ABSTRACT
Based on the insights from the critical reviews described in the previous chapters, this chapter presents a broad empirical study conducted in Israel that examined the phenomenology of all aspects of the experience of exposure to violence: The children's perception of the escalating interparental conflict to all-out violence; the children's mode of involvement in the process; and how the children experience themselves and their parents in relation to those stages. This is the first study of its kind regarding the scope of the phenomenon in focus and the nature of the questions posed to the children. Through a meticulous qualitative analysis based on grounded theory, the children's descriptions are conceptualized in the context of two domestic existential realities: The everyday life routine and the violent events. Following on from this, the author explains how these complementary and contradictory realities intensify the child abuse and construct the children's perception of their reality and the filter through which they understand the world. In addition, the chapter relates to some unique issues, including obtaining the parents’ consent to interview the children, obtaining the children's consent, and the sampling method applied to recruit participants for the study in the broad community context.
