CHILD ABUSEDefinition: Child abuse is the physical, sexual or emotional mistreatment of children. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent orother caregiver that results in harm, potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child. Most child abuse occurs in a child's home, with a smaller amount occurring in the organizations, schools or communities the child interacts with. There are four major categories of child abuse: neglect,physical abuse, psychological/emotional abuse and child sexualabuse.Different jurisdictions have developed their own definitions of what constitutes child abuse for the purposes of removing achild from his/her family and/or prosecuting a criminal charge. According to the Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect, child abuse is "any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation, an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm".

Causes

Child abuse is a complex phenomenon with multiple causes. Understanding the causes of abuse is crucial to addressing theproblem of child abuse. Parents who physically abuse their spouses are more likely than others to physically abuse their children. However, it is impossible to know whether marital strife is a cause of child abuse, or if both the marital strife and the abuse are caused by tendencies in the abuser.

There are 3 different kinds/causes of abuse:

Parental Causes

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Ecological Causes

Child Problems

Parental Causes

Background of emotional deprivation

Unwanted pregnancy

Colic baby

Isolation and lack of support

Patriarchal family structure

Cycle of violence (parents who were abused children themselves often end up abusing their own children)

Discipline versus Abuse (where parents can't tell the difference)

Ecological Causes

Poverty

Overcrowding

Problems in the marriage

Abuse of substances (drugs, alcohol etc.)

Child Problems

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Handicapped child

Unrealistic expectations

Weak bond between mother and child

Signs & Symptoms: There are some significant symptoms through which the forms of child abuse can be detected. They are depicted below:

1. Unexplained InjuriesVisible signs of physical abuse can include bruises in the shape of objects, unexplained burns, or frequent "accidents." A child may not be able to provide a convincing explanation asto what happened to cause the injury.

2. Change in BehaviorAbused children often appear depressed, withdrawn, scared, anxious, antsy, or more aggressive.

3. Fear of Going HomeIt is not uncommon for an abused child to express anxiety about leaving a "safe" place like school or about going placeswith the person who is abusing him.

4. Returning to Previous BehaviorsSome abused children display behaviors shown at an earlier age, like bed-wetting, fear of the dark, or thumb-sucking. Even loss of language skills or memory problems may become apparent.

5. Changes in Sleep PatternAbused children may have nightmares or difficultly falling asleep, as a result appearing tired during the day.

6. Changes at School

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Concentrating in school may become difficult for an abused child. Excessive absences can often be attributed to adults trying to hide the child's injuries from authorities.

7. Personal AppearanceAbused and neglected children sometimes looked uncared for. They may be dirty, have body odor, or lack appropriate clothing for the wet.

8. Changes in Appetite: A child's eating habits can be altered by the fear and stress caused by abuse. Symptoms would include weight gain or weight loss.

9. Risk Taking BehaviorThe use of drugs or alcohol is the kind of high-risk activities children who are being abused may engage in.

10. Inappropriate Sexual BehaviorIf a child is exhibiting overly sexualized behavior or using sexually explicit language, it could be a sign that heis being sexually abused.

PrevalenceAccording to the (American) National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse, in 1997 neglect represented 54% of confirmed cases of child abuse, physical abuse 22%, sexual abuse 8%, emotional maltreatment 4%, and other forms of maltreatment 12%.A UNICEF report on child wellbeing stated that the United States and the United Kingdom ranked lowest amongindustrial nations with respect to the wellbeing of children. It also found that child neglect and child abuse were far more common in single-parent families than in families where both parents are present.

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FatalitiesA child abuse fatality is when a child’s death is the result of abuse or neglect, or when abuse and/or neglect are contributing factors to a child’s death. In the United States,1,730 children died in 2008 due to factors related to abuse; this is a rate of 2.33 per 100,000 U.S. children. Child abuse fatalities are widely recognized as being under-counted; some estimate that the number is 3.2 times higher than the reported count. Younger children are at a much higher risk forbeing killed, as are African Americans. Girls and boys, however, are killed at similar rates. Caregivers, and specifically mothers, are more likely to be the perpetrators of a child abuse fatality, than anyone else, include strangers, relatives, and non-relative caregivers. Family situations which place children at risk include moving, unemployment, having non-family members living in the household.

