VÍTIMAS INVISÍVEIS A EXPOSIÇÃO DE CRIANÇAS E ADOLESCENTES À VIOLÊNCIA DE GÊNERO: O POTENCIAL DO MAPA NACIONAL DA VIOLÊNCIA DE GÊNERO PARA POLÍTICAS DE ACOLHIMENTO E PREVENÇÃO
VÍTIMAS INVISÍVEIS A EXPOSIÇÃO DE CRIANÇAS E ADOLESCENTES À VIOLÊNCIA DE GÊNERO: O POTENCIAL DO MAPA NACIONAL DA VIOLÊNCIA DE GÊNERO PARA POLÍTICAS DE ACOLHIMENTO E PREVENÇÃO
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.22533/at.ed.8178262619065
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Palavras-chave: Violência de gênero; Vítimas indiretas; Neurodesenvolvimento infantil; Transmissão intergeracional da violência; Mapa Nacional da Violência de Gênero
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Keywords: Gender-based violence. Indirect victims. Child neurodevelopment. Intergenerational transmission of violence. Protective public policy
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Abstract: Domestic and family violence against women produces well-documented harm to its direct victims, but a less visible effect reaches children and adolescents who witness these assaults at home. This paper discusses the psychological, neurobiological, and social impact of children's exposure to gender-based violence, drawing on data from the Mapa Nacional da Violência de Gênero (National Map of Gender Violence) and the Pesquisa Nacional de Violência contra a Mulher (National Survey on Violence against Women), both conducted by DataSenado in partnership with the Brazilian Senate's Observatório da Mulher contra a Violência. The most recent edition of the survey (2025) shows that 71% of women assaulted in the previous twelve months were attacked in the presence of others, and that approximately 70% of those witnessed situations involved at least one child — usually the victim's own son or daughter. Drawing on developmental neuroscience, attachment theory, criminology, and social learning theory, the article argues that witnessing violence against one's mother, or a close female relative, compromises prefrontal cortex development, fosters the normalization of aggression, and contributes to the intergenerational transmission of violence, also constituting a risk factor for adolescent offending. It concludes that targeted social protection policies for indirect victims of gender-based violence are needed, using already available official data as a territorial basis for focusing these actions.
- Flávio J. Ferreira Jr.