Effects Of Maltreatment On Children And Children

In the typical classroom, a 4-year-old child once said, “If someone wants to have sex with you, you have to do it.” (Rafanello) Child abuse is more prevalent now than ever, and the numbers are only growing. This shows us that child abuse is more relevant now than ever. The amount of damage inflicted on these children mentally range from mild to extreme. This is why it’s important that child abuse gets reported as soon as possible.

Back in the day there were not as many child protecting laws and assisting facilities like there are today. In 1960’s there was very little information as it relates to child abuse. A Canadian psychologist by the name of William L. Marshall said, “you could read all the information in one morning. With the lack of information there was no way for individuals to readily identify what constituted as child abuser. Child abuse before 1875 was in fact the era before child services were created to protect the children.

placed out of home-care due to abuse or neglect were scored lower on measures of cognitive

Child maltreatment is a preventable public health problem. Research has demonstrated that neighborhood structural factors (e.g. poverty, crime) can influence the proportion of a neighborhood’s children who are victims of maltreatment. A newer strategy is the identi- fication of potentially modifiable social processes at the neighborhood level that can also influence maltreatment. Toward this end, this study examines neighborhood-level data (maltreatment cases substantiated by Illinois’ child protection agency, 1995–2005, social processes measured by the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, U.S. Census data, proportions of neighborhoods on public assistance, and crime data) that were linked across clusters of contiguous, relatively

The conceptualisation of the long-term effects of child maltreatment reflects the surrounding circumstances which expose child abuse as a common event. Childhood abuse is a growing epidemic which evokes extreme emotional responses both privately and publicly and is viewed as a risk factor for an extensive variety of consequent problems. 2014 demonstrated that over 137,585 child abuse cases involving 99,210 Australian children were investigated (Australian Institute of Family Studies 2015). Abuse is categorised into neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse and emotional abuse. Contrary to the implied supposition that emotional abuse is less injurious in comparison to sexual and physical abuse, emotional abuse ranked as the most commonly substantiated harm type in Victoria, Western Australia, Tasmania and the Australia Capital Territory (AIFS 2015). Childhood abuse occurs throughout a period where complex and ordered changes occur within a child’s physiological, psychological and sociological being. The following report will accentuate how the state of flux instigated by childhood abuse leaves children susceptible harmful consequences that will pervert or prevent a normal developmental procedure. Through psychological and physiological wellbeing, adult delinquency and the effects on different genders readers will be able to identify the harmful consequences childhood abuse places on victims and survivors.

It has been known, for many years, that childhood maltreatment, including physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, interparental violence, and sexual abuse, has an adverse effect on a developing child. These effects have been thought to be linked to adults later having cognitive deficits and mental disorders when compared to adults with no history of childhood maltreatment (Tomoda, Polcari, Anderson, & Teicher, 2012). It has also been shown that adults who experience childhood maltreatment are more prone to many medical illnesses than their healthy counterparts (Keeshin, Cronholm, & Strawn, 2012). With more recent advances in technology, scientists have been able to research exactly how childhood maltreatment affects development through methods such as MRI, fMRI, and genetic tests (Teicher, Anderson, & Polcari, 2012). Using these findings, scientists have begun to show how childhood maltreatment affects adults later in life. The following literature will support the claim that childhood maltreatment leads to abnormal neurological development which can later have adverse effects on the adult’s mental and physical health.

“27% percent, of the 702,000 victims of Childhood Maltreatment, are under the age of Three.” (Child Maltreatment, 2014)

Child maltreatment has been a serious public health problem not just in the United States but globally. Maltreatment is defined as neglect which means failure to provide for a child’s basic physical, educational, or psychological needs. Physical abuse such as causing physical harm, sexual abuse, abuse that includes fondling a child’s genitals or breasts, and psychological abuse, such as verbal put-downs and other behavior that terrorizes, threatens, rejects or isolates the child. “According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), in 2007 approximately 794,000 children (10.6 per 1,000 children of all ages) were identified as victims of child abuse or neglect. Approximately one-half (46.1%) of all victims were non-Hispanic white, 21.7% were African American, and 20.8% were Hispanic. One-third (31.9%) were under the age of 4 years.” (Gross, 2010)

In the study Differential Profiles of Adaptive Behavior of Maltreated Children they compared the differences in adaptive behavior between children who were abused, neglected, and a comparison group. Children who had been abused had a lower adaptive behavior then the comparison group, but the neglected children had a “moderately low range for all three domains” (Viezel, Lowell, Davis, Castillo 2014 p. 577). With the findings they suggested that neglected children would have delays in coping skills, personal care skills, expressive communication, and the inability to participate in appropriate play. “This is consistent with previous research that suggested; youth who were neglected experienced difficulties in social interactions, social withdrawal, and isolation” (Viezel et al 2014 p. 577). Child neglect has yet to gain a lot of attention or interventions when compared to child physical abuse, this is concerning since research suggests that child neglect has significant delays to their

The maltreatment of children within the United States is an unfortunate but evident issue that presents some very detrimental consequences for the victims. Victims of child maltreatment typically suffer from both short-term and long-term consequences, resulting from the negligence of their parents. Across the nation techniques and measures have been taken in order to prevent the advancement of child abuse within high-risk homes, although despite these efforts sometimes it is too late for the child and the damage is too extensive for them to recover completely.

The author of this book ,Stuart was abused by his step father that almost ruined his life and ended up in hospital, but in this book he writes about how he survived the

An article posted by the Australian Institute of Family Studies explains the long-term effects of child abuse and neglect for adult survivors. The article explains that there are many different types of child abuse which falls in the categories of physical, emotional, neglect, sexual and witnessing family violence. Abuse can also intentional or sometimes even unintentional. Also, different sub-types of maltreatment may be related to different negative outcomes. The author

According to the Administration for Children and Families (2013), there are one million verified cases of childhood maltreatment reported annually in the United States. This constitutes approximately 35% of the childhood population in the United States. Of these cases, 79.5% were the result of neglect, emotional abuse, and abandonment. Over 3% of these children attempted or completed suicide (Administration for Children and Families, 2013).

In the beginning of this course, maltreatment meant getting hit in areas of your body besides your buttocks. But as this class progressed through this class it gets much deeper than that. According to the New York Office of Child and Family Services, maltreatment is defined as the quality of care a child is receiving from those responsible for him/her. When a parent or individual who is legally responsible for a child causes, “harms to a child, or places a child in imminent danger” (OCFS n.d) by not supplying a child with basic care and needs, such as “food, clothing, shelter, education or medical care” (OCFS n.d) when a guardian has the financial ability to provide for the child. Abandonment and inadequate supervision of a child by a parent who is using drugs or alcohol while caring for a child are also considered maltreatment.

Child abuse is considered socially unacceptable, unfortunately it happens every day. The effects from childhood maltreatment are long lasting and potentially life threatening. Childhood maltreatment is an act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or other care giver that results in harm, potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child (Saha, 2012, p. 213). Child abuse acts are committed behind closed doors and lack the necessary attention they need to be prevented. Research has shown that the acts of abuse do not stop behind closed doors. Maltreatment of a child causes effects such as; relationship violence, suicidal behaviors, and repercussions to the brains structure and function.