Effects:

Children suffering abuse develop a range of maladaptive, anti-social and self-destructive behaviors and thoughts by trying to cope with the abuse - by trying to understand the situationand why the abuse is happening. Children experience the same kinds of thoughts when they suffer abuse, except they are muchmore immature and often make much less sense because the violence is occuring in their own family, and nothing makes sense in that situation. And the abuse suffered by children occurs much more frequently. By coming up with ideas about what they did to cause the abuse and what they can do differently to avoid the abuse, children also develop a range of maladaptive behaviors which can become pathological problems. In addition to distorting children's thoughts, abusealso forces children into a position of having to "hide the family secret". This prevents children from having real relationships and has life-long effects. And because our ability to form healthy social relationships is learned, abused children are deprived of many skills necessary to 5 | P a g e

navigate the social world. Their entire concept of a relationship is distorted. This leads to problematic relationships in life and even on the job. In addition to distorting children's thoughts, abuse also forces children into a position of having to "hide the family secret". This prevents children from having real relationships and has life-long effects. And because our ability to form healthy social relationships is learned, abused children are deprived of manyskills necessary to navigate the social world. Their entire concept of a relationship is distorted. This leads to problematic relationships in life and even on the job. Anotheraspect of abuse which cannot be ignored is the physical stressit puts on a child. Multiple exposures to violence and trauma cause what's known as autonomic and endocrine hyper arousal. Basically it means the victim gets stressed out. When a personexperiences this hyper arousal over and over again, there are permanent physiological changes. These changes can be seen as over-reactions to stimuli, as in being easily startled especially by things that remind the victim of the original event; generally being emotionally numb; craving high-risk, stimulating, or dangerous experiences or self-injury; difficulties in attention and concentration; cardiovascular problems; and immune suppression which leads to a higher risk for colds and more severe illnesses.

There is a long list of outcomes for children experiencing abuse. These consequences are listed below:

Academic Difficulties

Dissociative States

Aggressive Behavior

Alcohol or Other Drug Abuse

Anxiety

Bad Dreams

Bed Wetting

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Chronic Pain

Compulsive Sexual Behaviors

Concentration Problems

Dangerous Behavior such as speeding

Dehydration

Depression

Eating Disorders

Failure to Thrive

Fear or Shyness

Frequent injuries

Insomnia

Malnutrition

Panic Attacks

Physical Symptoms such as Headaches and Stomach aches

Running Away

Self Neglect

Social Withdrawal

Stealing

Suicide Attempts

Thumb-sucking or Any Age-inappropriate Behavior

Truancy

Children have different levels of resiliency or hardiness and different personality attributes, so different children respond differently to similarly abusive situations. That's 7 | P a g e

why the lists of warning signs above seems so general. None ofthe symptoms above is diagnostic of child abuse - i.e., the presence of any of the signs above does not prove that abuse has occurred. Also, a child may endure abuse without developing any of the symptoms above. Abuse simply increases the risk for all of the symptoms. Basically, children are supposed to learn everything they need to thrive in this worldfrom their caretakers. Abusive parents provide the opposite ofwhat children need. Instead of teaching and nurturing growth, they distort and destroy.

TypesThere are five major categories of child abuse. These are as follows:

Physical Abuse Child Neglect Child sexual abuse Emotional or psychological abuse

These categories are depicted below:

Physical abuse

Definition Child physical abuse is commonly defined as the non-accidental infliction of any type of physical harm or injury onto a child by a parent or caretaker. In other words, physical abuse is the physical aggression directed at a childby an adult.

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Forms The most common forms of physical abuse include:

Hitting or striking

Kicking

Punching

Biting

Whipping

Burning

Shoving

Pulling ears or hair

Slapping

Choking or shaking a child

NaturePhysical abuse can occur in all families. Parents do not usually plan to abuse their children. Parents who physically abuse are often reacting to serious stress in their own lives. Research has shown that families that suffer from economic stresses, a history of drug or alcohol abuse, a lackof social supports such as relatives and friends, and/or domestic violence may be at higher risk.

