A/HRC/43/39 self‐reported mental health problems, increased risk of violence and substance use and deficits in educational achievement.65 81. Children can also be harmed when their caregivers are subjected to intimate partner violence or when they witness it taking place. Research has shown that children who witness violence at home or live with mothers who are victims of intimate partner violence are at a heightened risk of experiencing abuse within the home. There is also evidence to suggest that children exposed to domestic violence are more likely to act aggressively towards peers or siblings and to carry violence into adulthood as either victims or perpetrators. Witnessing violence between parents or caregivers can also influence children’s attitudes about its acceptability within the family and close relationships; in turn, this could be passed down to the children, thus perpetuating the cycle of violence. D. Main risk and protective factors 82. Identifying risk and protective factors for violence against children provides the foundation for effective prevention, as an integrated approach to increasing protection and decreasing risk underlies successful prevention in the years ahead. 83. Some risk factors correspond to a particular form of violence but more generally the various types of violence have several risk factors in common. The prevalence of polyvictimization involving different forms of violence reflects this reality.66 Risk factors can be grouped into four categories: individual, relational, community and society.67 84. Individual factors include biological and demographic characteristics that increase the risk that a person will be a victim of violence, such as gender, age, low level of education, low income levels, disability or mental health issues, being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, harmful use of alcohol and drugs, and having a history of exposure to violence. 85. Relational factors arise from relationships with peers, intimate partners and family members. They include lack of emotional attachment between children and parents or caregivers; poor parenting practice; family dysfunction and separation; association with peers in illegal activities; witnessing violence between parents or caregivers; and early or forced marriage. 86. Community-level risk factors include how the characteristics of settings such as schools, workplaces and neighbourhoods increase the risk of violence. They include poverty, high population density, transient populations, low social cohesion, unsafe physical environments, high crime rates and the existence of a local drug trade. 87. Society-level risk factors include legal and social norms that create a climate in which violence is encouraged or normalized. They also include cultural norms according to which it is acceptable to use violence to resolve conflicts; norms that affirm men’s domination over women and children; standards by which parental rights outweigh the well-being of children; health, economic, educational and social policies that maintain economic, gender or social inequalities; absent or inadequate social protection; social fragility owing to conflict and post-conflict situations or natural disasters; weak governance; and poor law enforcement. 88. The interaction between factors at the different levels is just as important as the influence of factors within a single level. Several other common risk factors, such as family dysfunction, poor parenting skills and low social cohesion within the community, place 65 66 67 See Rebecca M. Pearson and others, “Maternal depression during pregnancy and the postnatal period: risks and possible mechanisms for offspring depression at age 18 years”, JAMA Psychiatry, vol. 70, No. 12 (December 2013). See David Finkelhor, Richard K. Ormrod and Heather A. Turner, “Poly-victimization: A neglected component in child victimization”. WHO and others, INSPIRE: Seven Strategies for Ending Violence against Children (WHO, Geneva, 2016). 15