Child Neglect Essay

Children are our future. They will shape future generations to come and the way our society deals with difficulties. One difficulty that is currently being addressed is child neglect. Child neglect is the most prevalent form of child maltreatment (Sedlak et al 2010). Neglect includes physical neglect, emotional neglect, medical neglect and educational neglect. Although there may or may not be physical symptoms, neglect may be harder to identify right away. Neglect is often referred to as an act of omission as the parent or caregiver does not intentionally cause harm to the child, but the absence of care puts the child at risk of harm (Sedlak et al 2010). In 2007, the cost of child abuse and neglect was $103.8 billion, which includes immediate

Neglect has been described as the “most serious type of child maltreatment and the least understood” (Crittenden 1999: 67). It is the most common reason for inclusion on the child protection register in the UK. In the year ending 31st March 2006, 43 per cent of child protection registrations in England related to children considered to be at risk of neglect (Source: DfES, 2006)

With neglect the child may become delinquent, turn to alcohol/drugs, steal, or develop neurotic traits like sleeping disorders. They may also exhibit extreme behavior patterns like infantile or adult like behavior. Some indicators of neglect may be consistent hunger, poor hygiene, truancy, abandonment, and a lack of physical development.

The National Children 's Alliance reported that the number of unique cases of abused and neglected children in the United States stands at an annual rate of 700,000 and rising (as cited in ?U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,? 2016, p. ii). Sadly, this means that more than 1,900 new children become victims of abuse and neglect with each passing day. Neglect was the type of

Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to: â—• provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment); â—• protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger; â—• ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care- givers); or â—• ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment. It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a childâ€TMs basic emotional

Westat found that professionals failed to report many of the children they saw who had signs of child abuse and neglect. It found that in 1986, 56 percent of apparently abused or neglected children, or about 500,000 children, were not reported to the authorities. This figure, however, seems more alarming than it is: Basically, the more serious the case, the more likely the report. For example, the surveyed professionals reported over 85 percent of the fatal or serious physical abuse cases they saw, 72 percent of the sexual abuse cases, and 60 percent of the moderate physical abuse cases. They only reported 15 percent of the educational neglect cases they saw, 24 percent of the emotional neglect cases, and 25 percent of the moderate physical neglect cases.

Physical/Emotional neglect is the failure to provide a child with basic needs, including adequate food, shelter, clothing, or necessary medical care. Neglect also exist when an adult fails to provide adequate supervision of a child as when a child is left either unsupervised or in the care of someone unable to supervise the child. Furthermore, neglect occurs when a person creates a substantial risk of physical injury to a child by other than accidental means which would be likely to cause death, disfigurement, impairment of physical or emotional health, or loss or impairment of any bodily function

Child abuse can be performed in many different ways. Unfortunately, abuse occurs in many households today. Neglect is a form of abuse other than physical, that can effectively harm a child. Neglection is characterized by the failure of taking proper care of a child. This form of abuse is often overlooked as we can see in the book “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

The issue of child neglect is one of the most current forms of child maltreatment especially in the United States. According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, child neglect is referred to as a kind of maltreatment which relates to the failure of a caregiver to offer the needed, age-appropriate care, despite the fact that the parent may be financially stable to do so (Conte 13). Neglect in many instances is described by an ongoing pattern that relates to lack of care and is observed by individuals in close contact with a child.

The current problem is the continued rise in child abuse and neglect today. Within the United States, the problem of child abuse and neglect is far much common than most people would like to admit. Sanchez (2012) stated that child maltreatment is a global epidemic and a major social problem in the United States resulting in at least 740, 000 visits to hospital emergency departments and more than $124 in child welfare, criminal justice, and health care. Norman, Byambaa, De, Butchart, Scott, and Vos (2012) also observed that child abuse and neglect is a global problem that is mostly perpetrated by parental guardians and parents. Sexual abuse is the infringement of a child’s

       Through research, neglect is considered the far most common form of child mistreatment in the United States.  (Child Neglect Criminal Law, 2012), provides different percentages of types of abuse and they are 78.3% of child maltreatment victims suffered neglect, 18.3% suffered physical abuse, and 9.3% suffered sexually abuse. In 2012, the United States reported that over 2,200 children died of abuse and neglect, and majority of them died because of neglect.  Over a period of time, those that survived tend develop attention and language

All signs should consider the age, developmental stage, and history of the child and caregivers. There are various physical and behavioural signs of neglect; being left unsupervised, abandonment, poor growth, poor hygiene, low self esteem, absenteeism, poor social skills and living in an unsafe environment are just part of an exhaustive list of signs. An example of neglect is seen in a child who is malnourished and resorts to begging or stealing food. Dentists can also see signs of neglect. Tooth decay is a sure sign of neglect. Although,

Neglect is defined by the Children’s Bureau as “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; or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of harm”

children are confirmed each year as victims of child abuse and neglect by state child

Children who have experienced neglect in multiple areas, global neglect, may have significantly smaller brains than the norm. This indicates they have fewer neurological connections, leading to lifelong intellectual disadvantages (DePanfilis, 2006). Neglected children often have lower IQ's and extreme difficulties in learning new things. Lack of intellectual stimulation causes deficits in language development. Ultimately, neglect causes damages to the brain