Signs and symptoms

Physical abuse can be identified by some physical indicators such as:

Welts

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Human bite marks

Bold spots

Burns

Skeletal and head injuries

Lacerations

Abrasions

Discoloration of skin

Unexplained bruise marks in various stages of healing

Consequences

Having suicidal thoughts

Learning impairments

Conduct disorder

A poor self image

Abuse drugs or alcohol

Sexually act out

Show signs of depression

Shaken baby syndrome

Swelling of the brain

Diffuse axonal injury

Vomiting

Lethargy

Altered breathing

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Dilated pupils

Intracranial pressure

Prevention

Child physical abuse brutalizes, traumatizes, and intimidates children, and can lead to physical injury, violent behavior, mental and medical health problems, long-term physical and mental disability, brain injury, and in some instances death.

We, as a state and as individuals, have the collective responsibility to promote strong and healthy families, therebypreventing child physical abuse. To accomplish this, we must strengthen services that prevent child abuse and neglect and support children and families. We must enact legislation to protect children from child physical abuse. And we must promote research, training, and public education to address the risk factors that can lead to child physical abuse and to foster the factors that protect against it. The following steps should be taken to prevent child physical abuse:

Physical abuse often occurs because the stressors of raising a family compound with one another, leading to anger and loss of control. Services such as home visiting, family support services, crisis nurseries, and parent education classes provide emotional support, parenting tools, increased knowledge of how children develop, and respite from the daily struggles of parenting. Currently, however, such programs do not reachall families who need them. It is therefore critical thatfunding sources for such programs are increased so that such programs can be made available in every community.

Professionals from the domestic violence and child abuse prevention fields should cross train with each other. Such cross training would enhance coordination and understanding between the two related disciplines.

Initiatives such as multidisciplinary family violence response teams should be implemented in all communities. Such teams pool the expertise of victim advocates, child

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protection workers, law enforcement, and attorneys, thereby enhancing the investigation and prosecution of domestic violence and child abuse cases and ensuring the safety of women and children.

Evaluation would clarify essential ingredients needed foran effective prevention program. Areas that require further investigation include the impact of prevention onfamily functioning; the effectiveness of prevention on target symptoms to both general child adjustment and riskfor abuse; the comparative

Child neglect

Definition Child neglect is where the responsible adult fails to provide adequately for various needs, including physical (failure to provide adequate food, clothing, or hygiene), emotional (failure to provide nurturing or affection), educational (failure to enroll a child in school), or medical (failure to medicate the child or take him or her to the doctor).

Nature Neglectful parents often suffer from feelings of depression, apathy, futility, and lack of initiative. These characteristics greatly contribute to the intractability of the problem. Research indicates that regardless of the level of stress or the availability of support, the emotional stability of the mother was the most significant predictor of child neglect. Other characteristics of neglectful caretakers include low educational attainment, unemployment, social isolation, low-incomes, and substance abuse.

Causes There are various kinds of reasons behind child neglect. Some mentionable causes are described below:

Depression Although not consistently supported by research, clinical depression has been associated with mothers who

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neglect. Studies of depressed women by psychiatric researchers have consistently found that depressed mothers are more likely than non depressed mothers to behostile, rejecting, and indifferent toward their children and to be neglectful especially with respect tofeeding and supervision.

Poor Social Skills Neglectful parents are typically not only deficient in their parenting skills, but have pervasive deficiencies in coping skills in many areas of living. The researchers' initial studies of neglectful mothers in Appalachia revealed that deficiencies in social skills and poor self-esteem resulted in neglectful mothers selecting equally ineffectual, unsuccessful male partners, who only served to confirm and compound their deficiencies. A subsequent study, which included neglectful fathers, revealed deficiencies in social participation and in their abilities to invest themselves emotionally in another person and in productive work.

Substance abuse Abusing alcohol or drugs is often present in cases of child neglect. Recent reports from urban CPS agencies indicate that substance abuse is a factor in a growing percentage of child neglect cases. Estimates range from a low of less than 24 percent to 80 to 90 percent of allchild maltreatment reports. An earlier study found that 52 percent of the children removed from their homes for severe child abuse or neglect had at least one parent with a history of alcoholism. There is yet insufficient data to conclude that substance abuse causes neglect, but it is an increasingly significant contributing factor.

