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The impact of family violence on children: an exploratory study

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The impact of family violence on children: an exploratory study

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Content Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 1

The Impact of Family Violence on Children:
An Exploratory Study
by
Bertha Hale

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

December 2019

Copyright 2019 Bertha Hale
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Table of Contents
List of Tables 4
List of Figures 5
Introduction of the Problem of Practice 9
Organizational Context and Mission 9
Importance of Addressing the Problem 10
Description of Stakeholder Groups 11
Stakeholder Group of Focus 12
Purpose of the Project and Questions 13
Methodological Approach 15
Review of Literature 16
Impact of Family Violence on Children 17
Court Ordered Parent Education Programs 21
Knowledge and Skills 25
Motivation 28
Organizational Influences 30
Conceptual Framework: The Interaction of Affiliate Educators’ Knowledge,
Motivation and the Organizational Context 32
Participating Stakeholders: Sampling and Recruitment 35
Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale 36
Criteria 1 36
Criteria 2 36
Criteria 3 37
Research Methods and Data Collection Procedures 37
Interviews 39
Findings 40
Conceptual and Procedural Knowledge Findings 41
Motivation Findings 45
Organizational Influences: Communication and Accountability 48
Summary of Results and Findings 52
Summary 77
Conclusion 79
References 82
Appendix A: Interview Protocol 93
Appendix B: Credibility and Trustworthiness 96
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Appendix C: Ethics 98
Appendix D: Limitations and Delimitations 100
Appendix E: Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan 102

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List of Tables
Table 1: Organizational Mission, Global Goal and Stakeholder Performance Goals 13
Table 2: Knowledge Influences and Types 27
Table 3: Motivation Influences 30
Table 4: Organizational Influences 32
Table 5: Participating Stakeholders 40
Table 6: Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations 54
Table 7: Summary of Motivation Influences and Recommendations 57
Table 8: Summary of Organizational Influences and Recommendations 60
Table 9: Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes 68
Table10: Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation 69
Table 11: Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors 70
Table 12: Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program 73
Table 13: Components to Measure Reactions to the Program 75
Table 14: Affiliate Educator Progress and Accountability of Performance Goals 76
(Levels 1, 2, and 3)

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List of Figures
Figure 1: Conceptual framework diagram. 32

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Dedication
To children who suffer because of exposure to family violence which may cause emotional and
psychological core issues to be embedded throughout the tapestry of their lives.

To my deceased husband, Silas Hale Sr. and our son, Silas Hale Jr. Memories of you gave me the
courage to look beyond my loss to make a difference in the lives of others.
“Love is Stronger than Death!”
and
“Love Never Dies!”

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Acknowledgments
“To God Be the Glory!” Without Him I would Be Nothing!”
I want to thank my children, Irick (Linda), Lisa (Fred)
Grandchildren: Jazzon, Ilaisha, Chelsea, Jonathan, Jonah, and Gabriel for the joy you bring
“I Look to You!”
While our family was in “A Passage Through the Night!” on our way to “A Pursuit of Hope and
Healing” God sent Marvin Miller, into our lives. “Great is Thou Faithfulness!” Thank you for
encouragement, support, media assistance and administrative tenacity to challenge me to a new level
of advocacy for children. I am extremely honored and grateful for a special bond with
Trojan Sisters: Christina Gonzalez and Jacqueline Cavalier Nelson
Dr Helena Seli: Chair of Dissertation Committee
Dr Kimberly Hirabayashi
Dr Mark Peterson
Dr Chris Matteson
Guadalupe Montano

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 8

Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore the degree to which affiliate educators’ perceptions of their
ability toto educate high conflict parents on the impact of family violence on children. A secondary
purpose was for affiliate educators to motivate parents to acquire a desire to master communication
techniques that can reduce children’s exposure to the long term cognitive, emotional, psychological
and social impact of seeing, hearing or being a victim of family violence. Eight affiliate educators
were interviewed for this qualitative study regarding their experiences providing services for high
conflict parents involved in court proceedings. The study identified knowledge, motivation, and
organizational needs and presented recommendations to address those needs. Affiliate educators
perceived the court's policies of not communicating expectations, monitoring or evaluation of court
programs to be barriers to their performance. The findings highlighted the importance of affiliate
educators as stakeholders who are relied upon by the court to teach parents to improve their
communications skills. The study also concluded that in order to optimize the services to parents, it
would be beneficial for courts to require affiliate educators use evidenced-based parent education
programs and to measure participant outcomes. Based on the findings, it was recommended that the
courts build communications and accountability with affiliate educators. As perceived by affiliate
educators, it was equally important to have communication and accountability standards along with
guidance from the courts to provide a better quality of services.

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 9

Introduction of the Problem of Practice
Nearly 30 million children in the United States are exposed to some type of family violence
before the age of 17 (Hamby, Finkelhor, Turner, & Ormrod, 2011; Taggart, 2011). Family violence
is considered to be any form of abuse, mistreatment or neglect that a child or adult experiences from
a family member or from someone with whom they have an intimate relationship. Behaviors of
abuse may be exhibited through verbal, physical, sexual, economic, emotional or psychological
actions (United States Department of Justice, 2017). The 2014 National Survey on Children’s
Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV) reported that one of every fifteen children are exposed to family
violence each year, and 90% are eyewitnesses to domestic violence (Finkelhor, Turner, Ormrod, &
Hamby, 2009). Children exposed to family violence can develop anxiety, aggression, depression,
suicidal ideations, poor academic performance, or social development deficiencies (Wallerstein,
2008). These social, emotional, or psychological deficits impede children’s ability to thrive into
adulthood and may lead to drug addiction, unemployment, or cycles of generational violence
(Herrenkohl, 2008). Overall, finding resolutions to family violence is important because it can have
a profoundly negative impact on the overall quality of life for children. Family violence has many
effects on society as a whole causing financial burdens' in the form of government support and
interventions for the home, community, and society at large. The awareness of family violence is
needed to improve everyday lives and society.
Organizational Context and Mission
The County of Hope (pseudonym) Superior Court Family Law Division is the organization
of focus in this study. Hope Family Law Division presides over divorces, registered domestic
partnership, paternity, custody, visitation, child and spousal support, and domestic violence as
outlined in sections 4600-4603 of the Family Law Act (Family Law Code, 2014). Hope County
Superior Court has 14 courthouses to serve its two million residents and has the second highest
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 10

number of court cases filed in the state. The mission of Hope County Superior Court is to resolve
disputes in a fair, accessible, effective, and efficient manner, by applying the law consistently,
impartially, and independently to protect the rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitutions of
California and the United States (Judicial Council Statistic Report, 2016).
Importance of Addressing the Problem
In light of the long-term effects of family violence, the importance of spreading awareness
and limiting how often it occurs in homes is a priority. Solving Family violence is essential for a
variety of reasons. When children are victims of family violence, their life is negatively impacted
physically, socially, emotionally, psychologically, and cognitively. Poor communication among
family members may lead to family violence, a societal problem which occurs across all
geographical locations and socio-economic segments of the population with negative implications
for everyone (National Research Council of the National Academies, 2012). There is a substantial
amount of evidence that supports the facts that children are suffering significant harm in their homes
due to family violence. For example, children exposed to family violence are at higher risk for
anxiety, depression, and other post-traumatic disorders, including alcohol and drug abuse (Harris,
Lieberman, & Marans, 2007). Family violence is an intergenerational cycle where children who
grow up in a family of domestic violence grow up and recreate similar domestic violence patterns
with their children. Intergenerational violence not only has an effect on a micro level it takes a toll
on a macro level. Intergenerational family violence places a burden on child protective services, law
enforcement, substance abuse treatment providers, criminal justice systems, school systems and
society (Brown, Cohen, & Ehrensaft, 2003). Family violence creates life-long problems for all
exposed children and a financial burden on society

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 11

Organizational Performance Goal
Currently, Hope County Superior Court does not have a specific organizational performance
goal that addresses the problem of family violence and its effect on children. An aspirational
organizational performance goal is that by May of 2019, a minimum 16-week parenting education
program on anger management, child abuse, co-parenting, and domestic violence, will result in 80%
of litigants mastering communication techniques that reduce the negative impact of family violence
on children. This aspirational goal was determined during discussions with the California Judicial
Council representative at a three-day training to provide courts services for families.
Description of Stakeholder Groups
The key stakeholders involved with an awareness of family violence are parents, judges,
mediators, and affiliated educators. In the Family Law Court Division, parents are the primary
stakeholders in high-conflict litigations. When parents initiate a petition requesting litigation for
unresolved issues, other stakeholders such as the judge or commissioner, commonly referred to as
judicial officials, are involved in all aspects of the case.
In most civil cases, like child custody cases family court judges engage in a problem-solving
role (Babb, 2010). Divorce, separation, and parental responsibility cases present complicated
emotional and non-legal issues, requiring a family court judge to have familiarity with theories and
research in disciplines such as social work, psychology, and dispute resolution (Babb, 2010). The
family court judge must consider the availability of numerous services while coordinating with a
team of interdisciplinary professionals to ensure that services are adequately delivered (Babb, 2010).
In addition, he or she may oversee a multidisciplinary group of service providers all engaged with
the children and families (Babb, 2010).
The child custody mediator is the stakeholder who provides a memorandum to the judge to
assist with making decisions and issuing orders. The role of the mediator is to provide an
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 12

opportunity during a one-on-one interview with each parent to resolve disagreements about a
parenting plan for their children (Judicial Council of California, 2018). The mediator also provides
custody and visitation support to parents who adopt parenting in the best interest of the children. The
standard adopted by the courts for the best interests of the child includes allowing children to spend
time with both parents and assist parents with learning new tools to deal with anger or resentment
(Judicial Council of California, 2018).
If the parents can reach an agreement, the mediator can assist with writing a parenting plan
and present it to the judge for approval which then becomes a custody and visitation order (Judicial
Council of California, 2018). However, if parents are unable to reach an agreement in the best
interest of their children, the mediator can make a recommendation to the parents and the court. The
recommendation may include parent participation in an education program for anger management,
co-parenting, or domestic violence (Judicial Council of California, 2018). This information is shared
with the judge who orders parents to attend parent educational interventions programs provided by
court-approved affiliated educators.
Stakeholder Group of Focus
The joint efforts of judges, mediators, and parents as stakeholders will contribute to the
achievement of the overall goal of reducing family violence and emotional harm to children. For
practical purposes, affiliated educators were the stakeholder group selected for the focus of this
study. An affiliate educator was a professional independent contractor with a bachelor’s or master’s
degree in human behavior, child development, psychology, counseling, family-life education, or a
related field (California Family Law Code, 2016).Affiliate educators were required to have specific
training in issues relating to child and family development, substance abuse, child abuse, domestic
violence, effective parenting, the impact of divorce and inter-parental conflict on children (California
Family Law Code, 2016). As a practicing affiliate educator and an independent contractor there was
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 13

no relationship or interaction between any of the other affiliate educators prior to contact as we are
not an organized group.
Role of Affiliate Educators as Stakeholders
Although other stakeholders can contribute to the goal of decreasing children’s exposure to
family violence, affiliate educators are the key stakeholders who may have from eight to 52 weeks of
contact with parents ordered to participate in educational programs. The role of the affiliate educator
is to provide instruction and methods of guided practice, demonstrations, and modeling of parent
education and conflict resolution. Parent education programs on the impact of family violence can
influence their ability to reduce their children’s exposure to the cycle of family violence.
Table 1
Organizational Mission, Global Goal and Stakeholder Performance Goals

Organizational Mission
Hope County Superior Courts will, in a fair, accessible, effective, and efficient manner, resolve
disputes arising under the law and will interpret and apply the law consistently, impartially, and
independently to protect the rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitutions of California
and the United States.

Organizational Global Goal
By May 2020, upon completing a minimum 16-week parenting education program, at least 80%
of litigants will display mastery in addressing family violence.

Stakeholder Goal
By May2019, all affiliate educators will design and deliver a best practice-based co-parenting
curriculum that addresses family violence.

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 14

Purpose of the Project and Questions
The purpose of this study was to explore the themes and the stakeholders’ capacity and Hope
County’s support to high conflict parents to master communication techniques that reduce the impact
of family violence on children. For practical purposes, the stakeholder group of focus for this
analysis was the affiliate educators. The analysis focused on knowledge, motivation and
organizational influences related to achieving this organizational goal. The purpose of this project
was to understand the affiliate educators’ capacity to implement a 16-week best-practice-based
curriculum, as a standard quality education services for parents to influence the reduction of the
cycle of family violence. The development of a best practice 16-week conflict resolution curriculum
would provide consistent information and tools for parents to learn strategies to reduce family
violence.
The analysis generated a list of possible or assumed influences that were examined
systematically to focus on actual or validated causes. The questions that guided this study were the
following:
1. What are the affiliate educators’ knowledge and motivation related to designing and
delivering a best practice-based parenting curriculum that reduces the negative impact of
family violence?
2. How do the county court's organizational culture and context both support and hinder
affiliate educators' knowledge and motivation?
3. What are the recommended knowledge and skills, motivation, and organizational solutions?
Affiliate educators can bridge the gap between the judicial officers and parents ordered to
enroll in parenting education programs. Although affiliate educators do not have a contractual
agreement with the court system, they are in a prime position to make a difference in the lives of
thousands of children whose families are involved in court proceedings. Affiliate educators are not
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 15

required to disclose instructional materials, benchmarks, or performance outcomes to validate the
quality of services provided. Requiring educators to have expected performance outcomes would
make keeping track of parents’ progress consistent and efficient.
Methodological Approach
The methodological framework for this study was qualitative and involved the use of
interviews. The purpose of choosing a qualitative research methodology was to capture the
experience of practicing affiliate educators who provide court services for high conflict parents.
Qualitative data is designed to provide an understanding of the knowledge, motivation, and
organizational gaps of the participants. According to Maxwell (2013), the data in a qualitative study
can include anything communicated to the researcher during the conduct of the study. The primarily
qualitative methodological approach was considered the best method to answer the research
questions by collecting data of direct quotes from interview participants about their experiences,
opinions, feelings, and knowledge (Patton, 2015). Assumed knowledge, motivation, and
organizational influences on organizational goal achievement were generated based on related
literature as well as the researcher’s knowledge.
For this study, Clark and Estes’ gap analysis framework was used to measure and identify the
gaps between current achievement levels and the preferred level of performance of affiliate
educators. The Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis framework, a systematic method that diagnoses
the human cause and determines whether individuals have the knowledge and skills to meet their
goals (Clark & Estes, 2008). Assumed knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences that
interfere with organizational goal achievement were assessed through data collected from interviews
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The current study utilizes qualitative research methods of semi-
structured interviews to determine the common themes emerging from the affiliate educators’
experiences.
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Qualitative research used interviews to investigate affiliate educators’ knowledge, skills,
motivation, and organizational influences regarding using best practice parenting curriculums. The
questions explored affiliate educators’ self-efficacy and beliefs about teaching high conflict parents.
For this study the research questions investigated the affiliate educators’ performance role
and motivations for providing court ordered education programs. The research also focused insight
on affiliate educators’ understanding of the needs and demands of high conflict families. Affiliate
educators’ feelings and beliefs about court support and perspective about the value of their
contribution to the court system was also of interest. Data collection answered the research questions
and provided a better understanding of the beliefs, values, attitudes, and the behavior patterns of
affiliate educators or services provided (McLaren, 2010). Ethical considerations that guided the
study are discussed in Appendix D.
Review of Literature
This review of the literature discussed the definition, prevalence, and impact of exposure to
family violence on children. It concludes with parenting educational interventions and the need for
proper instructional knowledge, motivation, and skills for parents to reduce the impact of family
violence. Children living in homes with domestic violence are often exposed to physical violence,
see the effects of violence such as injuries broken furniture, hear acts of violence, or otherwise are
made aware of this violence (International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies, 2014).
Increasing Awareness of Family Violence
In the 1980s, there became an increasing awareness about the many forms of family violence.
The most prominent were domestic violence, child abuse, and elder abuse. Family violence affects
many persons at some point in their life and constitutes the majority of violent acts in our society
(Tolan, 2006). Interviews with children exposed to an environment of family violence reported
feeling confused, sad, and unhappy because of diminishing attention and supervision by their parents
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 17

