the study protocol is available on PROSPERO*. All quantitative studies which measured both the level of the experienced IPV (in the present or in the past) and selected parenting outcomes were included. The study provides a quantitative synthesis based on correlations for each selected parenting sub-construct. Moreover, depression and post-traumatic symptoms are tested as moderators. Results and applicative implications (like interventions for mother-child dyads and trauma-informed assessment of parental skills) will be discussed.