Child Abuse and

1. Child Abuse and Neglect

2. Child- Every human being below the age of 18 years unless under the law applicable to the child majority is attained earlier.

3. What is child abuse? • The bad treatment of a child by a parent, caretaker, some one living in their home or someone who works with or around children. • Abuse of a child is anything that causes injury or puts the child in danger of physical injury.

4. Definition of Child Abuse • Child abuse has occurred when one or more of the four types of abuse have been identified. The four types of abuse are Physical, Sexual, Verbal, and Psychological. • The definition of child abuse varies from state to state, but the main concepts of each definition remain consistent.

5. Physical Abuse • The infliction of physical harm from the interaction or lack of interaction of a child by a person in a position of authority. • Emotional Abuse • The failure to provide a child developmentally appropriate, supportiveenvironment cognitively, mentally or emotionally. • Neglect • Depriving a child of their basic needs. This including the failure to provide for the development of the child in all spheres: health, education, nutrition, emotional development, shelter, and safe living conditions. • Sexual Abuse • The involvement of sexual activity of a child and an adult that he or she may not fully comprehend, may not be able to give their consent, or violates the laws or taboos of society.

6. Examples of Child Abuse: • Physical Abuse- hitting, shaking, burns, human bites, strangulation. • Sexual Abuse- fondling, intercourse, incest, rape, prostitution or pornography. • Emotional Abuse- belittling, constant disapproval, and teasing. • Neglect- Failure to provide food, shelter, clothing, abandonment, inadequate supervision, and the allowance of drug or alcohol to be used by the child.

7. Child Abuse in the United States Child Abuse and Neglect, Rein 2003

8. Statistics • Boys are at a greater risk of serious injury and of emotional neglect than girls. (Child Abuse Statistics) • Girls are sexually about three times more often the boys. (Child Abuse Statistics) • Children with disabilities are 4 to 10 times more vulnerable to sexual abuse than their non-disabled peers. (Child Abuse Statistics) • The younger victims of sexual abuse are most likely to be black, while the older victims were mostly Asian. (Sexual Abuse of Children) • In 2000 younger children represented most of the maltreated victims. (Rein) • Most than half of maltreatment victims were white in 2000. (Rein)

9. Statistics • National Statistics (1996) • 930,001 victims in 44 states • Types of Abuse • Emotional: 5.9% • Sexual: 12.3% • Physical: 22.2% • Age Groups: • 0-3: 28% • 4-7: 27.8% • 8-11: 21.5% • 12 and over: 22.7% • Gender of Victim • Male: 48% • Female: 52%

10. Statistics continued . . . • Los Angeles County Statistics (1997) • 179,436 victims • Types of Abuse • Sexual: 12.9% • Physical: 36.4% • Emotional: 6.6% • Age Groups: • 0-4: 26.6% • 5-12: 47.5% • 13 and over: 23.9% • Gender of Victim: • Male: 48.8% • Female: 51.2%

11. Causes of Child Maltreatment • Poverty • Unemployment • Stress • Spousal Conflicts • Caring for children with disabilities • Toilet training • Cultural customs

12. Low self-esteem Mistrust/Fear Anxiety Poor Interpersonal Skills Inability to experience pleasure Inability to experience and express feelings Aggression/Impulsivity Self-Blame/Guilt Feelings of loss/rejection Helplessness Entrapment Development of defense mechanisms “Damaged goods syndrome” child feels physically, emotionally, and socially damaged Depression Lack of self-mastery and control the child feels helpless as a result of the violation of his/her body and privacy Psychological Impact of Abuse

13. Anger/Hostility Confused Ambivalent feelings toward the perpetrator Ambivalent feelings toward the non-offending parent Failure to complete developmental tasks Fears concerning the reactions of others child is concerned about the responses of siblings, friends, etc. Inappropriate boy-girl relationships / Acting-out the child mistrusts others the same sex as the perpetrator, displays inappropriate sexualized behaviors, etc. Behavioral extremes Self-destructive behaviors Psychological Impact continued

14. Cross-culture definition of Child Maltreatment • Defining child maltreatment cross culturally is difficult because of cultural traditions and customs. • The Convention the Rights of the Child was adopted by the UN in 1989, setting the rights of children and establishing minimum standards for the protection of children.

15. Overview of Global Impact • France and England both have define positions on child maltreatment and have made strong effort to prevent it. • African and Latin American nations position vary regarding the subject of child maltreatment because of the diverse cultures in population. • China has a very Western view of children, however the Chinese leaders believe that it is the states responsibility to provide child care.

16. Child Prevention: Abuse • Reach out, anything you do to support kids and parents can • help relieve the stress that often leads to abuse and neglect. • Report any suspected child abuse. • Educate yourself and others and help prevent child • maltreatment in your community. • Available programs and service in communities specifically to help strengthen families, create positive and non abusive homes.

17. Remember the risk factors. Child abuse and neglect occur in all segments of our society but the risk factors are greater in families where parents: • May haveeconomic, housing or personal problems. • Isolation from family or community. • Have difficulty dealing with physical or mental • health issues • Abuse of alcohol or drugs • Appear to be uninterested in the well being of their • children.

18. Recognize the warning signs, the behavior of a child may signal abuse or neglect long before any change in physical appearance. • Nervousness around adults • Aggression towards adults and other children • Unnatural interest in sex • Frequent or unexpected injuries • Low self esteem • Poor hygiene • Dramatic change in personality or activity • Inability to concentrate for long periods of time

19. Treatment • Group Therapy • Therapy groups furnish children with opportunities for improving their social skills, developing satisfactory interpersonal relationships, and increasing self-awareness and empathy. Group therapy is most effective with preadolescents and adolescents. • Individual Play Therapy • Individual play therapy provides children with a safe environment and allows them to use familiar play materials to express feelings. Play therapy is particularly beneficial for preschool- and school-aged children who are unable to verbalize their feelings or who have severe psychological or behavioral problems.

20. Treatment continued . . . • Individual Therapy • Individual therapy gives children the individual attention and support they may need to identify and resolve psychological issues related to abuse. • Effective for • increasing trust • increasing the ability to delay gratification • enhancing self-esteem • improving the ability to verbalize feelings and conflicts • increasing the capacity for pleasure.

21. Breaking the Cycle . . . • What a society can do to help and protect . . . • Community Child Advocacy • Learn more about child abuse • Provide public forums to educate your community • Participate in, or organize a child advocacy organization • Assure that all types of youth services are providing thorough background checks on employees and volunteers • Implement abuse prevention curricula in all schools, beginning in the Kindergarten level • Know where and how to check for sex offender registries • Report and encourage others to report, suspected child abuse to local authorities

22. Breaking the Cycle continued. . . • Financially • Donate time or money to non-profit advocacy organizations • Coordinate fund raisers for non-profit organizations • Child Protection Legislation(State and Federal) • Enact the Alaska Resolution in your state, to reject the controversial research on the impact of child abuse • Keep up to date on pending legislation • Contact your legislators and let them know how you want them to vote • Spread the word to friends, and get more people involved

23. Education Child abuse programs and services. Schools Community Education through the media. Film and television Newspapers and Magazines Internet