(Furstensberg, 1983). Such an environment was less than desirable for the development of children.
Family violence caused stress for parents and made them less effective in dealing with their children
(Hetherington, Cox, & Cox, 1982; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980). Other studies showed that children
tend to get involved in the conflict between their parents, resulting in further deteriorations in parent-
child relationships (Amato, 1986; Johnston, Kline, & Chann, 1989).
Impact of family violence on children. Children exposed to domestic violence also referred
to as high conflict, domestic abuse intimate partner violence (IPV) or family violence in the
literature) were vulnerable and developed serious emotional, behavioral, developmental, or academic
problems (Tsavoussis, Stawicki, Stoicea, & Papadimos, 2014). Numerous studies suggested a
commonality of the adverse effects on children who hear or witness domestic violence between their
parents (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010). The 2011 National Survey of Children's
Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV) indicated exposure to family violence among children in the
United States, includes exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) assaults by parents on siblings of
children surveyed, and other assaults involving teen and adult household members (NatSCEV,
2011).
The 2010 National Crime Victimization Survey reported that more than one in 9 (11 percent) of
children were exposed to some form of family violence in the past year, including one in 15 (6.6
percent) exposed to Intimate Partner Violence (Hamby, Ormrod, & Finkelhor, 2011). One in four
children or 26 percent were exposed to at least one form of family violence during their lifetimes
(Truman, 2011). There is emerging evidence that young children who have witnessed domestic
violence score lower on cognitive measures even when controlling for mother’s IQ, child’s weight at
birth, birth complications, the quality of intellectual stimulation at home, and gender. Exposure
to domestic violence particularly in the first two years of life appears to be especially harmful
(Enlow, 2012). Children who witness domestic violence are six times more likely to attempt suicide
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 18

suicide and 63% of juvenile offenders, incarcerated for murder, had killed the men who had beaten
their mothers (Humm, 2014).
Exposure to violence at a young age and growing up amidst family violence leads to the
belief that abuse is routine. Young boys from such households are more likely to become abusive
husbands later (Yount& Carrera, 2006). Girls growing up with strict fathers have lower self-esteem
and are more likely to stay in abusive relationships as adults (Jewkes, Levin, & Penn-Kekana 2002;
Martin et al., 2002; Whitfield et al., 2003). Children exposed to violence are much more likely to be
abused in intimate relationships and have a higher tolerance for violence as adults (Gelles&
Cavanaugh, 2005). Overall,both experiencing and witnessing family violence produce traumatic
symptoms in children causing feelings of helplessness and hopelessness which changes their
attitudes about people, life, and future Rakovec-Felser (2014).
Physiological Effects of Family Violence
Children exposed to persistent violence are more susceptible to stress-related physical
illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, and damaging behaviors like
smoking or taking drugs (Finkelhor et. al., 2009). Exposure to physical, emotional, and domestic
abuse has an impact on physical and mental health later in life. According to the National Scientific
Council on the Developing Child, persistent domestic violence increases a child’s stress levels and
can lead to difficulties in learning, memory, self-regulation, and immune system problems. Some
studies have found that children doubly exposed to abuse and domestic violence have worse
outcomes than others (Hughes et al., 1989; Sternberg, 2006). When children reside in an
environment and witness domestic violence, they may directly experience other forms of violence,
such as child abuse (Edleson, 2001). According to 2013, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, child
abuse or child maltreatment is non-accidental verbal or symbolic acts by a child's parent or caregiver
that result, or have a reasonable potential to result, in significant psychological harm to the child (5th
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 19

ed.; DSM–5). The research reported that children exposed to domestic violence experienced
symptoms similar to that of a child exposed to the traumas of child abuse (Moylan, 2010).
The October 2013, issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, reviewed the psychiatric
literature on physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, and psychological abuse on the diagnoses of
anxiety disorders, depression, and substance abuse disorders in children and concluded that children
who had been abused or neglected had the most severe forms of the disorders studied. Those who
had psychiatric disorders and had been abused had measurable changes in their brains while those
with disorders, but no history of abuse had no changes in the brain (Teicher& Samson, 2013).
Numerous other studies revealed that children exposed to domestic violence and child abuse are
more likely to experience a wide range of adverse psychosocial and behavioral outcomes
(Herrenkohletal., 2008).
Those who were depressed with a history of abuse had more severe depression, developed
depression at an earlier age, were more suicidal (Teicher& Sampson, 2013). In other words, such
children demonstrate the following: increased depression, anxiety, more self-harm, a deficient ability
to learn, poor concentration, and a generalized irritability. To further complicate the matter, there may
be a genetic component to resilience under stress (Valente, 2011). Overall, children who were
exposed to violence continued to show negative effects, including low self-esteem, depression, and
increased tolerance for violence.
The 2007 National Scientific Council on the Developing Child cited situations of persistent
domestic violence when a child's stress levels are high the brain produces chemicals can lead to
difficulties in learning, memory, self-regulation, and can also affect the immune system (Brown,
2009). As a result, children are more susceptibility to stress-related physical illnesses such as
cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, and damaging behaviors, such as smoking, and adult
lifestyles, such as drug taking, that undermine well-being and subsequently lead to earlier death.
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 20

Overall, according to the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, persistent domestic
violence increases a child’s stress levels and can lead to difficulties in learning, memory, self-
regulation, and immune system.
Psychological Side Effects of Family Violence
Family violence is stressful for everyone and is associated with mental health symptoms such
as an increased risk for depression, anxiety, and attachment disorders(Cox et al.,2003; Spilsbury et
al., 2007; Ybarra et al., 2007).Researchers acknowledge that exposure to violence is a risk factor for
developmental harm at all levels of development (Sameroff, 2000).Mental health effects may last a
lifetime or manifest later in life. One study of adult domestic violence perpetrators, those who
witness using a weapon as a child were more likely to commit an offense using a weapon as an adult
(Murrell, Merwin, Christoff, & Henning, 2005). Other research conducted found that abused
children who are “free” of significant mental health problems at one point in time rarely maintain
good mental health over time. Our study suggests that children with histories of abuse are often re-
exposed to various forms of violence that predict the recurrence of mental health problems (Jaffee &
Gallop, 2007).
Involvement of the Courts
Parent education programs for family violence became a mandate as research found violence
to continue after separation and increased in severity and lethality (Hotton, 2001; Walby & Allen,
2004.The purpose of parenting education is to reduce family violence by using instructional designs
and methods as a systematic approach to help parents manage their children’s behavior. It is believed
that parent education, can have a positive influence on the adjustment of children if programs increase
parental sensitivity to their children's needs during separation or divorce. Parent education programs can
also reduce conflict and promote more cooperative approaches to parenting and is regarded as the
standard for treatment and prevention of children’s emotional and behavior problems (Pearl, 2009;
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 21

Kaminski, Valle, Filene, & Boyle, 2008). It is believed that "interventions, such as parent education,
can have a positive influence on the adjustment of children if such programs can increase parental
sensitivity to their children's needs, reduce conflicts, and promote more cooperative approaches to
parenting (Breiner, Ford, & Gadsden,2016).Cooperative parenting should not be utilized where there
are safety issues for the parent Research shows that effective parent training and family interventions
can change parents’ attitudes and behaviors, promote protective factors, and lead to positive
outcomes for both parents and children (Lundahl & Harris, 2006).
Court Ordered Parent Education Programs
As early as the1970's, research found that family violence continued after separation and
increased in severity and lethality (Hotton, 2001; Wally & Allen, 2004). Family laws led courts to
adjust their roles from faultfinders to conflict managers in adjudicating matters of divorce and
family violence. The 2016, Michigan Law Review indicated the result was a widespread and fast-
growing implementation of parent-education programs that now operate in the majority of states.
The standard of acting in the best interests of the child requires courts to put children first, which
led to parent-education programs aimed at ensuring that parents do the same (Weistein, 1997). As a
result, most programs are mandated by courts, and their implementation of court rule requires that
all high conflict parents with minor children attend (Pollet et al., 2008).
The purpose of parenting education was to reduce family violence by using instructional
designs and methods. Parent training is a systematic approach to help parents manage their
children’s behavior and is regarded as the standard for treatment and prevention of children’s
emotional and behavior problems (Filene & Boyle et al.,2008;Hepworth and Larsen (1993 page 62)
state, “deficiencies in parenting skills can be a major factor that contributes to child maltreatment.”
Parent training may assist in reducing child maltreatment and family dysfunction. Research shows
that effective parent training and family interventions can change parents’ attitudes and behaviors,
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 22

promote protective factors, and lead to positive outcomes for both parents and children (Lundahl&
Harris, 2006).
The courts may choose parent education programs that best fit their goals for parents that
align with their available resources. Therein lays the position of local courts to make decisions that
best meet the needs of the court as opposed to the needs of the children. Most often, there is a
variation of parent education programs from two to eight hours long and in many cases are either
optional or mandatory for high conflict parents (Pollet et al., 2008)
The roadmap of how the courts became involved in matters of high conflict. Disputing
parents begins with the filing of their disagreement in court for a judge to make decisions on post-
separation and custody arrangements. To exclude the other parent, many high conflict parents seek
sole, physical and legal custody of the children. According to the California Judicial Council, the
litigation model of joint legal and physical custody is used to make a ruling. The outcome of the
ruling may heighten the possibilities of creating more conflict among feuding parents who are not
committed to making decisions in the "best interest of the children" (DiFonzo, 2014). Their high
conflict disagreements keep them cycling through the court process for noncompliance with court
orders or asking for continuances. It is at this juncture that a judge will make a ruling for both parties
to attend a parent education program to learn how to communicate.
Instructional Methods for Parent Education Programs
These programs generally focus on teaching parental techniques to reduce conflict and to
improve overall parenting skills to include methods of informing parents about the negative impact
of conflict on children. Another focus of parenting education is on family skills’ training and
activities to help children and parents communicate effectively (Early Childhood Technical
Assistance Center Workgroup, 2008).Showing motivational videotapes about the effects of conflict
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 23

on children; or informing parents about available resources are effective problem-solving and
communication skills technique for parents (Pollet et al., 2008).
Evidence suggests that a combination of individual and group training may be the most
effective approach to changing parents’ attitudes about childrearing (Lundahl, Nimer, & Parsons,
2012). Research has consistently shown that active learning approaches have greater success than
passive approaches (CDC, 2009) Interactive methods include activities such as group discussion,
role-playing, active modeling, homework exercises, and reviewing videos of effective parenting
approaches (Brown, 2005).
Use of technology as a method of instruction for parent education is on the rise. Showing
motivational videotapes about the effects of conflict on children; or informing parents about
available resources are effective problem-solving and communication skills technique for parents
(Pollet et al., 2008). Almost 90% of parent training interventions supplemented the text and other
didactic content with videos of parent-child interactions to model intervention principles. These
strategies have been an effective Teaching strategy in face-to-face interventions (Barlow et al.,
2010). Videos appear to be a useful technique for teaching parenting skills because they provide
examples of parents using the strategies and portray families and situations relevant to the learner
(Gross et al., 2007). Researchers advocate for direct instruction on both concepts and procedures
(Kirschner, Sweller, & Clark, 2009).
Instructional methods and principles can be integrated into any instructional design system to
meet the needs of any specific groups of students (Merrill, 2002). There are five principles suggested
by Merrill (2006). These instructional principles state that “learning is promoted when the learner 1)
Observes a demonstration – demonstration principle; 2) Applies the new knowledge-application
principle; 3) Undertakes real-world tasks – task-centered principle; 4) Activates existing knowledge
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 24

– activation principle; and 5) Integrates the new knowledge into their world – integration principle”
(Merrill, 2006, p. 262).
Clark (2004, 2006) described “guided experiential learning” (GEL) as an instructional
method that most evidence-based instructional design systems use at the lesson level. Guided
experiential learning requires lessons to include objective with actions or conditions that must be
achieved, the reasons or the advantages of learning, an overview of the knowledge models and
content outline and conceptual knowledge or the concepts. The goal is for the learner to perform a
task or solve a problem. Reaching that goal involves demonstration of the procedure (or a clear “how
to” description for all elements of a task or solution), part and whole-task practice of procedures with
corrective feedback, and challenging, competency-based tests that include reactions in terms of
trainee confidence and value for the learning Clark (2004, 2006). According to Crayton, Wilson and
Walsh, 2010), evidence-based practice has three factors. The first is the best research evidence to
support effectiveness, the second is that it has been proven through clinical experience, and the third
is that it is consistent with the client’s values.
Teaching Effective Communication Skills
Twelve systematic reviews on communication skills training programs were identified as
applicable to any communication facilitation. Some focused on specific training strategies, whereas
others emphasized a more general approach with mixed strategies. The studies determined training
programs were effective if they lasted for at least one day, were learner-centered, and focused on
practicing skills. The best training strategies within the program included role-play, feedback, and
small group discussions. It was concluded that training programs should include active, practice-
oriented strategies. Oral presentations on communication skills, modeling, and written information
should only be used as supportive strategies.
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 25

