Child Abuse

1. Child Abuse What is Child Abuse? Any act, or failure to act, that endangers a child’s physical or emotional health and development. Someone is abusive is they fail to nurture a child, physically injures a child, or relates sexually to a child.

2. Child Abuse • Physical Abuse • Beating, slapping, hitting. • Pushing, shaking, kicking, throwing. • Pinching, biting, choking, hair-pulling. • Burning with cigarettes, scalding with water. • Severe physical punishment. • Physical punishment for correction, without intent of injury, is not abuse.

3. Child Abuse • Sexual Abuse • Touching or kissing a child’s genitals. • Making a child touch an adult’s genitals. • Forcing a child to undress. • Performing sexual acts in front of a child. • Telling sexual jokes. • Showing pornography to a child. • Commercial exploitation of children.

4. Child Abuse • Emotional Child Abuse • Attitudes, behaviors, or failure to act that interferes with a child’s mental health or social development. • Yelling, screaming, frightening, bullying. • Humiliating, name-calling, negative comparisons. • Lack of affection. • Habitual blaming. • Extreme forms of punishment. • Exposure to violence.

5. Child Abuse • Rates of Victimization • Approximately 900,000 children are abused in the U.S. each year. • Approximately 12 children per 1000 are victims of child abuse. • During the past few years, rates of victimization have been declining.

6. Child Abuse • Characteristics of Victims • Children from birth to three years of age have the highest rates of victimization (16/1000). • Girls are more likely to be victims than boys. • African-American, Pacific-Islander, and American Indian children have the highest rates of victimization (17-19/1000). • White children (10.7/1000) and Hispanic children (10.4) have lower rates of victimization.

7. Child Abuse • Characteristics of Perpetrators • Approximately 80 percent of perpetrators are the parents. • Women comprise about 58 percent of perpetrators. • Female perpetrators, mostly mothers, tend to be younger than male perpetrators, mostly fathers. • Of the parents who maltreated children, less than 3 percent committed sexual abuse, while 63 percent committed neglect.

8. Child Abuse • Recognizing Child Abuse • Burns, marks, bruises, welts, scars. • Resistance to going home, fear of adults. • Inappropriate clothing (to hide abuse). • Apathy, depression, hostility, difficulty concentrating. • Inappropriate interest or knowledge of sexual acts, seductiveness. • Dirty, unbathed, extreme hunger. • Apparent lack of adult supervision.

9. Child Abuse • Negative Consequences of Child Abuse • Low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, hostility. • Eating disorders. • Relationship difficulties, alienation, withdrawal, personality disorders. • Problems with school work, delinquency, teen pregnancy, suicide attempts, substance abuse.

10. Child Abuse • Prevention Programs • Early childhood intervention. • Home visitation. • Parenting programs. • Family strengthening and support. • Youth development programs. • Shelters. • Welfare assistance.