Child characteristics The children in neglectful families develop behavior patterns as a result of the interactions that make them more likely to experience further neglect. As a result

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of the mother's inattention, the neglected child often develops patterns of either extremely passive, withdrawing behavior or random, undisciplined activity. Both of these patterns are likely to result in further inattention and distancing on the part of the child's neglectful parent.

Family composition Most neglectful families are single-parent families. Theabsence of the father in the majority of neglectful families means lower income and less tangible resources to provide for children's needs. Polansky, Chalmers, Buttenweiser, and Williams found that neglectful families with fathers present in the household had significantly higher income and provided better physicalcare than the single-parent families, but not better emotional/cognitive care. The physical absence or emotional disengagement of the father has been identified as contributing to deprived parenting in families of failure to thrive infants.

Family size Chronic neglectful families tend to be large families with fewer resources to meet basic needs than other families. Numerous studies have discovered that neglectful families on the average have more children than non neglecting families. The Study of National Incidence and Prevalence of Child Abuse and Neglect reported that the estimated rate of neglect among families with four or more children was almost double the rate among families with three or fewer children.

Family interaction patterns Pattern of verbal and nonverbal communication between neglectful parents and children have been characterized as infrequent and predominantly negative. Burgess and Conger found that there were significantly fewer positive interactions and more negative interactions between neglectful parents and their children than in either abusive or in non maltreating families studied.

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These researchers found that, compared with abusive mothers and non maltreating controls, the neglectful mothers stood out as the most negative and least positive in their relationships with other family members.

Contextual Sources of Stress and Support Neglectful families do not exist in a vacuum. The availability of formal and informal supports for parenting from outside the family system are critical determinants of the adequacy of parenting. Unemployment, which causes psychological and economic stress, is frequent in neglectful families. Neglectful families tend to live inimpoverished neighborhoods and view their neighborhoods as less helpful and less supportive than do non neglectful parents. Chronically neglecting families are viewed as deviant, even by their similarly impoverished neighbors, who avoid social contacts with them.

Warning Signs Clothes are ill-fitting, filthy, or inappropriate for

the weather. Hygiene is consistently bad (unbathed, matted and

unwashed hair, noticeable body odor). Untreated illnesses and physical injuries. Is frequently unsupervised or left alone or allowed to

play in unsafe situations and environments.

TypesChild neglect is of three major types. These are depicted below:

Physical Neglect Emotional Neglect Educational Neglect

Physical NeglectThe Department of Health and Human Services' Third National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect (NIS-3) defines physical neglect as any of the following:15 | P a g e

Refusal of health care—failure to provide or allow neededcare in accordance with recommendations of a competent health-care professional for a physical injury, illness, medical condition, or impairment.

Delay in health care—failure to seek timely and appropriate medical care for a serious health problem that any reasonable layperson would have recognized as needing professional medical attention.

Abandonment—desertion of a child without arranging for reasonable care and supervision.

Expulsion—other blatant refusals of custody, such as permanent or indefinite expulsion of a hild from the homewithout adequate arrangement for care by others or refusal to accept custody of a returned runaway.

Inadequate supervision—leaving a child unsupervised or inadequately supervised for extended periods of time, or allowing the child to remain away from home overnight without knowing or attempting to determine the child's whereabouts.

Other physical neglect—may include inadequate nutrition, clothing, or hygiene; conspicuous inattention to avoidable hazards in the home; and other forms of reckless disregard for the child's safety and welfare (e.g., driving with the child while intoxicated, leaving a young child unattended in a car)

Emotional Neglect

The Department of Health and Human Services' Third National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect (NIS-3) defines emotional neglect as any of the following:

Inadequate nurturing or affection—marked inattention to the child's needs for affection, emotional support, or attention.

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Chronic or extreme spouse abuse—exposure of the child to chronic or extreme spouse abuse or other domestic violence.

Permitted drug or alcohol abuse—encouragement or permission of drug or alcohol use by the child.

