Changes in communication in children victims of violence: reflections for speech therapy

Abstract

Introduction: Violence in all its forms is a negative indicator for socioeconomic, physical and psychosocial development, becoming a public health problem. Speech pathologists in their daily practice face numerous children who are subjected to conditions of violence. There is a dearth of research on the area of speech that links violence to communication disorders. Objective: Investigate with whom works with children in situations of violence (sexual abuse, physical abuse, domestic violence, psychological violence and abuse), which are the change signals in communication. Methods: 107 professionals from law, health and education across the country participated in a training course for situations of violence. Those have been asked to fill out a semi-structured form with variables about the kind of violence to which the child was submitted, victim characteristics, type of change in communication and behavioral. The data was analyzed statistically. Results: It can be observed in the analysis that 92% of professionals have observed signs of change in communication, among them: mutism, stuttering, voice very weak, slurred speech and changes in speech. No association was found between the area of the professional expertise and referral for speech therapy. As for routing in case of any change in the communication, and the existence of the service in the workplace association was statistically significant. Conclusion: changes occur in different communicative issues in children victims of violence. Other studies relating the improvement of the treatment and maintenance or elimination of violence episodes, and the investigation of other neuropsychological and behavioral changes involved are needed.