Developmental and Social-Ecological Perspectives on Children, Political Violence, and Armed Conflict

An increasing number of researchers and policymakers have been moved to study and intervene in the lives of children affected by violent conflicts (Masten, 2014). According to a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF, 2009) report, over one billion children under the age of eighteen are growing up in regions where acts of political violence and armed conflict are, as Ladds and Cairns (1996, p. 15) put it, “a common occurrence—a fact of life”. In recent years, UNICEF, advocacy and human rights groups, journalists, and researchers have drawn public attention to the high rates of child casualties in these regions, and to the plights of those children still caught in the crossfire. It has thus become clear that both the challenges and stakes are higher than ever to promote the safety and wellbeing of affected children around the world.