Factors Contributing to Child Abuse and Its Prevention

What does child abuse mean to you? The Department of Health suggests that ‘somebody may abuse or neglect a child by inflicting harm or failing to act to prevent harm’. Child abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect (Williams, 2009). Child abuse stems from many different things such as living in poverty, stressful situations and even the parents or caregivers being abused. Often times abusers themselves have been victims of abuse. Every case of child abuse is different, there is not one case that is alike.

Child neglect is a form of abuse that deprives a child of food, shelter, education, emotional or social needs. Neglect comes in four different types. The four types of neglect are physical, emotional, educational, and medical. Physical abuse, results in bruises, scrapes, scratches and any type of physical harm. Children are abused as early as in the early infancy years and even up into adulthood. Emotional neglect comes from not meeting a child’s emotional needs such as being there for them whenever they are crying or sad. Educational neglect comes from not sending your child to school to get the education that they need and deserve. Medical neglect comes from not treating your sick child and refusing to take them to the doctor when they are not well. This country does not make it into the top ten on any significant of child welfare (Hewlett 1992). Educational neglect is when a parent or caregiver deprives a child of their right to education. When this event happens, the child can become educationally or socially delayed. Poverty is a key roadblock in the educational system. Children who begin life in poverty are already at a disadvantage when they enter kindergarten (Hawlett, 1992). With that being said, poverty is a main factor in child abuse and emotional neglect and puts children at a disadvantage before they even have a chance.

Sexual abuse can take many forms, from abuse within the family during childhood or adolescence to dating violence at the hands of an intimate partner or acquaintance (Williams, 2009). If a child or even a teenager is being sexually abused, it can have an impact on that child’s behavior in the present and future. They start to act out in school and some teenagers even turn to drugs or alcohol to help them cope with the abuse. It is important for victims of sexual abuse to have a strong support system around them.

Emotional abuse often is not easy to identify. Emotional abuse can happen if a parent or caregiver is not giving a child the type of affection they need or even withholding as a form of punishment. This happens when a parent or caregiver belittles a child making them feel bad or sad and even threatens them. Not only is a large proportion of American youth growing up badly educated and ill prepared for the world of work, but a significant number of youngsters are failing to cope on psychic and emotional fronts (Hewlett, 1992).

“Despite the widespread prevalence of childhood trauma, less is known about trauma’s biological effects in children as compared to adults with child trauma histories; and even less is known about how these pediatric mechanisms underlie trauma’s short-term and long-term medical and mental health consequences. This article focuses primarily on the peer-reviewed literature on the neurobiological sequelae of childhood trauma in children and adults with histories of childhood trauma.”

“The amount of research concerning the prevalence and consequences of child sexual abuse has increased dramatically during the past decade. Too little attention has been paid to possible methodological influences on this research.

This investigation reports on the influences of response rate, ordering of questions, and definition of child sexual abuse on results of survey of college students’ childhood and adolescent sexual experiences. Response rates affected prevalence rate estimates, and the use of varying definitions of child sexual abuse affected estimates of both prevalence and consequences. The importance of the awareness of these methodological issues in future research efforts is discussed.”

All abuse can damage a child for a long time causing a child to act out in school or at home. Parents should not be allowed to whoop their children that can cause them to feel neglected, abused. ‘Child abuse can cause disordered psychological development and behavior problems’. Parents that whoop their children should be sent to jail or get their kids taken away it is other ways to discipline a child other than a whooping, even what you say to your child can cause them to feel mentally abused. Most child abuse starts with the parents either doing drugs causing their children to go through a rough time in life and feel neglected they might start saying meaningful words or verbally abuse their children parents like that should not be allowed to be around children of any kind they should be locked away getting help.

Studies say child abuse can cause a child to misbehave at school that can mean they are seeking for help. “Most abusers are adept at covering up evidence of abuse. Using overt or implied threats. The abuser can often manipulate the child into remaining silent. When another adult suspects abuse, the abuser usually has a wealth of excuses.” Parents try to cover up the bruises or marks they made on their children to protect themselves from getting into trouble. Parents does not seem to realize what you put your child through can cause a lot of damage, it causes a child to grow up hating the world or feeling like nobody loves them for who they are somebody that can put a child or even an adult through that should be punished by going to jail.

Child behavior plays a big part in abuse when you are abused you start to act out so you can release anger or sadness and that is the only way you can release so you start to take it out any way possible. “Aside from the immediate physical injuries children can experience through maltreatment, a child’s reactions to abuse or neglect can have lifelong and even intergenerational impacts. Childhood maltreatment can be linked to later physical, psychological, and behavioral consequences as well as costs to society as a whole. These consequences may be independent of each other, but they also may be interrelated. For example, abuse or neglect may stunt physical development of the child’s brain and lead to psychological problems, such as low self-esteem, which could later lead to high-risk behaviors, such as substance use. The outcomes for each child may vary widely and are affected by a combination of factors, including the child’s age and developmental status when the maltreatment occurred; the type, frequency, duration, and severity of the maltreatment; and the relationship between the child and the perpetrator. Additionally, children who experience maltreatment often are affected by other adverse experiences (e.g., parental substance use, domestic violence, poverty), which can make it difficult to separate the unique effects of maltreatment.” (Rosen, Handley, Cicchetti, & Rogosch, 2018)

In summary, if young children are abused or suffer constant stress, changes can occur in the brain that may cause psychiatric disorders even into adulthood (Williams, 2009). This is why it is important for people to pay attention and to watch and observe for the signs of child abuse and to report it so that we can prevent children from dying and being traumatically affected by these different types of abuse. With all this being said about children, they are the least heard and the most seriously disadvantaged group in our population (Hewlett, 1992). Therefore, we should do everything in our power to protect them from harm’s way.