CHAPTER ONE

1`PARENTAL VIOLENCE, ANXIETY AND RESILIENCE AMONG ADOLESCENTS.

Background
Adolescence is a turbulent transitory period involving drastic physiological, psychosocial, and
emotional changes for example enhanced cognition and need for autonomy. (Gilmore and
Meersand,2019). Adolescence is a formative and turbulent phase where physiological,
psychosocial, and cognitive changes leave adolescents vulnerable to psychological disorders.
Adolescents are individuals typically, between the ages of 10 and 19 years transitioning from
childhood to adulthood. This stage is marked by physical, emotional, and cognitive changes, as
well as increased independence and exploitation of identity and social relationships. Adolescents
are often characterized by their search for autonomy, development of self-identity, and the
challenges and opportunities associated with this transitional phase. One of the challenges
adolescents face during their adolescence stage is parental violence.
Exposure to parental violence during adolescence is worrying due to its high prevalence, and
association with an individual’ development and perpetuation of psychological issues. (World
health organization 2018). Parental violence exposure during adolescence is related to an
individual’s lowered ability to regulate emotions and increased vulnerability to emotion
regulation issues in the future. (Menon et al.2018). Parental violence involves one or both
parents engaging in physical, emotional or psychological abusive actions towards each other or
their children. Parental violence can have serious and long lasting effects in both parents and
adolescents. Parental violence can affect adolescents in a way that it can lead to
behavioralproblems, depression, anxiety, suicidalideation, traumatic stress symptoms;
delinquency and substance abuse (Ravi and Casolaro 2018). Severe consequences among youths
experiencing parental violence for example likelihood of depression, anxiety, traumatic stress
disorder and poor mental health. (Charak, Ford, Modrowski and Kerig,2019). Using a
representative sample of 4000 individuals from the national survey of children’s exposure to
parental violence. Overall, 5.8% had witnessed an assault between their parents. (Finkelhor et al
2023). One of the outcomes of parental violence among adolescents is anxiety.

Anxiety is considered the most frequent form of social distress among adolescents and highly
prevalent inadolescents. (2019 international joint conference on information, media and
engineering). A lack of care, support, stability as well as fear of abandonment, breaking up the
family, can increase an adolescent’s feelings of anxiety. Anxiety in any form can leave a lasting
mark on the psyche of an adolescent. This is especially the case for long term anxiety, which
may contribute to educational problems.
Anxiety can have negative affective states in one’s immediate social environment which
produce strain –the anger, frustration, or sadness one feels when needs are not met. (Agnew
2018) and this can contribute to aggression, delinquency, and other concerning outcomes.
A recent systematic review reported high rates of anxiety29.8% among general population of
adolescents in sub-SaharanAfrica. (Journal of adolescent health, January 2023). According to the
Anxiety and Depression Association of America, around 40 million people in the united states
have an anxiety disorder. It is the most common group of mental illnesses in the country.
However, only 36.9% of people with an anxiety disorder receive treatment. One of the ways
through which adolescents can overcome anxiety is through resilience.

Resilience can be both a process and an outcome that can change considerably over time as new
vulnerabilities and strengths emerge with varying circumstances. Theories of resilience offer
conceptual models to understand how young people overcome adverse conditions as well as how
practitioners can use this knowledge to improve strengths and build positive characteristics over
the lifetime. (Zolkoski and Bullock 2019). While the initial work on resilience in adolescents
focused on personal qualities of individuals identified as resilient, more literature conceptualizes
resilience as a socio ecological phenomenon.

Statement of the problem.

Wakiso district faces a complex challenge related to parental violence, anxiety among its
adolescent population.The intersection of these factors poses a critical public concern and
necessitates urgent attention and research for several compelling reasons. While existing studies
have examined the relationships between parental violence and anxiety,there remains a gap in
our understanding the role of resilience in this context through which resilience mitigate these
effects. By addressing this researchproblem, we aim to provide valuable insights into the
development of effective interventions and support systems for adolescents exposed to parental
violence. Understanding the interplay of these factors can offer valuable insight for parents,
teachers, the government, enabling them to develop more effective solutions to enhance the
overall being and recovery of adolescents from parental violence. Therefore, it is essential to
conduct comprehensive research to risk factors and consequences associated with parental,
violence and anxiety among adolescents in Wakiso district.