Permitted other maladaptive behavior—encouragement or permission of other maladaptive behavior (e.g., chronic delinquency, severe assault) under circumstances where the parent or caregiver has reason to be aware of the existence and seriousness of the problem but does not intervene.

Refusal of psychological care—refusal to allow needed andavailable treatment for a child's emotional or behavioralimpairment or problem in accordance with a competent professional recommendation.

Delay in psychological care—failure to seek or provide needed treatment for a child's emotional or behavioral impairment or problem that any reasonable layperson wouldhave recognized as needing professional psychological attention (e.g., suicide attempt).

Educational Neglect

The Department of Health and Human Services' Third National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect (NIS-3) defines educational neglect as any of the following:

Permitted chronic truancy—habitual absenteeism from school averaging at least 5 days a month if the parent orguardian is informed of the problem and does not attempt to intervene.

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Failure to enroll or other truancy—failure to register orenroll a child of mandatory school age, causing the childto miss at least 1 month of school, or a pattern of keeping a school-aged child home without valid reasons.

Inattention to special education need—refusal to allow orfailure to obtain recommended remedial education servicesor neglect in obtaining or following through with treatment for a child's diagnosed learning disorder or other special education need without reasonable cause.

Consequences

Child neglect can have devastating effects on the intellectual, physical, social, and psychological development of children. Numerous studies have documented significant developmental problems in children who have experienced inadequate, neglectful parenting. However, studies of maltreated children often fail to differentiate between abusedand neglected children, or they are based on very small samples of neglected children. There is a lack of attention given to differentiating effects related to ethnic or racial differences. There are also important mediating factors that buffer the effects of neglect on its victims. Some of the effects of child neglect are as follows:

Children who are victims of physical and emotional neglect suffer severe and continuing problems in functioning. significant deficits in coping skills, more frustration, anger, and noncompliance when compared to non neglected children. Neglected preschool children alsomanifested lower self-esteem, poorer control over impulses, and expressed less positive and more negative affect than the non maltreated children.

As neglected children grow older, developmental deficits are still apparent. They are less well-prepared for learning.

School-aged children with histories of neglect have serious learning deficits. They score significantly loweron measures of school performance than physically abused or non maltreated children. Neglected children are absent

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from school significantly more often and have a higher percentage.

There is evidence of a high incidence of abuse and neglect among delinquent populations and a high incidenceof delinquency among maltreated adolescents.

Child victims of neglect fail to develop secure psychological attachments as infants, and this seriously handicaps their subsequent development.

Prevention Child neglect is the most common form of maltreatment and, although pervasive and sometimes life threatening, is often difficult to identify. Child neglect can lead to depression, apathy, lack of empathy, and, too frequently, to criminal behavior and in some instances death. We, as a state and as individuals, have the collective responsibility to promote strong and healthy families, thereby preventing neglect. To accomplish this, we must strengthen services that prevent child abuse and neglect and support children and families. Andwe must promote research, training, and public education to address the risk factors that can lead to child neglect and tofoster the factors that protect against it. Some mentionable effective preventive measures are as follows:

Increasing services to families such as home visiting, early childhood education, parent education, and family planning.

Providing mental health services to parents who need and want such services, and making mental health services available to victims of child neglect as early as possible to prevent the future perpetuation of neglect.

Children often face severe and potentially long-term psychological consequences as a result of child neglect. Mental health services, especially in the early stages ofneglect, can help mitigate some of these consequences andcan help ensure that neglect is not perpetuated in the future.

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Increasing efforts to address social problems such as poverty, substance abuse, and family violence which are related to child neglect.

Increasing public awareness efforts to educate the publicabout child neglect and how it can help to prevent it. Raising public awareness of the serious and pervasive nature of child neglect is essential in order for real change to occur.

Emotional or Psychological Abuse

Definition Emotional abuse of a child is commonly defined as a pattern ofbehavior by parents or caregivers that can seriously interferewith a child’s cognitive, emotional, psychological or social development. Emotional abuse of a child — also referred to as psychological maltreatment.

