Peer-reviewed article
INVESTIGATING SENSITIVITY OF FATHERS TOWARDS VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN
Gülsün Ayran, Semra Köse, Ayda Çelebioğlu ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined 534 Turkish fathers' sensitivity and attitudes towards violence against children. Most fathers (53.2%) showed moderate sensitivity to violence against children, with an average sensitivity score of 43.70. The study found that fathers' education level, employment status, place of residence, and family type significantly influenced their sensitivity to violence. Fathers with higher education and urban residence tended to have greater sensitivity to child violence.
Key points
- 53.2% of fathers demonstrated moderate sensitivity to violence against children
- Mean Violence Sensitivity towards Children Scale score was 43.70±5.07
- Educational status, employment status, place of residence, and family type significantly affected fathers' sensitivity levels (p<0.05)
- 51.1% of fathers had witnessed violence before; 70.2% had not been exposed to violence
- 61.6% of fathers had university degree or higher education
Limitations
This is a descriptive cross-sectional study without a control group or intervention, so it cannot explain causation or test whether changes in attitudes lead to behavioral changes. The online data collection method may have introduced selection bias by excluding fathers without internet access or digital literacy.
Abstract
AIMS: The study was carried out for determining fathers’ sensitivity towards violence against children. METHODS: The study in descriptive quality was carried out with 534 fathers with children aged 0-18 between November and December 2020. The “Descriptive Question Form” and “Violence Sensitivity towards Children Scale” were used to collect the data. The data were collected online from fathers. Percentage, average, independent T-test, Mann-Whitney U-test and multiple regression analysis were used to interpret the data. RESULTS: The mean age of the fathers participating in the study was 36.95±6.66, 61.6% had a university degree or higher, 67.2% had an income equal to their expenses, 71.7% lived in the city center, 84.6% had a nuclear family, and 38.8% It was found that ten had only one child. It was determined that 51.1% of the fathers had witnessed violence before, 70.2% had not been exposed to violence before, 55.6% did not smoke, 86.9% did not use alcohol, and 57.9% perceived their family relations as normal. In the study, it was found that there was a statistically signifi cant relationship between the variables of educational status, employment status, fathers’ place of residence and family type, and the mean scores of the Susceptibility to Violence Against Child Scale (p<0.05). It was determined that 53.2% of the fathers showed moderate sensitivity to violence and the mean score of the Susceptibility to Violence against Child Scale was 43.70±5.07. It was determined that 53.2% of the fathers were sensitive towards moderate violence and the average score of the Violence Sensitivity towards Children Scale was 43.70±5.07. CONCLUSIONS: As a result of the study, it was determined that fathers showed moderate sensitivity to violence against children, education status, employment status, place of residence of fathers and family type were effective variables on the level of sensitivity to violence against children.