Purpose.
The purpose of the study is to investigate the relationship between Parental violence, anxiety and
resilience among adolescents.

The objectives of the study are;

1.To identify the relationship between parental violence and resilience among adolescents.
2.To explore he relationship between parental violence and anxiety among adolescents.
3.To examine the relationship between anxiety andresilience among adolescents.

Scope.
Geographical scope. The study will be conducted at a secondary school Wakiso district. This is
because Wakiso district has got a big number of adolescents who are affected by parental
violence.
Sampling scope. The study will include student of a secondary school between 15 to 19 years
both males and females.
Conceptual scope. Parental violence can be defined as a pattern of behavior in any relationship
that is used to gain or maintain power and control over their partner. It can be physical, sexual,
andemotional. (United Nations, 2018)
Anxiety; This refers to a natural human response when we feel that we are under threat. It can be
experienced through our thoughts, feelings and physical sensations.
Adolescence; This is considered a phase of rapid growth with consequences such as rapid
growth, adoption of risky behavior. (Neelam Punjani, 2019).
Adolescent; An adolescent is any person who is between the age of 10 and 19(World health
organization, 2023.)
Resilience; This refers to the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties. It can also mean the
capability of a strained body to recover its size and shape after deformation. The ability of some
individuals to adapt and maintain positive functioning in the face of significant adversity.

Time scope; The study will be carried out from October 2023 to October 2024.

Significance of the study.

The study may be useful to secondary school students /adolescents, especially those faced
with problems of parental violence and anxiety. The study may also help the government or
policy makers on how to handle adolescents faced with problems of parental violence.
Furthermore, the study mayhelp school administrators and teachers help cope with parental
violence and anxiety problems. Thestudy may also be helpful to the parents of adolescents on
how to handle their problems as parents in order not to affect their children. The may also be
helpful to the non-governmentorganizations in helping the affected adolescents on how to cope
with parental violence
Conceptual framework

Anxiety
-Headaches
- Restlessness
-Exhaustion
-Pressure
Parental violence Resilience
- Anger -Perseverance
- Depression -Self Reliance
-Sexual -Existential Aloneness

In the above figure, parental violence on adolescents influences the resilience of adolescents.
Parentalviolence is also perceived to have an influence on anxiety of adolescents.Anxiety of
adolescents is also perceived to have a relationship with the resilience of adolescents.
Adolescents who are experiencing parental violence are most likely to have anxiety but in turn
become resilient to parental violence.
Theoretical Framework.
Attachment theory; This was proposed by John Bowlby who suggests that quality of early
attachment relationships between adolescents and their parents can influence their psychological
wellbeing and inability to cope with adversity. Forinstance,if adolescents have insecure
attachments due to experiencing violence or neglect, they may more susceptible to developing
anxiety and experiencing difficulties in resilience.
The attachment theory has got a number of assumptions as discussed by John Bowlby;
It assumes the need for proximity and safety; Attachment theory states that humans have an
innate need for proximity to and safety with their attachment figures. Children seek to stay close
to their caregivers as a source of comfort and protection when faced with stress of threat.
It assumes internal working base; Attachment theory assumes that individuals develop internal
working models based on their early attachment experiences.
It assumes a secure base; The attachment theory suggests that a secure attachment figure serves
as a secure base from individual can explore the world and seek support when needed. This
secure base provides a sense of safety and allows the individual to develop a secure attachment
style.

