The ombudsman’s research about the spread of violence against children in Latvia (2015)

1. The ombudsman’s research about the spread of violence against children in Latvia (2015) ZandaRūsiņa Ombudsman’s Office Head of the Children Rights Division 09.10.2017.

2. Research description Aim of the research: • To make an overall research about the understanding and situation of violence against children in Latvia, to find out the opinions of 5-12th grade students, parents and teachers, about what they think is violence against a child, how often and how have children suffered from it and what has been the course of action of the students, parents and teachers in the case of violence. The target group of the research: • Children all over Latvia (from the 5th grade to the 12th grade); • Children parents/ guardians all over Latvia, who are following up on what their children/minors are doing at school; • Teachers at general education schools in Latvia. Size of the test group: 1552 respondents, among them: • Children – 500; • Children Parents/guardians – 517; • Teachers at general education schools in Latvia – 535 .

3. The understanding about violence • The understanding about what is violence against a child, is overall high. The overriding majority of children parents and teachers recognize physical, emotional and sexual forms of violence, most also recognize a type of violence – neglect. Likewise the children understanding about what is violence against a child is also high, however it is still comparatively lower than that of parents and teachers. • Spontaneously, most often mentioned specific forms of violence against a child are: «the child is being called names, scolded, insulted, humiliated or yelled at» (emotional violence) and «a child is being slapped, punched, jostled, hit or pinched» (physical violence). • Another form of violence against a child is to «smoke near a child». This is recognized as physical violence by 55% of the children and 66% of teachers, and 66% of parents, meaning, the understanding about this form of violence is comparatively lower than that of other forms of violence. • «Threatening to hurt a child physically, but not doing it» this is recognized as physical violence by 54% of the children and 66% of the teachers, and 72% of the parents. • Comparatively lower overall is the understanding about neglect as a form of violence against a child. Especially – factors «there is no appropriate living environment at home»» and «the clothing is worn out/dirty/bad smelling».

4. Spread of violence • Almost half (47%) the children admit, that they have felt violence against them (rarely/sometimes/often). • The most common forms of violence against a child are: smoking near a child (59% have ever been in this situation); calling names, scolding, insulting, humiliating or yelling at the child (56%); threatening to physically hurt a child (but not doing it) (46%); slapping, punching, jostling, hitting or pinching (37%); smacking (33%). • A third of the children (33%) have ever been smacked (with a hand or some kind of object). Among these children half (50%) have experienced it one/two times in their life.

5. Perpetrators of violence Source of violence: • parents, brothers, sisters or other family members comparatively more often smack the children or confine them/lock them in; • peers, friends, classmates comparatively more often beat/kick, slap, punch, jostle or pinch, show or send texts or photos of a sexual nature, touch personal places, as well as offend emotionally – call names, scold, insult, humiliate, yell and threaten to inflict physical pain (but doesn’t do it), if asking for advice or help – ignore, disregard, or be silent on purpose.

6. Methods of upbringing Several controversially judged methods of children upbringing have been analyzed in the research. From all of the analyzed upbringing methods, the most accepted are: • as the children have indicated: yelling (13%) and smacking (10%), • as the children parents have indicated: yelling (19%) and ignoring the child (10%). Parents also think, that yelling at a child at home (by the family members) is more acceptable than yelling at a child at school (by the teachers). • Yelling at a child at school, as an acceptable method, was approved by 4% of the teachers, although most (72%) teachers admit that they themselves personally know some teacher, who uses yelling as one of the methods in the work with children. • Only 1% of the children have never witnessed that another child is being maltreated at school, but half (54%) of the children have indicated, that other children don’t maltreat them. 12% of the children admit, that they don’t tell their parents about the experienced situations of violence at school – «my parents don’t know, that I am being hurt at school (I am not telling myself and the teachers also don’t inform my parents)» .

7. Observations for teachers Teachers attest, that the most common type of violence against children is emotional violence: • at school children maltreat each other – the average score in a scale from 1 (very rarely) to 10 (very often) is 5,1 points; • at home children are maltreated by parents (or other family members) – the average score is 4,8 points out of 10. Physical violence is also, in the opinion of the teachers, quite common: • at school children hurt each other – the average score is 3,9 points out of 10; • parents (or other family members) hurt the children – the average score is 3,9 points out of 10. • Comparatively less often, teachers point out, that other teachers are maltreating the children in an emotional way (2,9 points out of 10). • Most teachers (68%) have had cases in their line of work, when children have suffered from domestic violence. A third (30%) of the teachers attest, that they have never had such a situation before; this kind of answer was given considerably more frequent by younger teachers (up to the age or 39). • When teachers recognize that a child has suffered or is suffering from domestic violence, they most commonly start to try solving this situation on the school level – inform a social educator (66%), homeroom teacher (52%) about the case, as well ass try to talk the situation over with the child (51%).

8. Conclusions • The people involved in cases of violence against children are adults (parents/other family members, teachers/coaches/educators, etc.), as well as peers, friends, classmates. Therefore it is necessary to reduce the spread of violence against children in both - at home/in the family and also at school. • There is a responsibility for violence against children (administrative, as well as criminal responsibility), but it isn’t always applied. • The investigation in cases of violence – slow and ineffective.

9. Thank you!