Forms There may be different forms of emotional abuses. Some mentionable forms are as follows:

Ignoring. Either physically or psychologically, the parent or caregiver is not present to respond to the child. He or she may not look at the child and may not call the child by name.

Rejecting. This is an active refusal to respond to a child’s needs (e.g., refusing to touch a child, denying the needs of a child, ridiculing a child).

Isolating. The parent or caregiver consistently preventsthe child from having normal social interactions with peers, family members and adults

This also may include confining the child or limiting the child’s freedom of movement.

Exploiting or corrupting. In this kind of abuse, a childis taught, encouraged or forced to develop inappropriateor illegal behaviors. It may involve self-destructive orantisocial acts of the parent or caregiver, such as

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teaching a child how to steal or forcing a child into prostitution.

Verbally assaulting. This involves constantly belittling, shaming, ridiculing or verbally threatening the child.

Terrorizing. Here, the parent or caregiver threatens or bullies the child and creates a climate of fear for the child. Terrorizing can include placing the child or the child’s loved one (such as a sibling, pet or toy) in a dangerous or chaotic situation, or placing rigid or unrealistic expectations on the child with threats of harm if they are not met.

Belittling. Belittling a child causes the child to see him or herself in the way consistent with the care givers words. This limits the child's potential by limiting the child's own sense of his or her potential

Neglecting the child. This abuse may include educationalneglect, where a parent or caregiver fails or refuses toprovide the child with necessary educational services; mental health neglect, where the parent or caregiver denies or ignores a child’s need for treatment for psychological problems; or medical neglect, where a parent or caregiver denies or ignores a child’s need fortreatment for medical problems.

Coldness. Children learn to interact with the world through their early interactions with their parents. If parents are warm and loving, children grow to see the world as a secure place for exploration and learning. When parents are cold to their children, they deprive the child of necessary ingredients for intellectual and social development. Children who are subjected to consistent coldness grow to see the world as a cold, uninviting place, and will likely have seriously impaired relationships in the future. They may also never feel confident to explore and learn.

Cruelty. Cruelty is more severe than coldness, but theresults can be the same. Children need to feel safe and loved in order to explore the world around them and in

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order to learn to form healthy relationships. When children experience cruelty from their caretakers, the world ceases to "make sense" for them, and all areas of learning are affected - social, emotional, and intellectual development are hindered.

Harassment. Harassment has similar effects to those of belittling, but also involves a stress response. Harassment scares the child, and repeated exposure to fear can alter the child physically, lowering their ability to deal with other stressful situations.

Inappropriate Control. Inappropriate control takes three forms - lack of control, over control, and inconsistent control. Lack of control puts children at risk for danger or harm to themselves and robs children of the knowledge handed down through human history. Overcontrol robs children of opportunities for self-assertion and self-development by preventing them from exploring the world around them. Inconsistent control can cause anxiety and confusion in children and can leadto a variety of problematic behaviors as well as impair intellectual development.

Signs & Symptoms

Observable Indicators

Child rocks, sucks, bites self Inappropriately aggressive

Destructive to others

Suffers from speech, sleep disorders

Restricts play activities or experiences

Demonstrates compulsions, obsessions, phobias, hysterical outbursts

Behavioral Indicators In Child

Negative statements about self

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Shy, passive, compliant

Lags in physical, mental & emotional development

Self destructive behavior

Highly aggressive

Cruel to others

Overly demanding

Family or Parental Indicators

Blames or puts down child Cold and rejecting

Indifferent to child’s problems or welfare

Withholds affection

Shows preferential treatment when there is more than onechild in the family

Effects Children who are constantly ignored, shamed, terrorized or humiliated suffer at least as much, if not more, than if theyare physically assaulted. Emotional abuse can be more strongly predictive of subsequent impairments in the children’s development than the severity of physical abuse. An infant who is severely deprived of basic emotional nurturance, even though physically well cared for, can fail to thrive and can eventually die. Babies with less severe emotional deprivation can grow into anxious and insecure children who are slow to develop and who have low self-esteem. Although the visible signs of emotional abuse in children can be difficult to detect, the hidden scars of thistype of abuse manifest in numerous behavioral ways, includinginsecurity, poor self-esteem, destructive behavior, angry acts (such as fire setting and animal cruelty), withdrawal, poor development of basic skills, alcohol or drug abuse, suicide, difficulty forming relationships and unstable job histories. Emotionally abused children often grow up thinking23 | P a g e

that they are deficient in some way. A continuing tragedy of emotional abuse is that, when these children become parents, they may continue the cycle with their own children.