Attachment theory suggests that parental violence and maltreatment are associated with
disorganized attachment patterns among adolescents(Lyons Ruth et al,2013).Disorganized
attachment patterns in adolescents is associated with confusion and fear in adolescents
‘interactions with their care giver, often resulting from inconsistent or frightening parental
behaviors.(Lyon Ruth et al,).Furthermore adolescents who experience parental violence are more
likely to exhibit insecure attachment styles such as insecure-avoidant style.(Maine Hesse,2019).
Attachment theory suggests insecure attachment styles particularly anxious attachment were
significantly associated with symptoms of anxiety disorders in adulthood. (Schimmenti, Jones
and Bifulco,2019). Insecure attachment can influence cognitive processes related to anxiety.
Attachment theory can provide insights into understanding resilience. Secure attachment can
contribute to the development of resilience in individuals while insecure attachment can pose
challenges to resilience. A secure base for individuals to explore the world seek support and
develop effective coping strategies. (Masten and Coatsworth,2018). Securely attached
individuals tend to have greater emotional regulation skills, self-efficacy, and social competence,
which are important in building resilience and adapting to adversity. (Masten and
Coatsworth,2018)
However, the attachment theory had some critics; the theory is not a fully systemized and
unified theory as seen below;
Lack of diversity; Some critics argue that attachment theory does not adequately take into
account cultural and contextual differences in attachment patterns. Thetheory’s emphasis on a
universal, normativeattachment style may overlook the influence of cultural values, practices,
and social structures on attachment relationships.
Individual differences; Critics argue that attachment theory tends to focus on broad categories of
attachment styles, such as secure, insecure-avoidant, and insecure-anxious, overlooking
individual differences and variations within these categories.
Lack of predictive power; Critics point out that attachment theory may not consistently predict
later outcomes or behaviors in individuals.
References
Front Pyschol -23 September 2023-Adolescent life satisfaction
Journal of family studies,2022, vol 28-Adolescents’individual resilience and its association with
security threats, anxiety and resilience.
Mannel: Journal of the international AIDS-2019
Mareschal: Asystematic review of the mental health risks and resilience among adolescents 2021

Michal Finklestein,Shira –Eshel and Avital Laufer: Adolescents’individual resilience and its
association with security threats, anxiety and family resilience.
Pyschol Res Behav Manag.2023
CHAPTER TWO.
LITERATURE REVIEW.
INTRODUCTION.
This chapter entails the review of literature pertaining parental violence and anxiety constructs
by different researchers. The relationship between parental violence and anxiety, parental
violence and resilience, anxiety and resilience and finally hypotheses statements and the
relationship between the variables that is to say; to identify the relationship between parental
violence and resilience among adolescents, to identify the relationship between parental violence
and anxiety among adolescents and to identify the relationships between anxiety and resilience
among adolescents.
Parental violence
Parental violence is a form of domestic violence in which adolescents or adult children exhibit
harmful and violent behavior towards their parents. This is more likely to happen to children who
live in families that are affected by domestic violence and these have experienced parental abuse
or have observed violence between their parents and tend to be more towards their parents
(Heather Wilson,2020).

Violence against adolescents, including physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as a global
concern with important health consequences including depression, suicidal behavior and death.
Adolescent victims of violence have worse educational outcomes compared to their non abused
peers, and are at increased risk of financial and employment problems later in life. Adolescents
with disabilities and those from socioeconomically disadvantaged families are at increased risk
of violence compared to their peers.
Anxiety
Anxiety is a typical human emotion characterized by nervousness, tension, and worry about
future events. The physical symptoms of anxiety such as increased blood pressure,
stomachaches, and shortness of breath can interfere with a person’s ability to accomplish daily
tasks and affects the quality of life. Anxiety is also characterized by physiological, cognitive,
behavioral, andaffective (related to mood, feelings, and attitudes). (Better Help Editorial
Team,2023)

Anxiety is always caused by complex interaction of numerous environmental and biological

factors such as genetics, personality traits, brain chemistry variations and personal history and
developmental experiences. (BetterHelp Editorial team,2023)
Resilience.
Fundamentally, resilience refers to positive adaption, or ability to maintain or regain mental
health, despite experiencing adversity. Resilience is studied by researchers from diverse
disciplines, including psychology, psychiatry, sociology and more recently biological disciplines
including genetics. A narrow definition considers resilience as a personal trait, operating a single
short-lived trauma. Early researchers focused on the selective strengths or assets, such as
intellectual functioning that helped people survive adversity. (Herman et-al,2019).