Communication Skills Training (CST) is experiential learning through role play sessions that
rely on facilitators to guide learners. A CST program study conducted with thirty-two novice
facilitators to explore whether the training they received prepared them to facilitate competently.
Facilitators were rated as having achieved basic competence, advanced competence or expert
competence. Bylund, 2009 suggested that the most important component of communication skills
training revealed facilitation task most frequently used included inviting the learner to give feedback
first and inviting all group members to give feedback. This training highlighted that the skill of
feedback is useful and should be a priority for facilitators.
Affiliate Court Educators’ Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences
According to Clark and Estes (2008), the best method to identify and close a performance
gap is to analyze the knowledge, motivation and organizational barriers to achieve performance
goals. Knowledge-related influences are relevant in an educational setting and are essential to
examine. Using Clark and Estes’ (2008) model, the focus of this study will be on affiliate educators’
knowledge skills as well as motivation and organizational influences. Affiliate educators as
independent contractors are not officially employed by the family law court. Current performance
levels for affiliate educators are not clearly defined or established because they are independent
contractors and are a separate entity from the organization. A key goal of qualitative research is to
discover current knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences to determine affiliate
educators' ability to design and deliver a best-practice-based curriculum. The information collected
will be used to improve the quality of service to families and reduce the impact of violence on
children.
Knowledge and Skills
Krathwohl (2002) identified four dimensions of knowledge: factual, conceptual, procedural
and metacognitive. Factual knowledge is considered the basic elements of a subject area or
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 26

discipline and is the most common type of knowledge individuals are expected to acquire,
(Krathwohl,2002; Rueda, 2011). Factual knowledge is essential because it serves as a basic
foundation to understand the relationships between learning, teaching, and assessing information
(Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). Conceptual knowledge constitutes the relationships of the basic
elements to each other, and includes the principles, theories, and structures of the subject area
(Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda, 2011). Procedural knowledge is the knowledge of how to perform a
certain task and refers to an individual’s understanding of how to achieve a goal. Metacognitive
knowledge is the self-awareness and control of one’s own cognitive and problem-solving processes,
as well as the strategies to successfully achieve a goal by using specific steps (Krathwohl, 2002;
Rueda, 2011). This study examined knowledge in two areas. First was conceptual knowledge of
affiliate educators which requires basic facts and descriptions on how children who hear witness or
are victims of abusive behaviors are affected by family violence. The second was affiliate educator’s
procedural knowledge to teach conflict resolution to high conflict parents.
Conceptual knowledge for teaching conflict resolution skills. Affiliate educators’ decision
to teach a conflict resolution curriculum requires an understanding of the concepts of family violence
and the impact on children. The knowledge influences most important to affiliate educators are
conceptual knowledge of theories about family violence and procedural steps to teach conflict
resolution. Conceptual knowledge requires that individuals use previously learned information to
construct new knowledge (Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda, 2011).
Procedural knowledge about teaching conflict resolution skills. Procedural knowledge
pertains to how a task is performed and refers to an individual’s understanding of how to achieve a
goal by implementing precise steps (Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda, 2011). Methods of inquiry, specific
skills, techniques and methodologies required to accomplish a particular activity also require
procedural knowledge (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). Procedural knowledge includes specific
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 27

steps and techniques to complete a task (Krathwohl, 2002; Mayer, 2011; Rueda, 2011). In training,
procedural knowledge must be structured to ensure the same sequence is used or applied on the job
(Anderson & Larabie 1998; Tobias & Flecther, 2000). In this study, affiliate educators need
knowledge of procedural steps to design and deliver a conflict resolution curriculum.
The purpose of the curriculum would be to train parents to adopt procedural steps of conflict
resolution to reduce abusive behaviors that lead to family violence. For example, Merrill’s (2002)
approach of effective training teaching basic knowledge provides opportunities to practice new skills
and feedback. This knowledge means individuals become aware of what they know, how they know
it, what they do not know, and the process they will take to acquire this information (Mayer, 2011;
Rueda, 2011). In this study, the researcher will gather data to determine if affiliate educators’ have
knowledge and skills to design an effective curriculum that provides the necessary opportunities to
practice new conflict resolution skills. Procedural knowledge requires individuals have knowledge of
the processes, techniques and methods required to perform a specific task (Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda,
2011). Affiliate educators need to know well-designed procedures to make it easier for individuals to
process information or perform a task (Kirschner et al., 2006; Mayer, 2011). Table 2 shows the
knowledge influences and knowledge types required for affiliate educators to meet the goal of
teaching a parenting curriculum founded on best practices.
Table 2
Knowledge Influences and Types
Knowledge Influence Knowledge Type
Affiliate educators need to have a knowledge regarding family violence
and its impact on children.
Conceptual
Affiliate educators need to be able to teach steps of conflict resolution
using a comprehensive lesson guide for teaching communication skills,
using goals, specific procedures, and a variety of activities designed to
meet learners’ needs.
Procedural

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 28

Affiliate educators need to be able to design an effective curriculum that
provides both the basic knowledge and opportunities to practice new
skills.
Procedural

Motivational Influences
Motivation is the internal psychological process that initiates and maintains goal-directed
performance (Schunk, Pintrich, & Meece, 2009). It energizes thinking, fuels enthusiasm and colors
individuals’ positive and negative emotional reactions to work and life (Clark, 2003). There are
three behaviors in which motivation is manifested. The first is an active choice, which means an
individual actively pursues a chosen goal. The second is persistence, and it is defined as the pursuit
of a goal as a commitment to activity over time in the face of distraction. The third variable,
mental effort refers to the mental work needed to generate new learning and knowledge. Therefore,
when people make choices, persist, or exert effort, they are exhibiting motivation (Schunk et al.,
2009).
Motivation can be impacted by a variety of internal and external factors (Rueda, 2011). In the
following sections, two motivational factors were represented as possibly having an impact on
affiliate educators in achieving their goal. First, affiliate educators must believe they can achieve the
goal. Self-efficacy is the belief that one’s actions can produce the desired outcomes (Pajares, 2006).
Second, affiliate educators must see the usefulness of providing parent education. Utility value is the
perceived usefulness of a goal or activity to an individual’s personal goals (Eccles, 2006). In
discussing utility value, Eccles and Wigfield (2002) state that utility is determined by how well a
task relates to current and future goals.
Self-efficacy of affiliate educators. Motivation can be examined and understood by
identifying the beliefs or self-efficacy individuals have about their likelihood to succeed at specific
tasks (Eccles, 2006). Self-efficacy affects behavior, the amount of effort exerted, the types of goals
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 29

chosen, perseverance and resilience to adversity (Bandura, 2000; Pajares, 1997). Bandura (2006),
asserts individuals who have low self-efficacy for accomplishing a specific task may avoid it, while
those who believe they are capable are more likely to engage in that task. Moreover, individuals
with a perception of high self-efficacy are predicted to expend more effort and persist longer in the
face of difficulties than those who are unsure of their capabilities (Bandura, 2006).
Motivation, therefore, is directly correlated with self-efficacy. Motivation to engage with a
task increases when individuals experience a strong sense of self-efficacy (Pajares, 2006). The
higher an individual’s self-efficacy, the more confidence they will have in their ability to
successfully acquire targeted skills and perform trained tasks (Clark & Estes, 2008).This is
applicable to affiliate educators who need high self-efficacy and feel confident in their ability to
teach and train conflict resolution to parents who have a history of engaging in family violence.
Affiliate educators’ personal belief in their capability to achieve this goal will directly impact their
effort and performance. It is important to determine the motivation and self-efficacy of affiliate
educators relative to creating a conflict resolution curriculum.
Value orientation. Value refers to the importance one attaches to a task (Wigfield & Eccles,
2000, 2002). Values are a powerful way to express views about what is expected and applies to the
knowledge and skills needed to meet performance goals. To improve performance (Rueda, 2011),
the different dimensions of task value need to be considered: attainment or importance value,
intrinsic value, utility value, and cost value (Rueda, 2011). Attainment value refers to the
importance one attaches to performing a task well. Intrinsic value refers to the enjoyment or interest
energy one experiences during a particular activity. Utility value refers to how useful one believes a
task or activity is for achieving a future goal. Finally, the cost value is the perceived cost of the
activity in terms of time, effort, or other dimensions (Rueda, 2011). These four dimensions
determine the value one attaches to the task. Overall, these skills are characterized by what people
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 30

value and what they believe helps them, and by their rejection of what they believe stands in the way
of their performance (Clark & Estes, 2008).
Affiliate educators’ utility value. Utility value is the perceived usefulness of a task
(Pintrich, 2003). Utility value is also characterized as an alignment of a task with personal goals and
psychological needs (Eccles, 2006). Clark and Estes (2008) suggest utility value pertains to the
benefits of completing a task rather than the enjoyment of the task itself. This study will examine the
perceived utility value of affiliate educators regarding the goal of teaching a conflict resolution
curriculum to high conflict parents. First, affiliate educators must see the value and importance of a
conflict resolution curriculum and believe that the training they deliver will make a difference for the
parents and, ultimately, the children. Table 3 shows the assumed motivational influences for affiliate
educators to meet the goal of providing a parent education program that addresses family violence
and conflict resolution.
Table 3
Motivation Influences
Motivation Influences
Self-Efficacy Affiliate educators need to believe they are
capable of effectively teaching conflict
resolution tools.

Utility Value

Affiliate educators must see the value and
importance of a conflict resolution curriculum
in reducing family violence.

Organizational Influences
Organizations are made up of people whose knowledge, skills, and motivation drive the
organization's success or failure. The culture of the organization and environment can have a
powerful, neutral, or destructive influence on human performance. The type of support and resources
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 31

needed as well as an individual’s performance was determined by the organization’s cultural
influences. The organizational influences explored in this study were the court’s capacity to have
clear administrative policies and procedures to guide affiliate educators’ accountability for teaching
parent education programs to high conflict parents.
Administrative policies and procedures. The court operates as a governmental organization
under the oversight of the California Judicial Council and has many cultural influences inside and
outside the organization. The affiliate educators as stakeholders in this study were considered a
subculture of the courts. A subculture is an occupational group or groups of an organization (Schein,
2010). As a subgroup, the affiliate educators are not given any guidance, policies or procedures on
how to conduct business with the court.
The organizational culture influences the affiliate educators’ motivation and the
effectiveness of teaching high conflict parents involved in the court system. It is critical to
understand the culture of the courts and how it influences the affiliate educators to perform their
duties as expected by the court. The affiliate educators need the court’s support to provide
communications and information on court services to affiliate educators. The influences of
communication are important because affiliate educators serve as a link between the parents and the
judicial officer who issues orders for parents to repair communication deficits caused by family
violence.
The order to parents does not include guidelines or stipulations of specific communication
skills to be acquired. Other than the parent’s court order, there are no other administrative
communications that govern or support the performance of affiliate educators. To meet the
organizational goal by May 2020, affiliate educators need communication training guidelines
regarding curriculum, expected outcomes and operational procedures. If the organizational
influences are ineffective, achievement of the organization’s performance goals can be negatively
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 32

impacted (Clark & Estes, 2008). The conceptual framework enables organizations to address gaps
between goals and performance by determining knowledge, motivational, and organizational
influences Clark and Estes’ (2008).
The following section covers organizational factors that influenced the performance of
affiliate educators. There were no administrative operations that govern the performance of affiliate
educators’ who are not required to provide information about the administrative operations of their
organization, instructional programs, or performance outcomes of parents. Furthermore, affiliate
educators are not required to meet court performance goals, accountability standards or quality
assurance in alignment with the judicial council’s mission. These practices and procedures have
organizational influences.
Table 4
Organizational Influences
Organizational Influences
Cultural Model Influence 1/Culture of
accountability
The court needs to have clear administrative
policies and procedures to guide affiliate
educators’ accountability.
Cultural Setting Influence 2/Alignment of policies
and procedures
The court needs to provide affiliate educators
with information on court services’ policies
and procedures.
Cultural Setting Influence 1/Communication and
trust
The court needs to have program standards
for instructional materials delivered by
affiliate educators.

Conceptual Framework: The Interaction of Affiliate Educators’ Knowledge, Motivation and
the Organizational Context
The conceptual framework is the key part of the design of a study and consists of concepts,
assumptions, expectations, beliefs, and theories that support the ideas and the relationships about the
phenomenon being studied (Merriam &Tisdell, 2016). The purpose of a conceptual framework is to
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 33

depict, using a graphical or narrative representation, the main ideas and factors studied and their
relationship to each other (Maxwell, 2013). The conceptual framework included the research design,
choice of sample, sampling procedures and data collection strategies to build a foundation for a
study to answer the research questions (Merriam &Tisdell, 2016).
Knowledge, motivation and organizational influences are independent variables that
influence each other. Although potential influences are independent, they are not isolated from one
another. The interaction of these influences and their impact on each other determines the extent to
which a performance goal can be met. According to Clark and Estes (2008), most often, gaps occur
in at least one of the following three areas: people’s knowledge, their motivation to achieve goals,
and organizational influences (Clark & Estes, 2008). The conceptual framework in this study will be
implemented using Clark and Estes’ (2008) gap analysis model, which represents a systematic,
analytical method that helps to clarify organizational goals and identify the gap between the current
performance level and the preferred performance level.
The methodological framework is a qualitative study of the court system wherein the
researcher is the primary collector of data and analysis. Assumed knowledge, motivation and
organizational influences that affect affiliate educators, as key stakeholders were generated based on
personal knowledge and related literature. These influences were assessed through interviews, and
literature review. Based on the findings, solutions were recommended and evaluated
comprehensively.

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 34

Figure 1. Conceptual framework diagram.
Within Figure 1, the small orange circle represents affiliate educators who are a separate
entity outside the organization of the Hope County Superior Court. Affiliate educators are
independent contractors with their own governing board and operating policies. Hope County
Superior Court does not monitor, evaluate, or endorse the quality of work of any affiliate educator.
Furthermore, no binding contractual agreements or compliance expectations exist between the
affiliate educators and Hope County Superior Court. The blue circle represents Hope County
Superior Court, which is under the umbrella of the Judicial Council of California, the overseer of the
family law court system. Legislative policies and procedures dictate the communications and culture
of the court. An assumed finding is that legal mandates and cultural expectations create barriers and
gaps between the organizational goal and affiliate educators’ performance. According to Clark and
Estes (2008), the gap between desired and actual performance must be assessed and closed if the
Hope County's
Organizational legislative
policies and procedures
causesgaps and barriers
in communication and
accountability between
affiliate educators and the
court system

By May 2019, all affiliate
educators
Will design and deliver a
best practice-based co-
parenting curriculum that
addresses family violence.