Prevention Child emotional abuse is a misunderstood, insidious, and psychologically damaging form of child maltreatment, which can lead to low self-esteem, anxiety, depression, and self-destructive behavior. We, as a state and as individuals, havethe collective responsibility to promote strong and healthy families, thereby preventing child emotional abuse.  To accomplish this, we must strengthen services that prevent child abuse and neglect and support children and families. And we must promote research, training, and public education to address the risk factors that can lead to child emotional abuse and to foster the factors that protect against it.

Some of the preventive measures which are mentionable are illustrated below:

Increasing research efforts to gain a clear understanding of the origins, nature, and risk factors of child emotional abuse.

Increasing research so that family support programs can effectively address child emotional abuse.

Programs and activities, such as home visiting programs and parent mutual support self-help groups, hold potential for preventing child emotional abuse by offering education on childhood development, instruction on non-violent discipline methods, and methods on how to bond with and nurture children.

Raising public awareness on what is currently known about the severity, prevalence, and warning signs of child emotional abuse. Public awareness campaigns must be launched, which explain the nature, scope, and severity of child emotional abuse and how members in communities across the country can prevent it.

Making mental health services available to both victims and perpetrators of child emotional abuse to prevent the

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intergenerational transmission and future perpetuation of child emotional abuse.

Child Sexual Abuse

Definition Child sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent abuses a child for sexual stimulation. It usually occurs when a child has been exposed or subjected to sexual behaviors that are exploitative and/or inappropriate tohis/her age and developmental level.  Examples include sexual penetration, inappropriate touching, exposure to sexual acts or pornographic materials.

Forms

Asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities

Indecent exposure of the genitals to a child

Displaying pornography to a child

Actual sexual contact against a child

Physical contact with the child’s genitals

Viewing of the child genitalia without physical contact

Using a child to produce child pornography

Signs & Symptoms

Physical trauma such as redness, rashes or bleeding to oral, genital or anal areas

Bruises on breasts, buttocks, lower abdomen, thighs, genital and/or rectal areas

Complaints of pain or itching in genital or anal areas

Difficulty walking or sitting

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Unusual or offensive body odors

Difficulty in bladder or bowel control

Constipation

Pain or discomfort on urination

Blood in urine

Abnormal dilation of vaginal or rectal openings

Foreign bodies in vaginal, rectal or urethral openings

Sexually transmitted diseases found vaginally, rectally or orally

Yeast or bacterial infections

Frequent sore throats; difficulty swallowing; choking

Ear infections/problems

Sudden weight gain or extreme weight loss

Severe psychosomatic complaints such as stomachaches andheadaches

Sexualized behavior that is inappropriate for the child's age

Promiscuous behavior

Waking up during the night sweating, screaming or shaking with nightmares.

Showing unusually aggressive behavior toward family members, friends, toys, and pets.

Masturbating excessively.

Beginning wetting the bed.

Experiencing a loss of appetite or other eating problems, including unexplained gagging.

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Showing unusual fear of a certain place or location.

Developing frequent unexplained health problems.

Engaging in persistent sexual play with friends, toys orpets.

Having unexplained periods of panic, which may be flashbacks from the abuse.

Engaging in self-mutilations, such as sticking themselves with pins or cutting themselves.

Withdrawing from previously enjoyable activities, like school or school performance change.

Asking an unusual amount of questions about human sexuality.

Preventing Child Abuse Child abuse prevention efforts build on family strengths with the goal of giving families the support they need to love, nurture and protect their children.

Primary child abuse prevention

Focuses on preventing child abuse and neglect from ever happening.

Has been proven to reduce the likelihood of child abuse and neglect.

Requires the efforts of everyone - policy makers and community members alike.

Can only be accomplished if measures are taken by the entire community.