CHAPTER THREE:

METHODOLOGY

Introduction

This chapter includes methods and approaches which will be used in conducting the research and

analyzing the data. It spells out the area of study, research design, population,

sample size determination, sample strategy, exclusion and inclusion criteria, data collection

instruments, validity and reliability of the instruments, data collection procedure, data analysis,

and ethical consideration.

Research Design

The study will use a correlational survey design and quantitative survey design. Correlation is a

measure used to determine whether the independent and outcome variables are statistically
independent of each other and if not determine the magnitude of the relationship (Yung and

Huang, 2018).

Correlation survey design will be used because it allows one to establish cause-and-effect, gives

a basis of a coefficient of determination for it tells the proportion of variance the variables have

in common.

Quantitative survey design is a research design that is typically administered during large scale

research and primarily relies on using closed questions to obtain information that can be

analyzed relatively quickly, such as multiple choice or dichotomous response answers.

Therefore, correlation survey design and quantitative survey design will be used to determine

whether parental violence, anxiety and resilience are significantly related. The study will also be

a large cross-sectional survey which will involve collecting data from beneficiaries at the same

time.

Area of Study

The research will be conducted at Caltec Academy Makerere.

Population

The target population sample of Sample Size Determination

The sample will be proportional to the population that will be used in the study. The sample size

will be calculated using Krejcie & Morgan’s (1970) model. A sample of 100 students both male

and female will participate in the study.

Sampling Strategy
The simple random sampling technique will be used when choosing the participants in the study.

According to Thomas, (2020), a simple random sample is a randomly selected subset of a

population. In this sampling method, each member of the population has an exactly equal chance

of being selected.

Exclusion and Inclusion criteria

The inclusion criteria will include randomly selected adolescents in Wakiso district, male and female
aged between 14 to 24 years and are willing to participate. The exclusion criteria will apply to
adolescents below 14 years and are not willing to participate.

Data Collection Instruments

This section presents the tools and techniques which will be used in collecting the quantitative

and qualitative data. It also spells out the precise contribution of a structured questionnaire in

data collection. This study will employ a structured questionnaire.

Structured Questionnaire

A pre-coded questionnaire will be designed to capture quantitative data directly from the

respondents with regard to establishing parental violence, anxiety and resilience among

adolescents in Wakiso district.

Measures

The questionnaire will include, section A with background information items for example

age,sex/gender, among others. Section B will be for parental violence, Section C for anxiety and

Section D for resilience.

Data Collection Procedure

An introduction letter from the School of Psychology will be obtained. It will be shown to the

index respondents before any data collection is made.

Validity and reliability of instruments.

Reliability; This is the degree to which a measuring instrument consistently measures what it was

intended to measure. The reliability of the questionnaire will be established by carrying out a

pilot study. A pilot study is a small study to test research protocols, data collection instruments,

sample recruitment strategies and other research techniques in preparation for a large study.

Validity; This is the extent to which a measuring instrument measures what it was intended to

measure. Thevalidity of the questionnaire will be computed using content validity index. The

questionnaire will be constructed within the objectives of the study and it will be edited by

research experts to make independent judgement of the items of the items by rating them on the

scale of (1) Never, (2) AlmostNever, (3) Sometimes, (4) Often and (5) Always.

The ratings will be used to compute the content validity index (CVI)

Using the formula, VI=Items rated 1 and 2

Total number of items in the questionnaire.

The obtained ration will be used to ascertain if the items measured the parameters they ought to

measure.

Data management.

Data will be collected will analyzed in order to test hypothesis of the study and this will be done

using thePearson correlation coefficient(r). Descriptive statistics will be used to summarize bio

data and dimension for parental violence, anxiety and resilience.

Ethical considerations.

There will be seeking and obtaining of permission from the respective adolescents and

community. Confidentiality of the respondents ‘information shall be maintained as no form will

capture any personal information from the respondents. A consent form shall be filled by the

respondents before filling the questionnaire. The purpose of the study will first clearly be

explained to the respondents.

References

Collis &Hussey (2019) Business Research: A practical guide for undergraduate and Post

graduate students.

Snyder. (2019). Literature review as a research methodology. An overview and guidelines.

Journal of business research.

Syed Muhammad (2018). Methods of data collection.