Affiliate Educators'
factual and procedural
knowledge
self-efficacy andvalue
teaching and training
parents on conflict
resolution
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 35

organizational goal is to be achieved. In this study, the gap refers to the possibility that affiliate
educators cannot design and deliver a best practice the curriculum. In this study, the stakeholder
goal is for all affiliate educators to design and deliver a best practice-based co-parenting curriculum
that addresses family violence
Hope County Court System is under the jurisdiction of the Judicial Council of California
legislative and family code mandates which influences the culture and communication of affiliate
educators as independent contractors who are not under the court’s jurisdiction. To understand if
affiliate educators can meet the performance goal, it is important to discover their knowledge and
skills in designing a curriculum based on best practices. Affiliate educators’ knowledge, self-efficacy
and the value they ascribe to while delivering services are key to supporting the goal that all affiliate
educators will design and deliver a best practice-based co-parenting curriculum that addresses family
violence. Therefore, making organizational changes in Hope County Superior Court to achieve a
reduction in family violence depends on affiliate educators' knowledge, skills, and motivation.
Participating Stakeholders: Sampling and Recruitment
This study used qualitative methods to appropriately collect data using interviews with
affiliate educators to get a deeper understanding of the current knowledge, motivation, and
organizational deficits. The study focused on the affiliate educators who provide services to parents
ordered by the court to participate in an education program. The services provided by affiliate
educators create a connection between the parents and the court. Affiliate educators' knowledge,
skills, and motivation to teach and train parents are central to the effectiveness of education
programs. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit affiliate educators who met selection criteria to
yield rich information (Patton, 2001). The underlying assumption about purposeful sampling was
that the researcher wanted to discover, understand and gain insight. This requires the selection of a
sample from which most can be learned. The qualitative method also offered an opportunity for the
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 36

researcher to provide an adequate description and interpretation of the data (Patton, 2015). In this
study, affiliate educators were selected as stakeholders to interview as a means to gather the data
necessary to answer the research questions.
Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale
The criterion listed for placement on the court approved referral list was used to recruit
interview participants. The Superior Court of California, County of Hope makes this list available as
a public service only. This list includes all providers who have requested to be included on the list
and who have signed a declaration, under penalty of perjury, that they meet the Standards of Judicial
Administration 5.20. Each provider has submitted all information listed. The Superior Court has not
and does not screen or evaluate the providers, their facilities, or the information they have listed nor
is any of the information posted verified.
Criterion1.The referral list criteria established by the court requires providers to have
earned a professional license or certification in anger management, domestic violence, or parenting
and a bachelor or master’s degree in psychology, social work, counseling or education from an
accredited college. Individuals classified as marriage and family therapists, social workers or clinical
or licensed educational psychologists must meet the California Board of Behavioral Sciences’
requirements. This educational requirement used as the criteria for interview participants.
Criterion2. Interviewees met the eligibility requirement for placement on the court
provider list for three years or more. The purpose of the three-year requirement is to ensure that
the participant has had consistent experience providing court services. Furthermore, three years of
providing services allow the participant to gain insight into court procedures and parents’ training
needs. The three-year requirement also ensures that the affiliate educator is established and has
demonstrated sufficient interest in providing court services.
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 37

Criterion3. Additional criteria required that interviewees must teach at least one weekly
class for parenting, co-parenting, anger management or domestic violence purposive sampling of the
court referral list to glean the most insights and understanding. Invitation emails to participate in the
study were sent to the twenty-seven affiliate educators on the 2018 court referral list.2016). Eight
participants voluntarily responded for in-person interviews of 30 to 60 minutes in length. Questions
explored the knowledge, skills, motivation and organizational experiences of affiliate educators and
will be framed in terms of organizational context and performance goals (Maxwell, 2013). The intent
of the interviews was to gain a deeper understanding of gaps in knowledge, motivation or
organizational resources concerning the affiliate educators' performance goal.
Research Methods and Data Collection Procedures
A qualitative research design was selected to investigate and explore the challenges of
affiliate educators in providing court-ordered education programs for parents perceived as having
high conflict and engaged in family violence. Qualitative data collection allows the researcher to see
the world in terms of people, situations, events and the process that connects them and how some
situations and events influence others (Maxwell, 2004, 2008, 2011b). For this study qualitative
research data collection was through interviews, a process in which a researcher engages in a
conversation focused on questions related to a study (Merriam &Tisdell, 2012).The researcher used
purposive sampling to seek individuals with specific characteristics to participate in the study
(Johnson & Christensen, 2014; Merriam &Tisdell, 2016). Using purposive sampling, affiliate
educators who had a minimum of three years of experience providing court services to high conflict
parents were selected from the court’s resource provider list. All participants had a bachelor’s
degree, experience teaching high conflict parents, and were suited to address the research questions.
None of the affiliate educators reported to or had previous contact with the researcher.
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 38

This study was conducted to facilitate the identification of common themes in the
participants' experiences related to the knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences. The
interviews explored the capacity of affiliate educators to design and deliver a curriculum of best
practice that educates parents about the harm of family violence and the use of conflict resolution as
a replacement intervention. The study also addressed affiliate educators' performance and motivation
to provide services and their perception of the family law court. Most often, interviews are
conducted in the environment of the participants during face-to-face interaction and observation of
behaviors in the natural setting (Creswell, 2014).
The researcher used purposive sampling to seek individuals with specific characteristics to
participate in the study (Johnson & Christensen, 2014; Merriam &Tisdell, 2016). Using purposive
sampling, affiliate educators who had a minimum of three years of experience providing court
services to high conflict parents were selected from the court’s resource provider list. All
participants had a bachelor’s degree, experience teaching high conflict parents, and were suited to
address the research questions. None of the affiliate educators reported to or had previous contact
with the researcher. The interviews were conducted over the course of five weeks, at times and
locations convenient to the participants. Six females and two males were interviewed and assigned
pseudonyms to protect their identities. Four of the interviews were conducted via a web-based
application, three during telephone calls, and one in person. Each participant provided consent
before being interviewed.
To ensure consistency among the interviews, the researcher used an opening script followed
by 16 questions and prompts to elicit rich data. To ensure proper data collection, participants
approved audio and video recording in a sound studio setting. Thereafter, all recordings were
submitted to an online transcription service for transcription. During this time, to ensure data
accuracy, the researcher carried out ethical practices and safe storage of data on a password-
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 39

protected computer. Patton’s (2002) checklist of ethical issues was used to help limit personal bias
while conducting the research. The list entailed explaining the purpose, promises and reciprocity,
risk assessment, confidentiality, informed consent, data access, and data collection boundaries
(Patton, 2002).
Interviews
The 2018 County of Hope Superior Court referral list consisted of twenty-seven providers of
parent education services was used as the source to send email invites to the twenty-seven providers
on the referral list. Eight providers voluntarily responded to the invite to participate in the study.
Nineteen of the twenty-seven were not available citing time restraints which hindered participation
in the study. The interview questions were reviewed and approved by the Dissertation chair and the
University of Southern California Institutional Review Board. The design and format of the semi-
structured interviews questions explored affiliate educators' capacity to provide parent educational
information to minimizing family violence in the presence of children. The researcher followed the
interview script to learn of the affiliate educator’s role in teaching family violence (Appendix B).
The interviews provided insight into the participants' present experiences teaching parents who
engage in family violence
Interviews are useful and authentic methods for understanding a participant’s viewpoint
(Maxwell, 2013). The open-ended questions allowed participants to respond and express themselves
in ways that made them most comfortable (Patton, 2002). Participants shared their professional
experience, knowledge, opinions, and perspectives on family violence. The semi-structured open-
ended interview protocol allowed opportunities to explore and probe their answers (Merriam
&Tisdell, 2016). The following three sections address each research question, in terms of the themes
that emerged from the data, using Clark and Estes (2008) knowledge, motivation, and organization
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 40

(KMO) conceptual framework. Participating stakeholders and sampling criteria for interviews are
presented in Appendix A. Table 5 lists the participants.
Table 5
Participating Stakeholders
Interview Participants
Pseudonyms Names
Education Years as Affiliate Educator
Participant 1 Nancy B.A. 16 years
Participant 2 Kyle M.S. 13 years
Participant 3 Sharon Ph.D. 32 years
Participant 4 Joyce M.S. 15 years
Participant 5 Brice B.A. 16 years
Participant 6 Kelly M.S. 20 years
Participant 7 Liz M.S. 12 years
Participant 8 Mary M.A. Five years

Findings
The purpose of this exploratory study was to discover common themes in knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences related to affiliate educators’ experiences teaching high-
conflict parents ordered to improve communication by judicial officers at Hope County Superior
Court. First, interview questions pertained to participants’ capacity to educate parents on family
violence. Capacity in this study was examined via the knowledge, motivation and organizational
influences. Secondly, the design or use of a best-practices conflict resolution curriculum was
discussed in the literature review. Finally, questions related to the extent to which participants’
performance and motivation to provide services was affected by the family law court’s culture.
Conceptual and Procedural Knowledge Findings
The data, organized by knowledge type, revealed two areas of focus: conceptual and
procedural. Conceptual knowledge consists of knowing the specific facts needed to solve a problem
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 41

(Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda, 2011). In this area, data collection focused on affiliate educators’
conceptual knowledge and awareness of the impact of family violence on children. According to the
United States Justice Department (2017), family violence is any form of abuse, mistreatment or
neglect that a child or adult experiences from a family member or from someone with whom they
have an intimate relationship. Abuse behaviors may be exhibited through verbal, physical, sexual,
economic, emotional or psychological actions that influence another person (United States
Department of Justice, 2017).
Conceptual knowledge about family violence. Affiliate educators demonstrated knowledge
of identifying behaviors of family violence and the impact on children. The respondents’
descriptions of domestic violence and the impact on children were all similar to the definition
provided by the Department of Justice (2017) that family violence is any form of abuse,
mistreatment or neglect that a child or adult experiences from a family member or from someone
with whom they have an intimate relationship. Brice said, “The main point is domestic violence
doesn’t just embody physical domestic violence. It’s harassment. It’s the continued stalking or the
engagement of intimidation.” Other responses suggested significant conceptual knowledge on the
specific impact of violence on children. Eight respondents’ definitions were similar, Mary described,
“parents going through separation or divorce, or that are in transition are so angry and violent that
they can't be in the same room together.” Nancy described “We deal with ages and stages of
children, brain development, and how violence affects children.” Liz revealed, “We work with lots
of intimidation, verbal and physical behaviors that are potentially violent to the entire family.”
”Kelly said, “an increase in physical symptoms becoming more aggressive, or regressive symptoms,
or having problems with sleeping or eating or seeing changes there.” Sharon concluded, “It affects
them day to day, and then it has, I think, profound impact on their ability as adults just to manage
life challenges.” Kyle summarized, “as for domestic violence and the impact on children, a child
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 42

who witnesses or experiences parents’ domestic violence is being either overtly or covertly abused
and neglected.” Joyce stated:
I can honestly say the majority of our cases have involved domestic violence, either there's
current or past history of domestic violence. I've noticed there's more cases that have been
coming into our agency. Children that are with moms, sometimes they’re
afraid of the parents, sometimes there's behavioral issues, aggression. There's all
kinds of effects these children do encounter. It might be several years, maybe even longer,
until they’re adults when we start to see the effects that domestic violence has on these
children.
Overall, all respondents connected knowledge about family violence and the significant impact on
children’s social, emotional and psychological wellbeing.
Procedural knowledge to design and teach a best practice conflict resolution
curriculum. The research question focused on affiliate educator’s knowledge to design a best
practice related to their belief and confidence to teach conflict resolutions. The findings revealed that
three respondents, Mary, Nancy and Kyle used professionally developed best practice curriculum
educational programs that consisted of an assessment. Mary said, “Basically, with our programs, we
offer what is called Parenting without Conflict Program, and it's designed to provide help for parents
in contested cases.” Nancy shared:
We use a program for parenting called The Nurturing Parenting Program, and there are
assessments that are given that tells me where the parent need help, so I am able to give them
that help and not things they don't need.
Kyle revealed: I used Assertiveness Training. Why are you feeling this?" This is how we cope
and deal and manage this feeling and we're going need assertiveness with this instead of acting
out, acting sideways or acting in. So, I think assertiveness training is the future for teaching
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 43

parents or life coaching. Five respondents indicated using general information to design curriculum,
including instructional modeling, role play, feedback, and reflective thinking. Sharon mentioned
using “a multi-faceted approach, reading material, referrals to resources and then coaching parents in
real time.” Brice stated, “The basic of what we’re doing is anger management to teach the parents a
self-reflective, self-monitoring paradigm in somatic therapy.” Liz said, “I developed this curriculum
just through some research that I’ve done on my own…I use feedback and some role play.”
Participants revealed they received no specific curriculum instruction, knowledge
development, or expected outcome goals from the courts. Joyce, Kelly, and Liz mentioned that the
design of a parent education program is based upon parents ‘needs which are identified during a
comprehensive face to face intake prior to enrollment. These respondents established there was no
recommended guideline for a curriculum. Although the research question centered on the affiliate
educators’ knowledge, they must also know the methods and be able to demonstrate, model, or
provide feedback to support procedural knowledge development in others (Clark, 2004, 2006 To
design and teach a best practice parent education program procedural knowledge is instrumental to
training parents to improve parenting skills.
Six respondents shared that the goal of designing a parent education program is to meet the
needs of the parents as determined by court orders and parents’ disclosure of their needs. Joyce said,
“The program should be designed to educate the parents about the effects of ongoing parental
conflict on children.” Brice’s comments reinforced Sharon’s statement: “the type of information and
identification of the needs of the parents is the importance of the program.” Joyce, Mary, and Kyle
replicated this pattern in their responses. Kyle said, “We try to do all of our classes around the
parents’ needs. So, we do an intake and discuss what topics they would like to cover in the class.”
Nancy responded, “Parents need to learn what child abuse, effective communication and conflict
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 44

resolution is.” Overall, there was no specific step by step procedure on how to design a conflict
resolution parent education program.
The findings revealed a gap in knowledge of specific systematic steps required to design a
parent education program. The affiliate educators failed to mention specific knowledge of conflict
resolution procedures to avoid conflict and strategies to reduce disputes that begin to escalate was
not discussed during the data collection. There was also an absence of specific measurements and
outcomes to determine skill development and competencies of conflict resolutions. The various
approaches for accomplishing the goal were not defined. Results showed five out of the eight
participants did not mention specific procedural steps for designing a parent education program. The
data revealed that development of procedures for their programs is determined by the parents’ self-
assessment of their performance. These results reflect a gap in the procedural steps required to
design a conflict resolution curriculum.
Affiliate educators need to teach skills to others and doing so requires being able to support
procedural knowledge development in others. Implementing instruction on procedural steps would
empower parents to apply and practice the skills of conflict resolution. The data suggested that two
participants developed or design a conflict resolution program. Brice pointed out what he designed is
a curriculum that was implemented to support parents involved in conflict behaviors:
What I developed was this program that will isolate the parents separately and
give them information on how to deal with the cycle of conflict that they're in. What I
discovered is typically there's one parent that wants to make a change, and often one
parent that doesn't. So, this program was developed so parallel parenting and disengaging
from the conflict, would shift the conflict.
Nancy mentioned:

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 45

The design of my program when working with co-parenting, and domestic violence, we teach
how violence affects children, communicating effectively with the other parent and the ages
and stages of children, brain development.
Overall, the findings for the remaining participants revealed limited information on specific
procedures steps covered in their curriculum which was based on personal research or using other
information.
Motivation Findings
Motivation results and findings. The second research question focused on affiliate
educator’s motivation related to their belief and confidence to teach parent education programs. The
data revealed two areas of focus of affiliate educator’s motivation. The first was self-efficacy, that is,
the belief that one can achieve a goal. The second was the perceived utility value, or usefulness to
one’s personal goals, of teaching education programs for high conflict. Motivation is an internal state
that begins and maintains behavior aimed at reaching a goal and is the primary precondition leading
to meaningful learning through the exertion of effort (Mayer, 2011). Expectations regarding the
likelihood of success can affect motivation, which influences confidence in the ability to complete a
task (Eccles, 2006). The purpose of this study was to explore the influences of value and efficacy
regarding affiliate educators’ motivation and teaching parent education programs. These two
motivation types are discussed below.
Affiliate educators’ self-efficacy and value. Self-efficacy, in this study, refers to
participants’ belief and confidence in their ability to teach and train high-conflict parents on the
impact of family violence. The data revealed details about participants’ efficacy but also about their
perceived value for their court-related roles. For example, Kelly explained, “Doing the co-parenting
program is actually the most fulfilling thing I do. I am teaching skills and giving specifics about kids
in such a way to help families!”
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 46

Kyle explained: I became a practitioner for several reasons. I think we have a major
responsibility with the way parents, mothers and fathers, are raising our children. I think
the side effect of that is dysfunctional, toxic relationships so helping to impact people,
leading, guiding, and supporting them is valuable to them to learn how to parent.