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Keeping children safe from abuse and neglect is the responsibility of the entire community.

Child abuse is an exceptionally complex problem with numerous causes and numerous, wide-ranging consequences that affect each and every one of us.

Communities will be most effective in preventing child abuse if they adopt a comprehensive prevention strategy that offers families a variety of programs, targeted to different populations with differing needs.

The goals of a community-wide comprehensive prevention strategy

Increase parents' knowledge and understanding of how children develop and what they can expect at each stage of development.

Enhance bonding and communication between parents and their children.

Increase parents' skills in coping with the stresses of caring for children with special needs.

Increase parents’ knowledge about managing homes and families.

Reduce the burden of child care.

Increase access to the social and health-care services for all community members.

Prevention strategies

Programs that support new and expecting parents by helping them prepare for the challenges of child care.

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Programs that educate parents about child care and childdevelopment.

Child care opportunities for working parents and for parents who need respite from the stresses of their responsibilities.

Programs that teach children how to protect themselves from abuse.

Life skill training that helps children and young adultslearn the interpersonal communication skills they need to thrive as kids and later as adults and parents.

Self-help groups, peer-support systems, and other neighborhood support programs to reduce the isolation experienced by many parents.

24-hour crisis care programs that provide immediate assistance to parents in a time of crisis by offering a telephone helpline, crisis caretakers, crisis nurseries,and crisis counseling.

Bibliography

1. "Springfield man denies charges in infant assault",RutlandHerald, New Hampshire, 5 August 2008.

2. Middlebrooks, J.S.; Audage, A.C. (2008). The Effects of Childhood Stress on Health Across the Lifespan.

3. Dolezal, T.; McCollum, D.; Callahan, M. (2009). Hidden Costs in Health Care: The Economic Impact of Violence and Abuse. Academy on Violence and Abuse.

4. Levitan RD, Rector NA, Sheldon T, Goering P (2003). "Childhood adversities associated with major depression and/or anxiety disorders in a community sample of Ontario: issues of co-morbidity and specificity".

5. Turton, Jackie (2008).Child abuse, Gender and Society.

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6. Hosin, A.A., ed (2007). Responses to traumatized children. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 211.

7. Fuller-Thomson E, Brennenstuhl S (July 2009). "Making a link between childhood physical abuse and cancer: results from a regional representative survey".

8. Cohen, J.A.; Mannarino, A.P.; Murray, L.K.; Igelman, R. (2006). "Psychosocial Interventions for Maltreated and Violence-Exposed Children". Journal of Social Issues.

9. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2007). Child maltreatment 2005. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

10. Winterfeld, A., & Hunt., D. E. (2003). The legal framework for child protective services. In C. Brittain &D. E. Hunt (Eds.), Helping in child protective services: A competency-based casework handbook. New York: Oxford University Press.

11. Dubowitz, H. (2000). What is physical abuse? In H. Dubowitz & D. DePanfilis (Eds.), Handbook for child protection practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

12. Lee, J., Jackson, H., Pattison, P., & Ward, T. (2002, January 26). Developmental risk factors for sexualoffending. Child Abuse and Neglect

13. Oates, K., O'Toole, B., Lynch, D., Stern, A., & Cooney, G. (1994). Stability and change in outcomes for sexually abused children. Journal of the American Academy of Childand Adolescent Psychiatry.

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The foundation for practice. Washington, DC: U.S. Department ofHealth and Human Services.

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Table of Contents

1. Definition ……………………………………………………………………………..1

2. Causes ……………………………………………………………………………...1-2

3. Signs & Symptoms…………………………………………………………………... 2-3

4. Prevalence…………………………………………………………………………….. 3-4

5. Fatalities………………………………………………………………………………... 4

6. Effects……………………………………………………………………………………4-6

7. Types

7.1. Physical Abuse………………………………………………………………………7-9

7.2. Child Neglect…………………………………………………………………….. 9-15

7.3. Emotional/Psychological Abuse………………………………………………. 15-18

7.4. Child Sexual Abuse…………………………………………………………….. 18-20

8. Preventing Child Abuse………………………………………………………… 20-21

9. Bibliography…………………………………………………………………… 22

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