The research, which calls for more support for parents and young truants, has been published after the mother of a truanting teenager in Llanelli was jailed in April for 28 days.
Karen Stratford Davies, manager of the charity's Children and Youth Parenting Team in Cardiff, said the stress of a truanting teenager could cause regular arguments and lead to family violence: "In some cases, imprisonment of a parent may be seen by the truant as a victory over the parents."
The criticism followed comments by Damian Green MP, shadow education secretary, that national truancy levels had increased by 15 per cent since 1997, even though an estimated 650m had been spent on truancy initiatives in the period.
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