Joyce stated her professional history, “As a CPS social worker, I worked for five years
helping children and 10 years providing supervised visitation services to families.” Sharon
mentioned personal history, “It just seemed like a natural place for me to gravitate, working with
families and children.” Brice declared, “I created the program to give good quality information to
parents who so desperately need it.” Kelly confidently stated, “where the parents need help, I am
able to give them that help.” Nancy was the most certain of her ability, “I tell parents the strategies
that I teach you work if you use them.” I think these services are extremely important for all
families, especially which are coming through family court.
Affiliate educators’ commitment to service. The longevity of providing services was a
common theme in participants’ confidence and the quality of services they provide. The respondents
spoke confidently in their abilities to teach parenting classes. This theme was undergirded by their
choice to remain on the court-approved provider resource list. A strong indicator of their self-
efficacy and confidence in the quality of service they provided was tied to the length of time they
have been on the provider list. Placement on the list was heavily weighted because the court has the
authority to remove a provider’s name from the list due to complaints from parents or attorneys.
Furthermore, the court is exempt by a disclaimer of recommending or endorsing any of the listed
providers nor do they recommend that any of the listed providers will meet the needs of parents or
children. Other than providing the list, the court does not provide any feedback, monitoring or
evaluation of services.
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 47

Therefore, from the participants’ perspective, continual placement on the court’s resource list
was equivalent to an affirmation of confidence in their performance and commitment to providing
service. Joyce and Kyle mentioned providing court services for over 15 years. Brice and Kerry stated
they provide these services because of “a passion for helping families.” Nancy said, “Our program is
valuable because we are mobile…for over 30 years we’ve been going to parents.” Sharon added,
“I’ve been providing court services since 1986.” They all agreed that longevity on the list reflected a
commitment to the quality of services they provide.
Court referrals to affiliate educators. The second motivation theme was related to the
number of referrals or cases respondents received when a judicial officer orders a case to a specific
provider. The referrals were perceived as an indicator of the quality of services provided by the
affiliate educators. Court referrals were considered as an informal recognition of the affiliate
educators’ performance and a vote of confidence in the services provided. The more referrals were a
marker of the Kelly commented, “The fact that they’re still referring people after 16 years tells me
that I’m making a difference.” Liz mentioned receiving referrals from other counties as evidence of
the quality of her work. Mary responded, “I think judges make referrals to particular providers with
full knowledge and awareness of this individual’s services.” Joyce noticed an increase in cases
coming into her agency. Brice interpreted receiving referral as judges knowing “we are capable and
value making a difference.”
Affiliate educators’ utility value. Also examined in this study was utility value, which
refers to perception of the usefulness of a task (Eccles, 2009). The data revealed that affiliate
educators find teaching high-conflict parents how to reduce family violence is important. Seven
respondents placed significant value on teaching parent education programs which was determined
by the feedback or responses received from participants who voluntarily share how much they have
learned. Sharon shared parents’ reactions to the program is meaningful. The value of the program,
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 48

according to Brice, is “the anecdotal responses, testimonials and feedback…where we can see the
benefit of what we do.” Kyle demonstrated his commitment to his program, “I do 36 hours of
continuing education every two years to stay on top of always wanting to become a better
practitioner.” Liz commented, “I became a therapist because I thought it was very important to give
back to my community,” Mary said, “our program is very valuable we work with domestic violence
advocacy center programs across the country.” Nancy, announced, “Our services are very valuable.
We're the only mobile company that does co-parenting and parenting services. Kelly said,
it is very important for me to teach them specifically how to change their communication,
teaching them specific tools for communicating differently and teaching them why they need
to leave the emotional history in the past, not return to it, and deal with their parenting
relationship strictly in a business-like fashion.
The findings show eight participants expressed value in providing parent training as a critical aspect
of court services.
Organizational Influences: Communication and Accountability
The third research question focused on the organization’s culture and context between the
courts related to affiliate educators’ ability to meet their performance goal. The data revealed two
areas of focus related to the court’s organizational factors. Communication was the first area of focus
Seven respondents discussed operational needs of communication support from the court. For
example, Mary said, “communication between us and the courts is what's really failing these
families. I think we really need to improve that.” Joyce said, “We need more communication
between providers and the courts. All we get is a court order. There has to be some sort of system
that makes it easy for the court to help the providers.” Kelly explained, “Being able to communicate
directly with the court would help.” The most surprising response came from Sharon:
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 49

I’ve been with the courts for 32 years, and little effort has been made by the court to
communicate with me as a provider. In 32 years, I would be stunned if it were more than ten
times the court reached out to me.
Nancy elaborated on her need for more communication:
Again, I would like to see the court play a more active role in communicating like when a
person comes to me for co-parenting, they'd have a contact person to say, this is what's
needed. This is what I provided, but this is what's needed now. They need more contact
with us.
Kyle said:
There needs to be some type of annual, bi-annual, even quarterly meeting with judges,
license mental health practitioners, people who are on the lists. Talking about the issues that
the parents have, the sadness that the children are taking on and then the dysfunctional family
system. And then what program ... how we integrate everybody together to have a high
standard quality of care to help people.
There were gaps in communication due to an absence of leadership and directives from the
courts to affiliate educators. Three respondents, Sharon, Kyle, and Mary also referenced the court
referral resource list as the only communication asset. Affiliate educators receive an annual reminder
email to update contact information to continue their placement on the providers’ list which is
disseminated to parents ordered to attend an education program. Minimal communication from
the court influences the quality of services rendered to parents ordered to education programs.
Communications in an organization are influenced by cultural models and cultural settings. Cultural
models represent shared mental schema and understandings within an organization that explain how
the environment works (Rueda, 2011). (Lewis, 2011), posits communication is how organizations
compare their understanding about “what is going on “with stakeholders. As key stakeholders,
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 50

affiliate educators consistently described a pattern of a lack of communication with the organization.
Clark and Estes (2008) contend that the alignment between an organization’s goals and its
stakeholders’ knowledge, motivation, and organizational processes increase performance. The
findings suggest that respondents noticed being left out of organizational communication efforts.
The respondents cited a need to have internal communication with the court for providing parents
education on family violence. There were gaps in communication due to an absence of leadership
and directives from the court to affiliate educators.
Accountability of policies and procedures for affiliate educators. For this study, a cultural
influence explored was whether, in the educators’ perspective, the court had clear administrative
policies and procedures to guide accountability for affiliate educators. Participants felt the court
should provide them information on court services’ policies and procedures. Mary proclaimed:
Oh gosh, Unfortunately, a lot of times, the courts are so busy, they're just grateful for any
resource, and if we could have more of the court's input, or let's just say, if we can get the
time for some of the judges to do a little synopsis, even in high-risk situations, or what it
looks like a dependency court or criminal court it would be helpful.
Liz revealed, “There is no communication between my program and the court we talk to probation
officers but no one from the court about our program being able to communicate directly with the
court as well might help.” The lack of administrative policies and procedures to guide accountability
of affiliate educators was cited as a deficit. In response to the accountability question and the degree
which they are evaluated, seven respondents repeated a common theme. There are no evaluations of
affiliate educators’ performance and asserted they had never participated in a performance
evaluation. Nancy said, “I don’t get evaluated,” and Kelly mentioned, “The only evaluation is a self-
evaluation, or feedback from parents, but never from the courts.” Joyce added that “there is no
feedback going back and forth from the court and the providers.” Referring to the longevity of this
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 51

issue, Sharon declared, “I have been doing this since 1986, and the court has not kept up with what
providers are doing or made it their business to understand or measure the effectiveness for what we
do. “Kyle said, “I don't really get any feedback or evaluation from the courts.” Mary shared:
So really, there's minimal communication from courts, we really hold ourselves to a high
standard, based on our education and ethics, to provide the best program we can. But really
outside of that it's really up to us, because we don’t get evaluations from the courts.
Liz said, “I would like to find out what are they looking for in the classes and what are they looking
for when they mandate someone to come to class. They should let me know what they're looking for
and things like that.”
A lack of accountability between the courts and affiliate educators throughout the structure of
the organization was a major concern of respondents. Seven respondents indicated having a system
of communication would offer clarity and better services to high conflict parents.
Sharon suggested:
The court should meet with the providers and ask the same questions I’m being asked in this
interview. What do you do? How do you measure it? To me, this is the weakest link between
the providers and the court.
Communication of policies and procedures is a connection between the vision and business process
to reach goals which must be accompanied by effective work procedures (Clark & Estes, 2008).
Culture in an organization influences how it conducts its internal operations as well as provides
meaning and consistency (Schein, 2010).
A lack of accountability between the courts and affiliate educators throughout the structure of
the organization was a major concern of respondents. Accountability is regarded as the means used
to control and direct administrative behavior by requiring “answerability” to some external authority
(Dubnick, 2003). Accountability holds individuals responsible for performance and is the dominant
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 52

form of accountability in education programs (Elmore, 2002). Culture in an organization influences
how it conducts its internal operations as well as provides meaning and consistency (Schein, 2010).
A growing body of work on accountability implies that it has a significant impact on administrative
behavior (Dubnick, 2003).
In response to the accountability question and the degree to which they are evaluated, seven
respondents repeated a common theme. There are no evaluations of affiliate educators’ performance.
The findings regarding the interaction between organizational context and culture of the affiliate
educators’ experience revealed significant deficits in organizational accountability. Data indicated
that the court did not provide organizational leadership requirements for affiliate educators.
Management of expectations and outcome of parent education programs in compliance with court
orders are not required. Clark and Estes (2008) suggest that effective organizations align their
messages, expectations, rewards, policies, and procedures with organizational goals and values.
Although affiliate educators are a resource for families engaged in court proceedings, their programs
are not under court scrutiny or evaluation. Seven respondents indicated a significant gap in
accountability between the court and affiliate educators. Disclosures regarding performance goals,
curriculum standards, or operation procedures are not required by the court.
Summary of Results and Findings
In summary, the qualitative data collected revealed assets and remaining needs, which can
help inform recommendations for organizational practice for the court. Affiliate educators
demonstrated knowledge of identifying behaviors of family violence and the impact on children
(asset). Affiliate educators did not identify effective strategies for teaching conflict resolution
techniques. The majority reported knowing how to identify family violence, but there was minimal
of procedural knowledge reported on how to teach parents how to engage in conflict resolution
instead of abusive behaviors (remaining need). All Affiliate educators acknowledged confidence in
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 53

their ability concerning self-efficacy in achieving their performance goal (asset). Affiliate educator's
confidence and self-efficacy were associated with longevity of providing services. The value of
service was evident in participants' responses alongside their expectation of success in delivering
services. Affiliate educators unanimously agreed there was great utility value in teaching high
conflict parents about family violence (asset).
The affiliate educators interviewed perceived that the court does not reflect a culture of
accountability and communication (remaining need). Participants viewed the court's policies of not
monitoring, communicating, or evaluating to be barriers to their performance. The affiliate educators
overwhelmingly reported a significant need for more clarity and communication regarding the
expectations of the court (remaining need). Respondents indicated there is a limited demonstration of
leadership about how to provide services to high conflict parents (remaining need). These responses
underscore the identified gaps in procedural knowledge, accountability, and communication of this
study.
Participants perceived the court's policies of not monitoring, communicating, or evaluating to
be barriers to their performance. Therefore, it is essential to eliminate these barriers, as they hinder
the quality of services provided. Finally, courts practice a burden of proof, and it would be beneficial
to require evidence-based parent education programs to measure participant performance.
Recommendations for Practice
The recommendations for practice pertain to the knowledge, motivation, and organizational
gaps that emerged from the data collection and analysis. This section presents the knowledge,
motivation, and organizational recommendations that will assist affiliate educators in
accomplishing their goal of providing a curriculum that supports parents in avoiding the harmful
impact of family violence on children. To pursue this mission, the family law court must establish
and promote a platform for high conflict parents to receive consistent information to acquire the
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 54

knowledge and skills to promote practice of conflict resolution. Specific recommendations and
theoretical principles for each influence are discussed in the following sections. The discussion
begins with knowledge recommendations, followed by motivation and organization
recommendations.
The knowledge influences in Table 6 were identified as gaps from the data. Although there
were several knowledge influences, conceptual and procedural knowledge were the two that
emerged as dominant and were deemed the most important to meet the stakeholder goal. A gap
emerged in the affiliate educators’ procedural knowledge in designing a conflict resolution
curriculum that addressed specific procedural steps. Table 6 provides information specific to
knowledge influence, principle, and recommendations to address the needs.
Table 6
Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations
Assumed Knowledge Influence Principle and Citation Context-Specific Recommendation
Affiliate Educators need
additional knowledge on how
to design a curriculum that
teach and train parents on the
negative impact of family
violence on children.
Continued practice that
promotes automaticity and
takes less capacity for
working memory
(Schraw & Mc Crudden,
2006)

Effective observational
learner is achieved by
organizing and rehearsing
modeled behaviors then
reacting them overtly
(Mayer, 2011)

Continued practice
promotes automaticity and
takes less capacity for
working memory
(Schraw & Mc Crudden,
2006)
Affiliate educators need to
repeat information that is to be
learned and provide feedback

Procedure knowledge training
will be taught using modeling,
practice, guided practice,
demonstrations, role play,
analogies and what if scenarios

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 55

The findings revealed that affiliate educators have declarative knowledge regarding the
relationship between the impact of family violence on children and conflict resolution. Affiliate
educators had independent yet similar definitions of verbal and physical family violence. There were
variations regarding the implications of emotional and psychological abuse. For this cause, it would
be important to use a definition aligned with the United States Department of Justice’s definition. A
principle target of training and instruction between the individual's performance and their level of
assisted performance promotes optimal learning (Scott & Palincsar, 2006).The recommendation for
affiliate educators to enhance declarative knowledge is to learn new strategies and techniques that
encourage modeling, dialogue, observation, authentic problem-solving techniques, guided practice,
demonstrations, role play and feedback.
Mayer (2011) contended that educators must serve as a cognitive guide and use instructional
methods for different kinds of knowledge and circumstances to help others learn. According to
Rueda (2011), it is equally important to use instructional methods and tools to assist parents in
learning. Furthermore, Denler et. al. (2009) suggested that modeling to-be-learned strategies or
behaviors will improve knowledge. Affiliate educators can build upon their current level of
knowledge by setting expectations about the importance of being well informed about updated
information on family violence.

Modeling to-be-learned
strategies or behaviors
improves learning, and
performance (Denler,
Wolters, & Benzon, 2009).

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 56

Increasing Affiliate Educators’ Procedural knowledge
This study found a gap in the affiliate educators’ skills between knowledge about family
violence and procedural steps for designing a conflict resolution evidenced based parent education
program. Procedural knowledge is a critical dimension for of teaching conflict resolution programs
by providing parents opportunities to practice the desired skills. Knowing how to design a
curriculum that teaches parents the impact of family violence on children and how to avoid it is
essential for the operations of a successful education program. Affiliate educators would need to
increase knowledge of the specifics for implementation of programs that teach procedural steps to
avoid conflict. According to Scott and Palincsar (2006), training and instruction targeted between
the individual's independent performance level and their level of assisted performance promotes
optimal learning. The gap between the organization and affiliate educators is critical. The
recommendation is for Hope County Superior Court to require all affiliate educators to learn how to
design their own curriculum or adapt the given curriculum to their instruction.
From a theoretical perspective, training requires an instructional approach using feedback,
guided practice, modeling or other active involvement teaching methods (Denzler et al., 2009).To
build the capacity of affiliate educators, the organization will provide or require training for affiliate
educators on best practices for providing service to high conflict parents. According to Clark and
Estes (2008), procedural knowledge increases when declarative knowledge required to develop a
skill is available or known. Clark and Estes (2008) also suggest that it is important to communicate
procedural steps and follow up with teaching targeted skills. To teach conflict resolution skills
affiliate educators need procedural knowledge to provide accurate feedback to parents regarding
expected outcomes. This research suggests that teaching and practicing the procedural steps of
conflict resolution depends on affiliate educators’ knowledge and skills in teaching the curriculum.

Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 57

Reinforcing Affiliate Educators’ Motivation
Motivation is important to engage in, persist, or work at a task or activity (Clark and Estes,
2008). Individuals who persist at a task have increased expectations of positive outcomes. Data
demonstrated that affiliate educators’ self-efficacy and beliefs about their capabilities to teach were
high. The data also revealed respondents also highly valued teaching education programs and
working with high conflict parents. Respondents also expressed the value in their capabilities to
understand the importance of teaching and training high conflict parents and the services provided to
were considered as meeting a critical need.
The motivation influences in Table 7 include self-efficacy and value needed to achieve the
affiliate educator's goal. The data noted no gaps of affiliate educators’ self-efficacy and utility value.
Based upon the perception of respondents, they were capable, confident, and motivated to effectively
teach and convince parents to engage in conflict resolution. Affiliate educators were equally
confident in the value of teaching high conflict parents to learn new communication methods. Table
7 includes principles and recommendations to reinforce and support affiliate educators to maintain
their existing high degree of self-efficacy and utility value.
Table 7
Summary of Motivation Influences to Reinforce Affiliate Educator’s Self-Efficacy Recommendations
Assumed Motivation Principle and Citation Context-Specific
(Self-Efficacy) Influence Recommendation
Affiliate educators should Modeling to-be-learned Affiliate educators should
continue to believe they are strategies or behaviors acquire new teaching conflict
capable of teaching conflict to improve self-efficacy through modeling (Denzler et al,
resolution to reduce family learning, and performance 2009).
violence. (Denzler, Wolters, &
Benzon, 2009).
Feedback and modeling Affiliate educators need
Increases self-efficacy feedback that stress effort
(Pajares, 2006) learning by display of
Running head: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN 58

modeling using role play
strategies, guided practice, and
steps of conflict resolution.

Expectancy Value Theory Learning and motivation Conduct interviews with
Affiliate educators must see are enhanced if the learner parents and focus on the
the value and importance of values the task (Eccles, 2006). importance and value of
conflict resolution curriculum teaching and training reducing
family violence. conflict resolution.

Rationales that include the During interviews with parents
importance and value of the focus should be on the value
learning can help learners and benefits of being educated
develop positive values on the impact of violence on
(Eccles, 2006: Pintrich, children.
2003).

Reinforcing educators’ self-efficacy. The motivational influences for this study were
efficacy and utility value. Among the eight respondents, gaps did not emerge in the motivational
influences of self-efficacy or utility value. (Denzler & Wolters (2006) posits motivating
participants to apply instructional approaches is needed during training. The data revealed that
affiliate educators perceived they were capable of effectively motivating parents to learn new
conflict resolution skills. All respondents were highly confident in their ability to use principles
of modeling to-be-learned strategies or behaviors which supports learning, and performance.
Motivation is the process of initiation, sustaining, and completion of an activity or task
(Schunk, Pintrich, & Meece, 2009). Affiliate educators convincingly acknowledged they were
capable of teaching parent education classes. A reinforcement recommendation for affiliate
educators is to continue to set challenging goals that will allow learners to experience success.
Affiliate educators should continue with demonstration, model to-be-learned strategies, and
feedback to motivate learners to acquire new conflict resolution behaviors. (Denzler et al., 2009).
Bandura (2000) and Pajares (1997) posited that self-efficacy affects behavior, the amount
of effort exerted, the types of goals chosen, perseverance. Bandura (2006) also suggested that
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

59
individuals who believe they are capable are more likely to engage in a specific task. Denzler et
al. (2009) postulated encouraging learners to set productive goals that are challenging but
achievable and to self-evaluate. Dembo and Eaton (2000) further suggested teaching learners’
strategies to manage their motivation, time, learning strategies, and monitor their performance.
These are reinforcement strategies for affiliate educators to continue to use as demonstration of
self-efficacy. Therefore, from a theoretical perspective, affiliate educators should continue to
display their capabilities and self-efficacy through modeling and demonstration to motivate and
increase performance among learners. Affiliate educators’ self-efficacy will increase if they are
successful and get feedback from the courts on their performance.
Reinforcing expectancy-value for affiliate educators. The motivational influence of
utility value has significant implications for affiliate educators. The data did not reveal any noted
gaps in expectancy value. The recommendation is that, during facilitation, affiliate educators
continue to focus on the value of conflict resolution and the personal benefits to children of
participates in parent education programs. The organization can increase the value of the services
affiliate educators render by communicating recognition of the value of the services as well as
their dependency upon affiliate educators to provide a much-needed service to high conflict
parents.
Organization Recommendations
The list of organizational influences in Table 8 was established as gaps in the
organization's cultural models and cultural settings. Organizations are complex systems, with
core values, goals, beliefs, emotions and processes of its members that develop and influence the
culture (Clark & Estes, 2008). The organizational culture can contribute to motivational and
knowledge gaps, and cause performance problems (Rueda (2011). The organizational influences
in Table 8 include all assumed organizational influences. The data revealed the court depends
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60
upon affiliate educators to provide services to high conflict parents there are gaps in
communication and accountability. Affiliate educators’ performance is influenced by cultural
models and cultural settings within the court system. These two influences were believed to
cause gaps between the court system and affiliate educators. Recommendations to address the
identified gaps are outlined in Table 8 and detailed in the following sections.
Table 8
Summary of Organizational Influences and Recommendations
Organizational Principle and Citation Context-Specific Influence
Recommendation

Cultural Model Influence 1: Leaders are more accountable The court needs to
Culture of accountability when accountability is framed develop accountability
both internally and externally, policies and procedural
takes many forms; include guidelines for affiliate
bureaucratic accountability, educators to measure the
professional accountability, quality and effectiveness
market accountability. Conner of program performance.
& Rabovsky, (2011) Darling-
Hammond & Snyder; (2015).

Cultural Settings Effective leaders understand The court should develop
Communication intricacies of organizational inclusive communication
communication. Conger, (1991) system to develop a
Fix &Sias, (2006), Lewis (2011). relationship with affiliate
educators by providing
Effective leaders know how to information on education
Build strong communication programs or training
Skills among members of opportunities. To build
Organization in order to build and maintain positive
Effective communication relationships (Fix & Sias
Capacity (Conger, 1991) 2006)

To promote the change process, the court should develop an inclusive communication
system to enhance affiliate educators' performance by providing information on developments
related to education programs, new laws, training, continuing education, etc. This proposal is
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61
important because effective leaders understand the intricacies of organizational communication
(Conger, 1991; Fix &Sias, 2006;Lewis, 2011).Effective leaders are also aware of the
importance of building a communication system that would promote a relationship among all
stakeholders’ communication within an organization is as essential as the procedural knowledge
and self-efficacy of affiliate educators to meeting their performance goal.
Increasing organizational accountability. The study found significant gaps in the
organizational cultural model of accountability. The influence of cultural models shapes the
way an organization is structured, regarding the values, practices, policies, and reward systems
(Clark & Estes, 2008). Hope County Superior Court operates in a culture of significant reliance
upon the services of affiliate educators. Although accountability of performance is needed to
ensure proper services are being provided, the court practices accountability exclusion for
affiliate educators. According to Elmore (2002), accountability is increased when individual
roles and expectations are aligned with organizational goals and mission. Clark and Estes
(2008) suggested that, when accountability is framed internally, externally, and includes
bureaucratic accountability, professional accountability, and market accountability, individuals
are more effective (Clark & Estes, 2008; Conner & Rabovsky, 2011; Darling-Hammond &
Snyder, 2015). Considering the exclusion of accountability of affiliate educators, the
recommendation is to develop an accountability system between the court and affiliate
educators.
From a theoretical perspective building, the capacity of an organization is crucial to
improve the institution and its accountability systems. External accountability systems can be
used to develop the mechanics of internal accountability and organizational capacity
(Hentschke & Wohlstetter, 2004). According to Hentschke and Wohlstetter (2004), a
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

62
relationship of accountability would align individual practices of affiliate educators with Hope
County’s mission to offer fair, accessible, effective, and efficient services. Individuals are more
productive when goal setting and benchmarking are used to evaluate progress and drive
organizational accountability. Data-driven benchmarking enhances accountability and
improves organizational performance (Dowd, 2005; Levy &Ronco,2012).
Effective organizations ensure organizational messages, rewards, policies, and
procedures that govern the work of the organization are aligned with or are supportive of
organizational goals and values (Clark & Estes, 2008). Effective change efforts ensure
everyone has the resources (equipment, personnel, and time) needed to do their job, and that
resource shortages, are aligned with organizational priorities (Clark & Estes, 2008).The court's
cultural model endorses policies of exclusion of affiliate educators in communication,
evaluation, monitoring and the quality of services provided, which limits accountability and
performance measurement. The court needs to address the accountability of affiliate educators
and the provision of education programs to parents involved in court proceedings. More
accountability and oversight of program operations would provide a greater quality of services
because cultural models of the courts significantly influence the cultural setting of the
organization.
Developing an all-inclusive communication system. Cultural settings shape the way
an organization forges a relationship with cultural models which impact behavior including the
values, practices, policies, reward structure (Rueda, 2011). The court system has no formal
communication system with affiliate educators related to operations, program performance, or
curriculum standards. Open communication between stakeholders is the influence to promote
change in Hope County Superior Court. The recommendation was for Hope County Superior
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

63
Court leaders to develop an all-inclusive communication system. Collaborations between the
organization and affiliate educators using several platforms to involve in meetings would
create an all- inclusive model of communication.
Effective leaders must have the skills and strategies to redesign their organization for
effective communication (Lim & Daughtery, 2013). Theory suggests that organizations that
pursue equity, diversity and access improve organizational climate and outcomes. Systems of
accountability should address equity, diversity and access in various sectors (Limet al., 2013).
The recommendation is for Hope County Superior Court leaders to design an effective
communication system to promote a relationship of inclusion of affiliate educators and
accountability of performance. Leaders are more accountable when accountability is framed
both internally and externally, and includes bureaucratic, professional or market accountability
(Conner & Rabovsky, 2011; Darling- Hammond & Snyder, 2015).
Clark and Estes (2008) suggested that changing cultural models would enhance performance
while developing accountability standards. According to Dowd (2005) and Levy and Ronco
(2012), goal setting and benchmarking are essential to evaluating progress and driving
organizational performance. To promote the change process, the court should develop
strategies to align individual practices of affiliate educators with institutional goals, monitor
and evaluate the expected outcomes of the goals. The court should develop an accountability
system between the courts and affiliate educators for evaluation, monitoring, and quality of
services provided.
From a theoretical perspective, implementation of this recommendation would align
individual practices of affiliate educators with Hope County's mission to offer fair, accessible,
effective, and efficient services. Denning et al. (2005) suggested it is important for leaders to
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

64
know how to create and manage good work relationships with stakeholders. To enhance the
value of parent education programs provided by affiliate educators, development of an
inclusive communication system with strategies to promote a relationship between the court
and affiliate educators would benefit all stakeholders.
The cultural setting of the court is structured to ensure adherence to law codes for those
who seek assistance whereas providing services requires an effective and consistent
communication system to meet the needs of all stakeholders. To introduce change, leaders
must understand the intricacies of organizational communication (Conger, 1991, Fix & Sias,
2006; Lewis, 2011). For example, creating a system to support education programs would
demonstrate judicial officers understand the importance of communication with all
stakeholders. Dispersing information to affiliate educators regarding operations of education
programs, new laws that impact training and continuing education opportunities would
positively impact performance. The organization’s practice of communicating inclusion would
create a good relationship between the court and affiliate educators.
Developing organizational policies and procedures that include affiliate educators
as stakeholders. The court does not have inclusive organizational policies and procedures
systems for affiliate educators. The recommendation was for Hope County Family Law Court
to create overarching policies and procedures that include affiliate educators as stakeholders.
The court should develop and inform affiliate educators of performance policies, expectations,
and the outcome of orders to parents. Reporting procedures guidelines of how, when, and to
whom to report concerns, violations or non-compliance of orders or program rules would
formalize a system of working together.
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65
The court should implement procedures that promote systematic accountability for
affiliate educators' performance and evaluations of services provided. Organizational policies,
procedures, and practices would influence the performance goals of individuals, groups, or
organizations (Rueda, 2011). Uniformity of policies to require affiliate educators to report
progress on evidenced-based program performance competency standards should be imposed.
This recommendation would require the organization to mandate affiliate educators to disclose
information on administrative operations, instructional materials, and performance outcomes.
This practice would allow the court to influence the importance of accountability for affiliate
educators. Organizational policies, procedures, and practices would influence the performance
goals of individuals, groups, or organizations (Rueda, 2011).
Implementation of new policies to the inclusion of affiliate educators in the
organizational communication process may positively influence their performance and
motivation. Kotter and Schlesinger (1979) posit that those allowed to participate meaningfully
in change are more committed to its success because their relevant contributions integrated into
the change plan. From a theoretical perspective, court leaders and affiliate educators should
create a collaborative process to close policy and procedural gaps to aid in educating parents
ordered to complete education programs.
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan
The Kirkpatrick Model is utilized as a method of evaluating the effectiveness of
training programs. The implementation and improvement plan for this study is based upon
Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick's four levels of training and evaluation. Kirkpatrick and
Kirkpatrick (2016) contended there are three major reasons to evaluate training programs: to
improve the program, to maximize the transfer of learning to behavior and to demonstrate the
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

66
value of training to the organization (Kirkpatrick& Kirkpatrick, 2016). To accomplish this
goal, the New World Kirkpatrick model recommends training and evaluation be implemented
in the reverse order such as Level 4 (Results), Level 3 (Behavior), Level 2 (Learning), and
Level 1 (Reaction).
Level 4 measures the results of targeted outcomes using leading indicators to ensure
critical behaviors achieve the desired results. Level 3 allows organizations opportunities to
evaluate how much individuals transfer learning from training back to the workplace and
requires continuous performance monitoring and improvement systems. To evaluate Level 3
consists of assessing critical behaviors, required drivers, and on-the-job learning (Kirkpatrick
& Kirkpatrick, 2016). Critical behaviors are expected to influence Level 4 and are key
behaviors that lead from learning to desired outcomes. Required drivers are processes and
systems that reinforce, monitor, encourage and reward the performance of critical behaviors on
the job (Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick, 2016). Level 2 learning is the degree to which
participants acquire the intended knowledge, skills, attitude, confidence and commitment based
on participation in the training.
Organizational Context and Mission
This study examined the knowledge and skills, motivational, and organizational
barriers that affect affiliate educators’ ability to develop and implement a best practice
curriculum. The recommendation was to use an evidenced-based best practice curriculum, job
aids, and one-on-one support for parent education programs. Solutions for internal outcomes
would allow affiliate educators to increase knowledge about the harmful impact of family
violence on children who see, hear or are victims. An increase understanding of what conflict
resolution is, creates opportunities to design guidelines for developing a written conflict
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67
resolution plan. The effectiveness of a conflict resolution plan would increase strategies,
practice and demonstration of conflict resolution steps to minimize triggers to conflict and
encourage parents to increase trust and respect for one another. The proposed solution for
external outcomes is to reduce the incidence of the number of petitions filed with the court due
to an inability to agree in the best interest of their children on custody, visitation, and child
support.
The goal of Hope County Superior Court is that, by May 2020, after completing a
minimum 16-week parenting education program, at least 80% of parents will display mastery
in addressing family violence. The affiliate educators' goal is by May 2019, and all affiliate
educators will design and deliver a best practice-based co-parenting curriculum that addresses
family violence. For practical purposes, affiliate educators as providers of educational services
are the stakeholder group selected for the focus of this study. Although other stakeholders
contributed to the goal of decreasing children's exposure to family violence, affiliate educators
were the only stakeholders who provide up to 52 weeks of on-going education services to high
conflict parents. The role of the affiliate educator is to teach parents the impact of family
violence and provide training on methods of conflict resolution. Parent education programs that
focus on the impact of family violence will support the courts "in the best interest of children"
standard. Training on methods of conflict resolution can influence parents to reduce their
children's exposure to a cycle of family violence.
The desired outcome is the implementation of a minimum 16-week parenting education
program with a curriculum that teaches anger management, co-parenting, domestic violence,
and conflict resolution to decrease the number of children exposed to family violence.
Enhancing parents' knowledge about the harmful impact of family violence on children, it is
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68
expected that the number of case filings for hearings due to ongoing disputes about child
support, custody, domestic violence, and visitation will decrease. A reduction in the number of
continuous filings would also alleviate the burden on the court’s calendar due to a shortage of
judicial officials.
Level 4: Results and Leading Indicators
Table 9
Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes
Outcome Metric(s) Method(s)
External Outcomes
Reduction in number of
children witnessing, hearing
or exposed to family violence

Reduction in number of
CPS reports, order to show
cause for noncompliance of
court orders, or relocations

Reduction in request for
Permanent Restraining
Orders

Reports by parents of percentage
of improvement in performances:
which includes grades at school
and, at home behavior

Number of children enrolled in
therapy or other community
support systems or CPS
investigations

Number of filings for hearings
Number of Permanent 5 years
Restraining Orders granted
Progress and enrollment
Reports, self-assessment,
reports, family meetings,
or mediations interviews,
Children Service meetings,
court hearings schedules
and case settlement filings

Reduction in issuance of 3
to 5-year restraining orders
or false allegations of
abuse declarations

Decrease in number of parents
Failing or refusing to enroll in
classes together
Number of co-parenting
participants
Co parent Completion
Certificates for each parent
completing program
together from same agency
or provider
Internal Outcomes
Reduction in number of
parents who engage in high
conflict in presence of
children
One to two Positive/Negative
examples, per parent, of
experiences of current conflict
situations and
Set aside time to practice
conflict resolution skills
empowerment and
feedback discussions
between the affiliate
educators and the parents.
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69
Reduction in number of
filings or allegations of abuse
to CPS
One to two Positive/Negative
feedback comments from
Administrator and Mediators
reports.
Solicit weekly feedback
data on affiliate educator’s
effectiveness.

Decrease in number of non-
compliance hearings or
continuances due to failure to
follow court orders or
unresolved conflict

The frequency of self-reflection
by parents on effectiveness of
training. Increase in development
of parenting plans by co-parents
prior to filing court petitions.

Set aside private sessions
for conversations between
parents and affiliate
educators.

Increase in the number of
parents who communicate and
negotiate modifications to
visitation and custody orders

Bi-monthly each parent will
describe one conflict situation and
request support to identify steps to
resolve it. Each parent will provide
at least one form of feedback in
class to support one another.

On a monthly basis during
progress meeting all
parents will share requests
for support.

Level 3: Behavior
Critical behaviors. The stakeholders of focus are affiliate educators who provide
educational programs for parents involved in court proceedings. The first critical behavior is
that affiliate educators will set an appointment to assess incoming clients. The second critical
behavior is the affiliate’s observations of the parent during the comprehensive intake review of
court documents to determine eligibility to participate in the program. Once enrolled,
attendance, participation and assignment completion will measure progress. The third critical
behavior is affiliate educators’ knowledge and skills to empower and meet the needs of parents
while determining their willingness to participate in conflict resolution training. The specific
metrics, methods, and timing for each outcome behaviors appear in Table 10
Table 10
Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation
Critical Behavior Metric(s)
Method(s)
Timing
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70
1) Affiliate Educators will
meet to document their
experiences assessing
parents’ needs.
Documenting the
number of
positive
experiences and
when a parent’s
needs were met
by each affiliate
educators.
The administrator will
compare parents’
satisfaction surveys with
affiliate educators’ self-
reported positive
experiences and provide a
report and feedback to the
affiliate educator and the
court as requested.
Monthly at the end
of each training
module or longer if
court so orders.

2) Affiliate educators
engage parents in private
sessions to offer support
and communication
building.
The number of
concerns assessed
in private session.

The administrator will
provide feedback during
private sessions.

Monthly for four
months or at the
completion of each
court ordered
program.
3) Affiliate educators will
self-reflect by journaling
about their knowledge and
accuracy in advising
sessions, how well they
assess the parents’ needs
for anger management, co-
parenting, child abuse
prevention, domestic
violence and conflict
resolution.
The number of
reflections about
effectiveness in
reports written.
Monthly the
administrator will review
and provide feedback
from reports during
meetings.
Monthly summary
report notes or
reports per court
order. Feedback
from Administrator
will be provided
monthly.

Required drivers. Affiliate educators require the support of the administrative staff,
peers, and the organization to reinforce, encourage, and monitor activities learned from
trainings. Reinforcement is used to remind participants of what they learned and provide
refresher training. Encouragement is a formal way to provide coaching and mentoring and
rewarding is providing incentives for critical behaviors. Finally, monitoring ensures
accountability for the performance of the participants based upon the knowledge, skills and
motivation of the affiliate educators to delivery training. Table 11 shows the recommended
drivers to support critical behaviors of affiliate educators.
Table 11
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71
Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors
Critical Behaviors Supported
Method(s) Timing 1, 2, 3 Etc.
Reinforcing
Create a communication system
that includes affiliate educators

Implement accountability policies
and procedures for affiliate
educators

Ongoing 1, 2

Encouraging
Consultation to create or approve a
best practice conflict resolution
instructional program

Conduct observations of affiliate
educators and provide feedback

Ongoing 1, 2

Rewarding
Provide incentives and recognition for
performance towards program goal Ongoing 1, 2

Monitoring
Communication between court and
affiliate educators’ accountability
policies and procedures

Ongoing 1, 2

Organizational support. To support the critical behaviors for affiliate educators to
meet their performance goal of providing a 16-week conflict resolution program, the court
needs to address the organizational influences identified in the findings. Court judicial officers,
as effective leaders, must understand the intricacies of organizational communication (Lewis,
2011). foster communication and accountability, the court should determine collaborative
meeting times for planning with affiliate educators. Finally, the organization would ensure
enough resources to accomplish its performance goal.
Level 2: Learning
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72
Learning goals. Following the completion of the recommended solutions, the affiliate
educators will be able to:
1. Demonstrate knowledge and skills to teach conflict resolution strategies to influence the
outcome of participants' performance during conflicts. (Procedural Knowledge)
2. Implement effective strategies to engage parents in discussions and participation on
practicing steps of conflict resolution. (Procedural Knowledge)
3. Teach the value of conflict resolution to high conflict parents involved in the court
system. (Procedural knowledge)
4. Be confident and believe in their ability to influence change in families on their
caseload. (Motivation – Self-efficacy)
Program. The learning goals listed in the previous section will be achieved using
problem-based and action research learning methodologies to simulate the role and
participation of affiliate educators with high conflict parents. Problem-based learning has been
used to foster effective collaboration and critical reasoning in order to tackle complex
problems. Through problem-based learning, the acquisition of knowledge is directed and
driven by specific problems or scenarios. The program is grounded in principles, practices, and
training components for immersion-based support learning.
Beginning July 2019, affiliate educators from the court approved referral list will be
invited to participate in intense training on the five modules that would address a curriculum on
anger management, domestic violence, child abuse prevention, co-parenting, and conflict
resolution. This training will consist of a comprehensive interactive, simulated curriculum on
the realities of the impact of children's exposure to family violence. Merrill's (2002) five
principles instructional methods will be used described as follows:
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73
1. Provide realistic field-based problems for learners to solve;
2. Give attendees analogies and examples that relate prior knowledge to new learning;
3. Offer clear and complete demonstrations of how to perform key tasks and
solve authentic problems;
4. Insist on frequent practice opportunities during training to apply what is being learned
by performing tasks and solving problems while receiving corrective feedback; and
5. Require application practice that includes "part-task" (practicing small chunks of larger
tasks) but also "whole tasks" (applying as much of what is learned as possible to solve
the complex problems that represent challenges encountered in operational
environments) both during and after instruction (Merrill, 2002)
Evaluation of the components of learning. To apply what is learned to solve
problems and meet performance goals, the affiliate educators must have the knowledge, skills,
and motivation to achieve their goals. Therefore, it is important to assess learning for both the
conceptual and procedural knowledge being taught. It is also imperative that parents value
training, are committed, and confident that they can apply what they have learned on a daily
basis. It is also important that evaluation tools are used to measure the effectiveness of training
and the approaches used to empower parenting skills. Table 12 lists the evaluation methods and
timing for these learning components.
Table 12
Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program
Method(s) or Activity(ies) Timing
Declarative Knowledge “I know it.”
Knowledge checks, discussion, role play, during group
activities
Weekly Check Point Reviews
documented in summary notes
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74
Report out during “What If” scenario and discussions. Weekly tracking to ensure
participation of parents
Procedural Skills “I can do it right now.”
Parents practice using “Face Off “real scenarios and
application of Conflict Resolution steps during class.
Intermittently during 16-week
class sessions
Feedback on conflicts of real-life situations Weekly as presented by
participants
Attitude “I believe this is worthwhile.”
Individualized Pre-and Post-test assessment to determine
the value to teach and train parents “the best interest of
their children”.
Beginning and Ending of 16
week class.
Identify, Assess, Discuss, Rewrite the positive and negative
outcomes of communication
During instructional time
modules.
Confidence “I think I can do it on the job.”
Feedback from observations of real-life situation
behaviors/concerns.
During instructional time of
modules.
Commitment “I will do it on the job.”
To use “Pause, Think, Pause Plan before 1:1
discussions on issues of concern following observations
During the 13th and 14th week
of training,
Ask attendees to write and share a communications’
plan to implement what they have learned
During the 15th/16th week of
training.

Level 1: Reaction
Participants’ responses are relevant and influential to the success of training. Therefore,
how the participants react to the learning events determines the outcome and effectiveness of
the training. Table 10 lists the reactions of the participants to the training as being favorable,
engaging, and relevant.

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75
Table 13
Components to Measure Reactions to the Program
Method(s) or Tool(s) Timing
Engagement
Completion of Checklist observation Administrator After weekly module.

Relevance
Class Instructional Curriculum Evaluation
one on one discussion with administrator
Upon completion of each four week
module.

Customer Satisfaction
Satisfaction check-up survey
Training Evaluation One -Two weeks after the workshop.

Evaluation Tools
Immediately following the program implementation and completion of training
participants will complete a post assessment of information and skills learned during the
sessions. During affiliate educator facilitation, the administrator will complete a checklist
which will reflect the relevance of the instructional curriculum, participants’, attitude, and
confidence in applying what has been learned. Information gathered from the evaluation tools
will be used to improve the curriculum. To maximize participants’ learning, affiliate educators
will use information gathered from evaluation tools to modify teaching strategies. For Level 1
and Level 2, judicial officers will conduct observations and provide feedback to affiliate
educator on presentation and program management. During training, clarity checks will be
conducted to assess participants’ ideas regarding the value and relevancy of the content,
scenarios, and overall authentic examples. The trainer will also inquire about any
environmental factors that may have interfered with the participants’ learning of the material.
The overall effectiveness of the training related to conflict resolutions will be assessed. Level 2
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

76
will include checks for appropriateness of discussions, content, and understanding of what is
being presented. Level 2 will also use group discussions and feedback to determine the
understanding or application of selected modules.
Delayed for a period after the program implementation. Approximately 30 days
after the 16-week training the organization will administer a survey containing open and scaled
items using the blended evaluation approach. See appendix E
Data Analysis and Reporting
The Level 4 goal for affiliate educators will be measured by how connected the parents
are with their knowledge and application of conflict resolution strategies. Affiliate educators
must have the knowledge skills and motivation to provide data and support information on
perceived barriers to developing and recommending conflict resolution strategies. The intent is
to support a reduction in the number of family disagreements that warrant filings for additional
court hearings due to alleged noncompliance or escalating disagreements about custody,
visitation or child support. After completion of each module of the program, the administrator
will compile the data from parents' performance and track the number of postings of feedback
affiliate educators receive from parent reports that impacted how the conflicts were resolved.
Annually, the affiliate educator will monitor the increase or decrease of new petitions to the
court by participants. To monitor the progress and hold the participants accountable the
dashboard below will report the data on these measures. Similar dashboards will be created to
monitor program performance goals.

Table 14
Affiliate Educator Progress and Accountability of Performance Goals (Levels 1, 2, and 3)
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Dashboard Goal Fall 2019
Totals
Spring
2020
Totals
2019-2020
Annual
Totals
Affiliates are knowledgeable about how to assess
parents needs
100% XX XX XX
Collaboration with other affiliate educators 90% XX XX XX
Parent program completion rates and reduction in
petitions for court hearings
90% XX XX XX

Summary
The New World Kirkpatrick Model informs the implementation and evaluation plan for
this study (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick training program
starts with the identification of the outcomes, metrics, and method to measure the results of the
targeted outcomes that are integrated with the organization's goals. The four levels of training
and evaluation are used to ensure that affiliate educators have the knowledge, motivation, and
organizational support to provide services. The Kirkpatrick World Model also recommended
strategies for affiliate educators to support participants being issued progress reports and
receiving certificates of completion. Next, the program establishes critical behaviors to assess
if the parents are using what they have learned at home or in the community. Affiliate
educators identify learning outcomes of their training, which are evaluated based upon
participants’ learning, knowledge, attitude, commitment, and confidence during training. These
outcomes measure parents' response to training satisfaction, engagement, and the relevance of
the training information. To implement change and maximize the program results it is
important to evaluate and analyze data collection during program implementation. For the
levels of training evaluation, this section will answer the questions: "Does the level of …..
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78
meet expectations? If so, then why? Also, if not, then why not?" (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick,
2016).
During training, if the level of reaction and learning does not meet expectations, then
the affiliate educator would need to identify the problem and make necessary adjustments or
changes as applicable. If parents are not progressing and continually show high conflict
behavioral patterns, it is recommended that affiliate educators do a wellness check and
investigate the participant's thoughts or concerns (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). When the
level of reaction and learning meets expectations, the trainer may want to stop and do a check
to discuss what caused an increased engagement (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016).
After training, if the level of behavior and results do not meet expectations then it is
important to communicate with parents to assess what are the issues with the required drivers
and critical behaviors. At level 3, it is important to ask why the leading indicators and desired
results, for level 4, are not moving forward (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). The affiliate
educator can solicit feedback through surveys or interviews and ask parents what behaviors or
adjustments are needed to achieve their performance goals in accordance with court minute
orders. When the levels of behavior and results meet expectations, it is recommended that high
achieving affiliate educators share with the organization how they increase their performance
(Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016).
Finally, it is important to provide a summary report on the training outcomes to parents,
administrators, the court and other practicing affiliate educators. Organizational support is a
component that also determines the success of any training program (Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2016). To drive performance and results, Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016)
recommend providing reports and creating touch points throughout the implementation
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79
process. To engage managers in topics that are important to them for evaluation the reports
should address the relevance, credibility, compelling, and efficiency of the program
(Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). To conduct periodic checks during the implementation
process will promote a better training program.
Future Questions and Research
This study focused on affiliate educators’ as providers of parent education programs
ordered by the court for high conflict parents. Children’s exposure to violence by high conflict
parents should generate extensive research regarding professional services of affiliate
educators. Future research could include an overall focus on the effectiveness of parent
education programs offered by affiliate educators as independent contractors. This study was
limited to specific knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences of affiliate educators.
Future research could focus on additional influences for a clearer perspective of affiliate
educator’s ability to meet the needs of high conflict parents. This study was limited to the
interview data. Therefore, future research could include observations and document review of
affiliate educators’ performance and documents analysis used within the educational setting.
Future research could evaluate the effectiveness of the recommendations in this study
and the impact of the organizational involvement on achieving performance goals. Other
stakeholders such as judicial officers, mediators, and parents, could be the focus of a study on
their specific role in identifying affiliate educators’ performance, support, and resource needs.
Additional focus on improving the organizational culture may also influence affiliate
educator’s performance. Future research could evaluate the impact of cultural influences on
affiliate educators’ beliefs, perceptions and performance.

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Conclusion
Through this study, it was discovered that Hope County Superior Court allowed high
conflict parents to continually expose their children to the harmful impact of family violence.
Children exposed to violence suffer long term social, emotional and psychological harm such
as anxiety, aggression, depression, suicide ideations, poor academic performance, and other
behavior difficulties. The study revealed this oversight is due to a lack of communication and
accountability between the courts and affiliate educators. The purpose of this study was to
evaluate the knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences related to affiliate educator’s
achievement by May2020, to design and deliver best practice-based curriculum that addresses
family violence. The study focused on the interaction between the court’s culture and context
and affiliate educator’s procedural knowledge related to the goal of designing a conflict
resolution program. The court was recommended to address the organizational gaps identified
in this study by establishing a culture of accountability and communication.
It was recommended that organizational leadership focuses on accountability,
expectations and rewards for affiliate educators to align parent education program with the
performance goal. To close the communication gaps, the court should implement a
communication system that is inclusive of affiliate educators with opportunities for training,
continuing education and other resource opportunities. Developing strategies to meet the goal
and monitoring performance will address the needs identified in the study. Addressing
organizational policies of accountability and communication and affiliate educator’s procedural
knowledge is a priority to achieve the performance goal of designing a conflict resolution
education program for high conflict parents. Finally, it is the responsibility of the court to
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81
implement policies and procedures to amend previous operational practices for parent
education programs which caused detrimental harm to children.

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82
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Appendix A: Interview Protocol
Interview Questions: Family Violence and the Impact on Children
Respondent: _________________________________________________________________
Location of Interview: _________________________________________________________
Time in / Time Out: ___________________________________________________________
Interview Opening Remarks
Thanks for meeting with me today. I am conducting this interview as part of my
dissertation research in my doctoral program at the University of Southern California,
exploring family violence and the impact on children whose parents are involved in court
proceedings. As a practicing affiliate educator, please be advised that I am not here to evaluate
you or your services in any way. The sole purpose of this study and the interviews to follow is
to gather information that will assist with educating parents on the harmful impact of family
violence. The information gathered will also provide factual data to make recommendations to
the court, on how to better support families and children.
I anticipate taking no more than 45-60 minutes of your time, and I have 16 questions.
Your participation is completely voluntary. We can skip any question you want at any time,
and you may stop the interview at any time.
Any identifiable information obtained in connection with this study will remain
confidential. Your responses will be coded with a false name (pseudonym) and maintained
separately.
If you are comfortable with it, I would like to record our conversation and the recording
will be destroyed after it is transcribed. Do you have any questions? Ready to begin?

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Interview Questions
The first set of questions are related to your professional background and experience
1. Tell me about your professional background and why you became an affiliate educator.
Probe: What court services do you provide?
2. Tell me about how your experience working with domestic violence and its impact on
children.
Probe: Tell me about how you perceive the value of services you provide to the
litigants.
3. Tell me how you feel about your ability to effectively teach conflict resolution curriculum to
reduce family violence?
Probe: Can you provide examples please?
4. What kind of knowledge does an affiliate educator need about family violence andwhy?
Probe: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
5. How do you approach designing curriculum for:
a. child abuse
b. domestic violence
c. co-parenting issues
d. conflict resolution

6. Please tell me whether you use the following instructional strategies. If you do use them,
how often and could you give an example?

a. demonstration
b. practice
c. feedback
d. technology
e. written assignments

7. In your opinion, what do you think are the most important skills an affiliate educator needs
to teach and train parents to resolve issues related to:
a. child abuse
b. domestic violence
c. co-parenting issues
d. conflict resolution.

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8. In your opinion, what are the best teaching methods to help parents improve communication
between each other?
Probe: Can you can give examples, please.
9. How do you motivate or encourage parents to participate in the training? Probe for the
following:
a. guided practice
b. role play
c. modeling?
10. Tell me how you determine if parents value the information provided to them
Probe: Can you provide examples, please.
11. Describe the ideal relationship between the courts and affiliate educators that would create
an effective relationship for providing quality services.

Probe: To what degree do you feel you are provided adequate information about court
services’ policies and procedures.

12. Please discuss whether you received any guidance or performance training on how to teach
parents about family violence.
Probe: Could you provide examples?
13. To what degree, if any, is your performance as an affiliated educator evaluated?
14. What suggestions would you give to the courts to improve the performance of affiliate
educators such as yourself and the quality of services provided to parents?
15. How do court policies and procedures impact your capacity to deliver effective training?
Probe: Could you provide examples?
16. What advice or recommendations would you give to someone interested in becoming an
affiliate educator?

Is there anything else you would like to share? Thank you for your time!

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Appendix B: Credibility and Trustworthiness
Credibility is determined by whether data and analysis results are factual, reproducible
and consistent (Merriam &Tisdell, 2016). To establish trustworthiness, researchers should not
deviate from the underlying theories or assumptions about their investigations. The primary
tool for collecting and analyzing data was the researcher, so the researcher used member
checking, peer briefing, and observation techniques to increase the investigation’s
trustworthiness (Gibbs, 2012).
Member checking. With member checking, respondents can confirm or contest both
the interpretation and conclusion of the researcher (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). The final reports
must be approved by the informants. Member checking provided an opportunity to assess the
data. The researcher allowed respondents to participate in reducing assumptions and ambiguity
through a detailed review of the researcher’s material. Largely, member checks bring the
contributions of each participant into the research (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Both informal
confirming questions and formal transcript reviews were employed to confirm findings.
Peer debriefing. This process entails the researcher involving peers as disinterested
parties in the research. This is done to delve into aspects of inquiry that, without exploration,
will remain only inherent with the researcher’s mind. Peer debriefing helps raise questions
which might be related to the research mainly on design and methodology. Overall, peer
debriefing is aimed at keeping researchers authentic throughout data interpretation. Throughout
the study, ongoing consultation and debrief with peers on research design, methods of data
collection, and data analysis was carried out.
As Maxwell (2013) suggests verifying the accuracy of the findings to support
credibility and trustworthiness through self- reflection, peer review and by ensuring the design
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of the interview protocol aligns with the research questions. Disclosure of the researcher’s role
as a practicing affiliate educator was provided, and interviewees were advised that the
interview was not an evaluation of them or their services, as the intent was to better understand
their experiences. The purpose of this study and the interviews was to gather information to
assist in educating parents on the harmful impact of family violence. The information also
provided conceptual data to make recommendations to the court to better support families and
children.
Finally, the intent was for participants to be at ease and share their authentic thoughts,
feelings, and experiences. It was important to use self-reflection to recognize potential biases.
These include opinions, beliefs or experiences that influence what the researcher observes, sees
or heard along with how interviews are conducted (Maxwell, 2013: Merriam &Tisdell, 2016).
For the purpose of this study, a step-by-step documentation process during data collection and
maintenance of protocols as well as analysis of all documentation was used to establish
credibility and trustworthiness.
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Appendix C: Ethics
In research, there are policies, guidelines, and codes of ethics developed by the federal
government or other authorities. However, actually ethical practices are directly related to the
individual researcher’s own values and ethics; it is the researcher’s responsibility to proceed in
an ethical manner (Merriam &Tisdell, 2016). The plan was to use qualitative methods
consisting of interviews to gain an understanding of the knowledge, motivation and
organizational gaps that may be impacting participants’ performance. The study explored the
affiliate educators’ knowledge, skills, motivation and organizational gaps.
Prior to interviews being conducted, all participants were provided informed consent
forms which outlined that their participation was voluntary, that they could stop participating at
any time, and that they were informed of any elements of the study that may impact their well-
being (Glesne, 2011). Participants also had a right to privacy and confidentiality (Glesne, 2011;
Rubin & Rubin, 2011). Any personal or identifying information collected in the interviews was
removed prior to publication. The interview data were stored in password-protected files on a
secure, protected server.
Study participants received full disclosure regarding the purpose of the study and how
the results would be used and distributed. The purpose of the study was disclosed and was
aligned with the organizational goal of educating parents on conflict resolution interventions to
reduce exposure and harmful impact of family violence on children. To satisfy the
requirements of my dissertation, the study’s findings and recommendations would be shared
with the California Judicial Council for potential action or policy changes. All interview
participants were provided with a disclosure statement that included the researcher was also an
independent affiliate educator, purpose of the study and how the findings would be used as
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collected data to improve education programs. An assurance of confidentiality, a promise to
remove any identifying information and information regarding their right to stop at any time
during the interview were also disclosed. As suggested by Rubin and Rubin (2011), to ensure
full disclosure, permission was requested to record the interviews. Interviewees were verbally
reminded that they have the option to stop the interview at any time. Interviewees were not
pressured or coerced to answer any questions that may cause them any discomfort Rubin
(2011). At the end of the interview, participants were thanked for their time and given a show
of gratitude and appreciation Glesne (2011).

IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

100
Appendix D: Limitations and Delimitations
This portion of the study focuses on the limitations and delimitations of the data
collection. The first portion identifies the limitations of the study that were out of the control
of the researcher. The second portion defines the delimitations of the study, which were the
choices made to support the data collected to address the research questions.
Limitations
The most notable limitation is that the interview data were self-reported. With self-
reported answers, respondents or participants may have exaggerated or withheld information
because of biases or may have been embarrassed to reveal truthful answers. Recruiting
interview participants took longer than expected, as numerous requests to participate in the
study yielded no response. These delays created further time constraints on the research. Other
limitations include the time to collect and analyze the data, interpreting the validity of data
collected, biases in interpreting data, and placing findings into context.
Delimitations
Unlike the limitations identified in the previous paragraph, the study was designed to
determine the knowledge, motivation, and organizational gaps for affiliate educators involved
in providing court-ordered parent education programs. The study was also intended to identify
the court’s ability to offer affiliate educators with support in designing the best practice
evidence-based curriculum. Due to the nature and severity of high conflict in families involved
in court proceedings, the select areas of focus were anger management, co-parenting, domestic
violence, child abuse prevention, and conflict resolution. Therefore, affiliate educators’
opinions, knowledge, and motivation to implement strategies to help high conflict families is
not enough to meet the demands of reducing family violence. In this study, as perceived by
IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

101
affiliate educators, it is equally essential to have communication and accountability standards
along with guidance from the courts to provide a better quality of services.

IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

102
Appendix E: Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan

Please complete this form and feel free to make additional comments on any question.
Since participation in the court ordered parenting classes

Are you using the communications skills presented in the training?

Yes No

Do you need additional assistance for you and your co-parent?

Yes No

Have you provided the other parent with information about your child's school, medical, or
activity information?

Yes No

Do you limit a child's contact with the other parent's extended family (e.g., phone calls)?
Yes No

Did you respond to request to modify visitation times or pick-up drop off locations?
Yes No
Have you requested or had a joint family meeting with your co-parent for the children?

Yes No

What Communication system do you use to contact the other parent?
Text Email Face to Face Talking Parents

Do you need or want additional conflict resolution training?
Yes No

Identify any additional needs you may have
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Describe additional assistance that you may need to improve conflict resolution skills
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Abstract (if available)

Abstract The purpose of this study was to explore the degree to which affiliate educators’ perceptions of their ability to educate high conflict parents on the impact of family violence on children. A secondary purpose was for affiliate educators to motivate parents to acquire a desire to master communication techniques that can reduce children’s exposure to the long term cognitive, emotional, psychological and social impact of seeing, hearing or being a victim of family violence. Eight affiliate educators were interviewed for this qualitative study regarding their experiences providing services for high conflict parents involved in court proceedings. The study identified knowledge, motivation, and organizational needs and presented recommendations to address those needs. Affiliate educators perceived the court's policies of not communicating expectations, monitoring or evaluation of court programs to be barriers to their performance. The findings highlighted the importance of affiliate educators as stakeholders who are relied upon by the court to teach parents to improve their communications skills. The study also concluded that in order to optimize the services to parents, it would be beneficial for courts to require affiliate educators use evidenced-based parent education programs and to measure participant outcomes. Based on the findings, it was recommended that the courts build communications and accountability with affiliate educators. As perceived by affiliate educators, it was equally important to have communication and accountability standards along with guidance from the courts to provide a better quality of services.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Hale, Bertha (author)

Core Title The impact of family violence on children: an exploratory study

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Organizational Change and Leadership (On Line)

Publication Date 11/20/2019

Defense Date 07/17/2019

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag affiliate educators,child abuse and parenting,co-parenting,court communications with affiliate educators,court policies,Courts,domestic violence,evaluation of court programs,family and children,family law court,Family violence,high conflict resolutions,high conflicts,impact of court proceedings on children,impact of custody, divorce, visitation on children,impact of social, emotional, psychological, physiological violence,impact on family,monitoring court programs,OAI-PMH Harvest,teaching parents

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Hirabayashi, Kimberly (committee member), Pearson, Mark A. (committee member)

Creator Email halebertha@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-237471

Unique identifier UC11674909

Identifier etd-HaleBertha-7945.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-237471 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-HaleBertha-7945.pdf

Dmrecord 237471

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Hale, Bertha

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA