Here is your speech copy it word for word. and you will sound like you truly studied what you wrote!!
At least here is something that you can write down, if not use.
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It is an article of faith among "child savers" that "child abuse crosses class lines." They tell us that we are as likely to find maltreatment in rich families as in poor, but the rich can hide from authorities. But like most child saver "truisms," this one is false. Prof. Leroy Pelton, director of the University of Nevada – Las Vegas School of Social Work, calls it "The Myth of Classlessness."
Like the tailors in the fable of The Emperor's New Clothes, the child savers have invented a whole group of invisible, middle-class child abusers only they are wise enough to see. Of course there are some middle class child abusers. But the evidence is overwhelming that poverty is by far the most important cause of child maltreatment -- and the most important reason families end up in "the system" whether they have maltreated their children or not.
The federal government's Third National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect (NIS-3) compared families with an annual income of under $15,000 to families with an annual income over $30,000. Their findings:
Abuse is 14 times more common in poor families.
Neglect is 44 times more common in poor families.
The study emphasized that the findings "cannot be plausibly explained on the basis of the higher visibility of lower income families to community professionals."[1]
Studies in which all the subjects are equally open to public scrutiny (groups made up entirely of welfare recipients, for example) show that those who abuse tend to be the "poorest of the poor."[2]
The Myth of Classlessness doesn't just run counter to research. It runs counter to common sense. It is well-known that child abuse is linked to stress. It is equally well-known that poor families tend to be under more stress than rich families.
The gap between rich and poor is widest in the area of "neglect" -- which makes up by far the largest single category of maltreatment reports. That's because the poor are included in our neglect laws almost by definition.
What is neglect? In Ohio, it's when a child's "condition or environment is such as to warrant the state, in the interests of the child, in assuming his guardianship." In Illinois, it's failure to provide "the proper or necessary support ... for a child's well-being." In Mississippi, it's when a child is "without proper care, custody, supervision, or support." In South Dakota, it's when a child's "environment is injurious to his welfare."[3]
Such definitions make a mockery of the oft-repeated child-saver claim that "we never remove children because of poverty alone."
Imagine that you are an impoverished single mother with an eight-year-old daughter and a four-year-old son. The four-year-old is ill with a fever and you need to get him medicine. But you have no car, it's very cold, pouring rain, and it will take at least an hour to get to and from the pharmacy. You don't know most of your neighbors and those you know you have good reason not to trust. What do you?
Go without the medicine? That's "medical neglect." The child savers can take away your children for medical neglect. Bundle up the feverish four-year-old in the only, threadbare coat he's got and take him out in the cold and rain? That's "physical neglect." The child savers can take away your children for physical neglect. Leave the eight-year-old to care for the four-year-old and try desperately to get back home as soon as you can? That's "lack of supervision." The child savers can take away your children for lack of supervision.
And in every one of those cases, the child savers would say, with a straight face, that they didn't take your children "because of poverty alone."
Or consider some actual cases from around the country.
· In Orange County, California, an impoverished single mother can't find someone to watch her children while she works at night, tending a ride at a theme park. So she leaves her eight-, six-, and four-year-old children alone in the motel room that is the only housing they can afford. Someone calls child protective services. Instead of helping her with babysitting or daycare, they take away the children on the spot.[4]
· In Akron, Ohio, a grandmother raises her 11-year-old granddaughter despite being confined to a wheelchair with a lung disease. Federal budget cuts cause her to lose housekeeping help. The house becomes filthy. Instead of helping with the housekeeping, child protective services takes the granddaughter away and throws her in foster care for a month. The child still talks about how lonely and terrified she was - and about the time her foster parent took her picture and put it in a photo album under the heading: "filthy conditions."[5]
· In Los Angeles, the pipes in a grandmother's rented house burst, flooding the basement and making the home a health hazard. Instead of helping the family find another place to live, child protective workers take away the granddaughter and place her in foster care. She dies there, allegedly killed by her foster mother. The child welfare agency that would spend nothing to move the family offers $5,000 for the funeral.[6]
· In Paterson New Jersey, parents lose their three children to foster care solely because they lack adequate housing. When the children are returned, one of them shows obvious signs of abuse – bruises and new and old burn marks -- in foster care. The parents are suing. And so is their first caseworker. He never wanted the children taken away. He’d even found the family a better apartment. But that’s not what his superiors wanted. Indeed, the caseworker says that because he insisted on trying to help the family, and refused to alter his reports to make the parents look bad, he was fired. Why were his bosses so anxious to take away the children? There was a rich, suburban couple ready and waiting to adopt them. And according to the lawsuit filed by the caseworker, a supervisor told him that “children should be taken away from poor parents if they can be better off elsewhere.”[7]
It is NCCPR’s position that no child should ever be removed from the child's family for neglect alone, unless the child is suffering, or is at imminent risk of suffering, identifiable, serious harm that cannot be remediated by services.
Even when child savers don't remove the children, the "help" they offer impoverished families can be a hindrance. For such families, demanding that they drop everything to go to a counselor's office or attend a parent education class is simply adding one more burden for people who already are overwhelmed.
Step one to ensuring they can provide a safe environment for their children is offering help to ameliorate the worst effects of poverty. Family preservation programs do just that, (see Issue Paper 10). And that is one reason they succeed where other efforts fail.
I’ve seen children who’ve been removed from their families by SCF for long periods of time. They’re ruined, just ruined. They can’t trust their parents to defend them. They often get bounced from one care provider to another. They don’t really have a home or a family any more. They’ve lost the ability to connect – like they’re zombies or something. It’s evil, and it’s wrong." - Velma Hartwig, grandmother and long-time family advocate.
"These (caseworkers) are people who are given an enormous amount of power over somebody else. And they routinely abuse that power," Dr. Melvin Guyer, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan and a practicing attorney.
"Anti-culturalism - the idea that socializing children and attempting to mold the character of the young is a wrongful use of power by the strong (parents) against the weak (children) - is the dominant ideology among child development experts, and it has filtered into the courts, into the schools, into parenting magazines, into Hollywood." - Kay Horowitz, fellow at the Manhattan Institute, author of Ready or Not.
"Imagine a 911 system that cannot distinguish between life threatening crimes and littering...only about 3 percent of the total child abuse cases suffer an injury severe enough to require professional care. Thus, 90 percent of the cases labeled "physical abuse" are really situations of excessive or unreasonable corporal punishment which, although a matter of legitimate government concern, are unlikely to escalate into a serious assault against the child." - Douglas Besharov, a founding father of America's Child Protection system; having second thoughts.
"The experience we share is that the therapeutic state, begun with the noblest of concepts, can readily become a tyranny. The other strategy that leads to tyranny is to punish those who do not respond or conform to the psychotherapeutic regimen. The main problem with this approach is that psychotherapy does not work very well." - Presenter at First International Forum of Child Protectors of the Netherlands
"(There is a) high base rate of false positives in the child abuse system as currently structured. If the accusation is false a citizen has a heavy and dangerous burden to overcome, that is, the assumption that anybody accused is guilty. Potential dangers may also extend to spouses and children. Innocent spouses are threatened with termination of parental rights (Patton, 1990) and children are placed in foster care, often for years with many moves from placement to placement. - famed child abuse researcher Ralph Underwager, April 29, 1999.
"(America's Foster Care system is a) quagmire that is spawning a generation of forgotten and forsaken children. Thousands are being neglected, abused, even murdered under what is ostensibly government protection." - TIME magazine, November 13, 2000.
"I would be the first to agree with you that there are many bullies in this field. I have come across many workers who dispense their own form of abuse by ripping families apart. There is a lot of power that comes in being a CPS worker and there are people who get off on that power. But you must remember: These bullies are in every field -- doctors, lawyers, judges, police officers, teachers, etc. What separates CPS workers from these other professions is that these other professions have a strict criteria that must be met before you can become a doctor, lawyer, judge, etc. Do you know what it takes to become a CPS Specialist in Texas? All that one needs is a four-year degree. That means that the people who are ripping these families apart are more likely to have their education and training in fields like, oh say, drama, philosophy, music, etc. I find it insulting that they are considered as qualified to assess risk or trauma as a trained, licensed social worker." - Texas caseworker (with a Master's Degree in Social Work).
"Kids taken into foster care often end up in the State Penitentiary. They get separated from their parents at an early age, then bounce around in foster care for years. There's no permanency. They end up unable to really connect with people. That makes it very easy to rob or kill others. And by the way....what your group said about caseworkers is so true. People drawn to that line of work have very interesting personalities." - long-time Oregon teacher and former Children's Services volunteer.
"You've gotta understand about social workers. Through my work in the community, I've gotten to know four of them. Each one of them is about as screwed up as you can get. I wouldn't leave my dog with them. But, they're the personality type that's drawn into that line of work. That's just the way it is." - Colorado businessman
"The good caseworkers don't last long. They're driven out by the nature of the work. What's mostly left are those who were abused themselves as children, or those who enjoy the power." - Corvallis, Oregon family attorney
"I have worked with the system for many years now and have grown to believe our SCF system needs to be terminated completely. I am and have been chaplain of our city police department since 1988. Prior to pastoring, my wife and I operated a crisis center and worked with the old CSD." - experienced Oregon pastor
"Teenagers in foster care often call the abuse line, hoping an investigation will allow them to return to their parents, which almost all children prefer to foster care. Children know that even the worst parents love them." - Foster Parent Trainer, as quoted in I Would Be Loved.
"These people (SCF) are just like the Nazis. They do evil, with a clear conscience." - Joseph, an 85 year-old Nazi concentration camp survivor now residing in Corvallis, Oregon.
"Mommy, Mommy, They're raping me!" Then click and a dial tone. - a 2:30 am. call to Alma Kidd. Her 14-year, old daughter, Norma "Hope" Robbins, was trapped in a Washington state foster-care home. Kidd immediately reported the incident to police. Police said, "Ms. Kidd, you're in Washington State now. They can chain her 24 hours, seven days a week, and there is nothing you can do about it." Reported in InsightMagazine, November 24,1997
"Is there a problem with the state wrongly prosecuting parents who spank? Yes, absolutely. My office alone gets ten to twenty cases per year of Criminal Mistreatment 1. Most of these are loving parents with good families." – top Portland area criminal defense attorney.
"The system clearly hates spanking. It wants spanking eliminated from the face of the earth." - Corvallis family counselor.
"Oh, all kids, or nearly all of them, ask to be taken home. Of course, we just can't allow that. I deal with it by not asking that sort of question..." Idaho Guardian Ad Litem, a person supposed to purely consider the best interest of the child in all court proceedings.
"Take this little boy I was telling you about. His mother is basically a nice person, she just has men who beat him. We've had him since he was three, he's five now. He's a real handful. He kicks, he screams, he curses up a storm... Uhm, well, no, he wasn't like that when we took him." - Idaho Guardian Ad Litem.
"I got my kids back 22 months after being acquitted on a wrongful charge of child abuse. That only happened because I spent tens of thousands of dollars with attorneys, and was able to obtain videotape which showed my children living in squalor. The kids I got back weren't the kids who left, let me tell you. Children's Services has no interest in preserving families. It roams the halls of justice like a lion, seeking families to devour" - a Pennsylvania father of three.
"On a single anonymous tip of physical abuse, SCF and the cops showed up to my brother's house. When he denied entry, they cuffed him, then took his kids upstairs and strip-searched them. They found no marks. They took the kids anyway. My brother and his wife have no criminal record. They were never charged with a crime. His supporters included neighbors and the kids' pediatrician. It didn't matter. That was in 1995. He still doesn't have his kids back. The system is mad." - Oregon software engineer. (more on this case)
"I spanked my child in the school parking lot, because I’d told him if he continued his misbehavior at school, that’s just what I’d do. That afternoon SCF and cops showed up at my house. They nearly took my son. They charged me with Assault, then made me attend counseling for nearly a year. I had to pay for this, and I’m not a rich man. My job was constantly in jeopardy. I’d like to help you, Mr. Gilman. But, I’m terrified to get involved with those people again. I don’t think my family could stand it. Good luck." - an individual in this area who had a run-in with SCF.
"In 1989, I answered a knock on the door, only to be thrown on the ground by two police officers who held me at gunpoint, while social workers entered my home and stripped my son naked to see if he had bruises, as my divorcing wife had alleged. He did not have any bruises. My lawyer told me that social workers were immune and there was nothing that I could do. The police were apparently acting at the behest of the social workers and were therefore also immune." - Stuart Miller, who later became a legislative analyst for American Fathers Coalition.
"I have written about child abuse for many years and have been very zealous in my belief that abusers should be stopped. One of the reasons I have felt so strongly about this is that I was an abused child. But recently, I met a family who had their children taken from them by SRS (social rehabilitative services) and after a three-year court battle lost their children forever. If they had actually been guilty of child abuse, this would have been a good thing. But I am almost certain that they were not guilty. The parents were never charged. They never had a trial." - Kansas journalist
"The case is full of unbelievable tales of denial of due process, incompetence, and just plain vengeful behavior on the part of social workers, none of whom, predictably, have children of their own. The experience has cost the Dad one job, thousands of dollars, and has left the children emotionally scarred". - California attorney, whose first case with Children's Services gave him the willies.
"Apologize for what? Your wife brought this all on herself by assaulting your daughter and by refusing entry to your home to my deputies. Under identical circumstances, we’d do it the same way again." Chief Lieutenant John Chilcote of Benton County Sheriff’s Department, when asked for an apology to the children for the damage caused by his deputies’ kicking in a family's door without a warrant, roughing up the wife, and making off with daughter Alexandra.
"SCF is willfully blind to incredible damage they cause by separating healthy families. I’ve had people inside the system say my wife definitely abused our daughter by a hard spanking. In the next breath, they ask idly how our family is ‘dealing with the separation’. These individuals are mentally ill, but they are in charge. Frankly, it’s terrifying." – John Gilman
"Daddy, I don't want to go to the doctor about my head. I'm afraid they'll take me again!" - an injured, fearful Alexandra Gilman pleads against medical care, nearly a year after she was forcefully removed from her home.
"We found out firsthand in our case that the government institutions really do believe that our children belong to them. We have to be able to protect our families." - Robert Calabretta; father of the California family whose suit against Children's Services resulted in a landmark 9th Circuit decision cracking open the door of caseworker immunity.
"I volunteer at a Child's Crisis Center and see the need for help in truly abusive cases but am appalled at the misuse of power. The CPS workers look like high school kids playing big shot with people's lives." - system volunteer in Nashville, TN
"I have been a social worker for 10 years and have worked with state agencies. I have known very few good social workers....if people could witness from the inside the incompetence, belief systems, and agendas of those with power, they would be really afraid." - New Jersey social worker, World magazine, August 5th, 2000.
"For example, in one case I'm involved with, the social worker had the mom sign a contract that says she won't spank (or do anything physical) to the children. The kids, now 5 and 7, have learned that mom has no authority over them. They also have learned how to manipulate the adults around them, how to "tell on" mom whenever she does something they don't like, and how to do things for shock effect on adults in authority. It will be a long slow process to get this mother and two daughters to truly be a family again." - California family advocate with a PhD in Developmental Psychology.
"I rented my house to a Salem SCF caseworker. She had four kids, obviously from different fathers. I realized there was a problem when I got a letter from my neighbors, telling me her kids were running wild and breaking things. She broke the toilet and several windows. There was food all over the walls. The basement stank of cat. They lived like animals. She was always late in her payments, that's how we finally evicted her." - Corvallis, Oregon landlord. http://www.childprotectionreform.org/testimony/Quotes.html
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I hope this helps.. you should be able to use the website address to do further study for your speech.
Child abuse occurs in any family rich or poor, many people will lead you to believe that child abuse only happens on single parent home, in homes where divorce has occured, in homes where the family is on welfare, but this is not true.
Child Abuse
I. Introduction
Child Abuse, intentional acts that result in physical or emotional harm to children. The term child abuse covers a wide range of behavior, from actual physical assault by parents or other adult caretakers to neglect of a child’s basic needs. Child abuse is also sometimes called child maltreatment.
Although the extent of child abuse is difficult to measure, it is recognized as a major social problem, especially in industrialized nations. It occurs in all income, racial, religious, and ethnic groups and in urban and rural communities. It is, however, more common in some groups, especially those below the poverty line.
Cultures around the world have different standards in deciding what constitutes child abuse. In Sweden, for example, the law prohibits any physical punishment of children, including spanking. By contrast, in some countries of Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, parents are expected to punish their children by hitting them.
II. Types
There are several different types of child abuse, and some children experience more than one form. Physical abuse includes deliberate acts of violence that injure or even kill a child. Unexplained bruises, broken bones, or burn marks on a child may be signs of physical abuse. Sexual abuse occurs when adults use children for sexual gratification or expose them to sexual activities. Sexual abuse may begin with kissing or fondling and progress to more intrusive sexual acts, such as oral sex and vaginal or anal penetration. Emotional abuse destroys a child’s self-esteem. Such abuse commonly includes repeated verbal abuse of a child in the form of shouting, threats, and degrading or humiliating criticism. Other types of emotional abuse are confinement, such as shutting a child in a dark closet, and social isolation, such as denying a child friends.
The most common form of child abuse is neglect. Physical neglect involves a parent’s failure to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, or medical care to a child. It may also include inadequate supervision and a consistent failure to protect a child from hazards or danger. Emotional neglect occurs when a parent or caretaker fails to meet a child’s basic needs for affection and comfort. Examples of emotional neglect include behaving in a cold, distant, and unaffectionate way toward a child, allowing a child to witness chronic or severe spousal abuse, allowing a child to use alcohol or drugs, and encouraging a child to engage in delinquent behavior. Another form of neglect involves failing to meet a child’s basic education needs, either by failing to enroll a child in school or by permitting a child to skip school frequently.
III. Prevalence
According to the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, in 1997 about 3 million children in the United States were reported as abused or neglected to government agencies that investigate child abuse. Investigators substantiated abuse or neglect for nearly 1 million of the children reported. Among substantiated cases, 56 percent involved physical or emotional neglect, 25 percent involved physical abuse, 13 percent involved sexual abuse, 6 percent involved emotional abuse, and 13 percent involved other abuse, such as educational neglect or abandonment. Some children experienced multiple forms of abuse.
Many researchers believe that statistics based on official reports do not accurately reflect the prevalence of child abuse. Definitions of maltreatment vary from state to state and among agencies, making such statistics unreliable. Professionals who interact with children—such as teachers, day-care workers, pediatricians, and police officers—may fail to recognize or report abuse. In addition, acts of abuse usually occur in the privacy of a family’s home and often go unreported. Surveys of families, another way of estimating abuse, indicate that 2.3 percent of children in the United States—or about 1.5 million children—experience abusive violence each year.
The U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect estimates that 2000 children under the age of 18 are killed by parents or caretakers each year. Annually, more children under the age of four die from abuse and neglect than from falls, choking on food, drowning, fires, or motor vehicle accidents. More than 18,000 children suffer permanent disabilities from abuse or neglect annually.
IV. Causes
Many people have difficulty understanding why any person would hurt a child. The public often assumes that people who abuse their children suffer from mental disorders, but fewer than 10 percent of abusers have mental illnesses. Most abusers love their children but tend to have less patience and less mature personalities than other parents. These traits make it difficult to cope with the demands of their children and increase the likelihood of physical or emotional abuse.
However, there is no single explanation for child maltreatment. Child abuse results from a complex combination of personal, social, and cultural factors. These may be grouped into four primary categories: (1) intergenerational transmission of violence, (2) social stress, (3) social isolation and low community involvement, and (4) family structure.
A. Intergenerational Transmission of Violence
Many children learn violent behavior from their parents and then grow up to abuse their own children. Thus, the abusive behavior is transmitted across generations. Studies show that some 30 percent of abused children become abusive parents, whereas only 2 to 3 percent of all individuals become abusive parents. Children who experience abuse and violence may adopt this behavior as a model for their own parenting.
However, the majority of abused children do not become abusive adults. Some experts believe that an important predictor of later abuse is whether the child realizes that the behavior was wrong. Children who believe they behaved badly and deserved the abuse become abusive parents more often than children who believe their parents were wrong to abuse them.
B. Social Stress
Stress brought on by a variety of social conditions raises the risk of child abuse within a family. These conditions include unemployment, illness, poor housing conditions, a larger-than-average family size, the presence of a new baby or a disabled person in the home, and the death of a family member. A large majority of reported cases of child abuse come from families living in poverty. Child abuse also occurs in middle-class and wealthy families, but it is better reported among the poor for several reasons. Wealthier families have an easier time hiding abuse because they have less contact with social agencies than poor families. In addition, social workers, physicians, and others who report abuse subjectively label children from poor families as victims of abuse more often than children from rich families.
Alcohol and drug use, common among abusive parents, may aggravate stress and stimulate violent behavior. Certain characteristics of children, such as mental retardation or physical or developmental disabilities, can also increase the stress of parenting and the risk of abuse.
C. Social Isolation and Low Community Involvement
Parents and caretakers who abuse children tend to be socially isolated. Few violent parents belong to any community organizations, and most have little contact with friends or relatives. This lack of social involvement deprives abusive parents of support systems that would help them deal better with social or family stress. Moreover, the lack of community contacts makes these parents less likely to change their behavior to conform with community values and standards.
Cultural factors often determine the amount of community support a family receives. In cultures with low rates of child abuse, child care is usually considered the responsibility of the community. That is, neighbors, relatives, and friends help with child care when the parents are unwilling or unable. In the United States, parents often shoulder child-care demands by themselves, which may result in a higher risk of stress and child abuse.
D. Family Structure
Certain types of families have an increased risk of child abuse and neglect. For example, single parents are more likely to abuse their children than married parents. However, single-parent families usually earn less money than other families, so this may account for the increased risk of abuse. Families with chronic marital discord or spousal abuse have higher rates of child abuse than families without these problems. In addition, families in which either the husband or wife dominates in making important decisions—such as where to live, what jobs to take, when to have children, and how much money to spend on food and housing—have higher rates of child abuse than families in which parents share responsibility for these decisions.
V. Effects on Children
The consequences of child abuse and neglect can be devastating and far-reaching. Physical injuries can range from bruises, scrapes, and burns to brain damage, permanent disabilities, and death. The psychological effects of abuse and neglect can last a lifetime and may include a lowered sense of self-worth, an inability to relate to peers, reduced attention span, and learning disorders. In severe cases, abuse may result in psychiatric disorders like depression, excessive anxiety, or dissociative identity disorder, as well as an increased risk of suicide. Behavior problems often develop after abuse, including violence and juvenile crime.
Children who are sexually abused initially may show an unusual interest in sexual organs. They may demonstrate abnormal behavior, such as public masturbation or public display of their genitals. Long-term effects may include depression, low self-esteem, and sexual problems, such as avoidance of sexual contact, confusion about sexuality, or involvement in prostitution.
Despite being abused, the majority of maltreated children do not show signs of extreme disturbance, and many can cope with their problems. A number of factors help insulate children from the effects of maltreatment. These include high intelligence, good scholastic achievement, good temperament, and having close personal relationships.
VI. Protecting Children
Since the 1960s efforts to ensure that abused children are identified have increased greatly in the United States. From 1962 to 1967 all 50 states and the District of Columbia enacted laws that required professionals in law enforcement, medicine, education, and other fields to report suspected cases of child abuse. As a result, the number of children reported as abused or neglected has increased substantially, from about 700,000 in 1976 to about 2.9 million in 1995. Today, each state has a toll-free telephone hotline to receive child abuse and neglect reports from these individuals and the general public.
In 1974 the United States government enacted the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act. This legislation provided a federal definition of child maltreatment and established the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect. As part of the Department of Health and Human Services, the center collects data on child abuse, assists states in implementing prevention programs, and funds research on the causes, treatment, and prevention of child abuse.
A. Care of Abused Children
Child-welfare workers who confirm that a child has been abused or neglected usually have two options. These are (1) separate the child from the parents and place him or her with a relative, foster home, or state institution, or (2) keep the child with the parents and provide the family with social support, such as counseling, food stamps, and child-care services.
Public concern over placement of abused children in the United States grew in the 1970s as the number of children placed in foster homes continued to increase. The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 placed special emphasis on reducing the number of children in foster care and on ensuring safe and permanent living conditions for children. As a result of this law, child-welfare agencies work to avoid out-of-home placements and to reunify children in foster care with their biological parents.
The decision to separate one or more children from an abusive parent or parents must be weighed against the risks. The children may not understand why they are being removed from their home. Children may not realize they are being abused or neglected, so the removal might seem like another instance of them doing something wrong and being punished. Also, child-welfare agencies often have difficulty finding suitable placement for abused children because such children frequently require special care. If they become a burden for any foster parent or institution, the risk of abuse might actually be greater than in the home of the biological parents.
There are also risks to keeping children in abusive homes. The support services may not resolve the problems that led to the abuse and the child may be abused again or killed. Of children killed by parents or caretakers, from 30 to 50 percent have been previously identified by child-welfare agencies and either left in their home or returned home after a short-term removal.
B. Prevention and Treatment Programs
In the United States many types of social programs, usually at the county or state levels, have attempted to reduce and prevent child abuse. Current approaches involve identifying high-risk parents—such as young, single, first-time mothers—and providing parental skills training, counseling, education, and social support. Often trained social workers or nurses provide this support by visiting the family’s home on a regular basis, encouraging community contact, and expanding the caretaker’s knowledge about available social services.
Some home visitation programs have shown promise in reducing abuse among high-risk families. The most successful strategies provide home visitation that begins at or before the child’s birth and continues for two or more years. In one such program for unmarried teenage mothers, only 4 percent of mothers had abused or neglected their children after two years, contrasted to 19 percent of a comparison group not in the program.
Other programs, known as intensive family preservation programs, try to preserve families in which abuse has occurred rather than send the child to foster care. A caseworker visits the family’s home frequently and intensively over a period of weeks and provides counseling and practical assistance for such issues as finding employment and obtaining child care.
However, many prevention and treatment programs may not reduce the incidence of child abuse significantly. Studies indicate that the more intervention services a family receives, the more abuse occurs in the family. Intensive family preservation programs, for example, provide short-term relief, but they do not seem to reduce placement of children in foster homes or lower the risk of maltreatment.
See also Child Welfare.
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Contributed By:
Richard J. Gelles, B.A., M.A., Ph.D.
Chair of Child Welfare and Family Violence, School of Social Work, University of Pennsylvania. Author of Intimate Violence in Families.
"Child Abuse," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2006
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2006 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
There are different forms of Child Abuse. There a Child Sexual Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Physical Abuse and Mental Abuse.
WHAT IS CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE ?
Child sexual abuse, like any abuse, involves a power differential between the abuser and the victim. An adult takes advantage of the fact that he/she is older and has some authority over the child’s life. A child who has been sexually abused by someone he/she knows is a child whose trust has been betrayed. A child has been sexually abused if any of the following has happened to him/her:
- Touched in sexual areas
- Shown sexual movies or forced to listen to sexual talk
- Made to pose for seductive or sexual photographs
- Questionable medical treatment (i.e. five year old child sees doctor for treatment of bronchitis and receives a genital exam)
- Forced to perform oral sex
- Raped or otherwise penetrated
- Fondled, kissed, or held in a way that caused uncomfort-able feelings
- Forced to take part in ritualized abuse in which he/she was physically
or sexually tortured
- Made to watch sexual acts or look at sexual parts
- Bathed in a way that felt un- comfortable or embarrassing
- Ridiculed about their body in a sexual way
- Told all he/she was good for was sex
- Involved in child prostitution/pornography
IS CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE RARE ?
One in three girls and on in six to ten boys will experience sexual abuse before they reach the age of 18. Ninety-percent of these children will be abused by someone they know. The average length of time an abusive relationship lasts is one to four years.
MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
MYTH: Child molesters are strangers. They are dirty, ugly, disreputable-looking people.
FACT: Child molesters can and do look like anyone. Ninety-percent of children are abused by someone they know and trust, often by a relative.
MYTH: Child sexual abuse is usually physically violent. Children are often badly beaten.
FACT: Most times there are no physical signs that a child is being sexually abused. Children usually are not beaten because the abuser works hard to gain the child’s trust.
MYTH: The more physically brutal the abuse is, the more traumatic it is for the child.
FACT: Child sexual abuse does not have to be physically brutal in order for it to be traumatic. Often, a great deal of the trauma results from children being betrayed by someone they know.
MYTH: Sexual abuse only involves inappropriate touching of private parts of a child’s body.
FACT: Child sexual abuse does not always involve inappropriate touching. Sometimes, children are shown pornography, forced to undress for an adult, or to watch an adult undress. Each of these behaviors is a form of sexual abuse. These experiences can be just as traumatic for children as actual sexual contact.
MYTH: Child sexual abuse only happens in poor areas. Abusers are usually uneducated and/or unemployed.
FACT: Child sexual abuse is an equal-opportunity crime. It occurs in all parts of the world, among people from all lifestyles. It occurs in urban, suburban, and rural areas and involves people who are rich, poor, black, white, educated, uneducated, employed and unemployed.
MYTH: Children lie about sexual abuse.
FACT: Children DO NOT lie about sexual abuse. The tendency is for children not to tell anyone about being sexually abused. Children may not tell about the abuse because they are afraid no one will believe them, that they’ll get in trouble, they are too embarrassed, and/or they don’t want to get the abuser in trouble.
ARE THERE COMMON PATTERNS IN FAMILIES WHERE CHILD ABUSE IS PRESENT ?
Some family patterns that could signal the possibility of child sexual abuse being present are:
- Extreme over-protectiveness of the child
- Extreme parental dominance
- Family isolated from the community and support systems
- History of sexual abuse for either parent
- Extreme reaction to sex education or prevention education materials being presented at school
HOW CAN YOU TELL IF A CHILD IS BEING SEXUALLY ABUSED ?
Rarely will a child speak directly about sexual abuse. Prime physical indicators of abuse are evidence of trauma to the genitals or mouth, genital or rectal bleeding, venereal disease, unusual and offensive odors, and complaints of pain or discomfort of the genital area. However, in many cases, there are no visible signs of the abuse.
Sexually abused children often exhibit extreme changes in mood and/or behavior. If you observe this type of change in a child, it may indicate sexual abuse, or may be a sign of other difficulties. Further exploration of the source of the problem is clearly warranted in any event.
YOUR EAP CAN HELP
If you were sexually abused as a child teenager, or know of someone close to you who is being abused, your Employee Assistance Program can help. An EAP counselor can talk with you about counseling options (some of which are free of charge) and where to call to get medical and legal advocates.
Information in this brochure was adapted from The Courage to Heal by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis. Various information was distributed by Pittsburgh Action Against Rape.
EMOTIONAL ABUSE of Children
Emotional Child Abuse
What is it?
Emotional child abuse is maltreatment which results in impaired psychological growth and development. It involves words, actions, and indifference. 2 Abusers constantly reject, ignore, belittle, dominate, and criticize the victims.1,3 This form of abuse may occur with or without physical abuse, but there is often an overlap. 4
Examples of emotional child abuse are verbal abuse; excessive demands on a child's performance; penalizing a child for positive, normal behavior (smiling, mobility, exploration, vocalization, manipulation of objects); discouraging caregiver and infant attachment; penalizing a child for demonstrating signs of positive self-esteem; and penalizing a child for using interpersonal skills needed for adequate performance in school and peer groups. 1,3 In addition, frequently exposing children to family violence and unwillingness or inability to provide affection or stimulation for the child in the course of daily care may also result in emotional abuse.3
How is it identified?
Although emotional abuse can hurt as much as physical abuse, it can be harder to identify because the marks are left on the inside instead of the outside.4 Not surprising, there exist few well-validated measures of childhood emotional abuse. Clinicians can use a revised version of the Child Abuse and Trauma Scale (CATS) which targets measures for emotional abuse. Caregivers can also closely observe children's behaviors and personalities. Children suffering from emotional abuse are often extremely loyal to the parent, afraid of being punished if they report abuse, or think that this type of abuse is a normal way of life.3
Behavioral indicators of an emotionally abused child include inappropriate behavior that is immature or more mature for the child's age, dramatic behavioral changes (disruption of activities, clinging or compulsively seeking affection and attention), aggressiveness, uncooperativeness, bedwetting or loss of bowel control (after a child has been trained), and destructive or antisocial behavior (being constantly withdrawn and sad). Furthermore, poor relationships with peers, lack of self confidence, unusual fears for the child's age (fear of going home, being left alone, specific objects), or inability to react with emotion or develop an emotional bond with others are also indicators. Realistically, any of the above behaviors may also be seen in normal children, but a change in pattern of these behaviors is a strong indicator of emotional abuse. 3
Who are the perpetrators?
Almost any adult involved in a relationship with a child is a potential perpetrator. Parents, teachers, pastors, social workers, neighbors, lawyers, or judges may all be capable of emotional maltreatment. 1 Common characteristics of the abusing adult include blaming or belittling the child in public, describing the child negatively, always assuming the child is at fault, having unrealistic expectations of the child, openly admitting to disliking or hating the child, threatening the child with severe punishment, withdrawing comfort as a means of discipline, being emotionally cold and un-supportive, suffering from alcohol and drug abuse, and possessing a violent nature. 3
Why does this happen?
Most emotional abuse occurs for many of the same reasons that physical abuse occurs. Parents are vulnerable to becoming involved in maltreatment if stresses in their lives build up or if they are unable to manage these stresses. They may also have diminished capacity for understanding and dealing with children (mental retardation, psychopathology, alcoholism, drug abuse), false ideas about children's needs, or sadistic psychosis. 1 Also, the abuser's goal may be to control. 2 Nevertheless, a single factor may not lead to abuse, but in combination they can create the social and emotional pressures that lead to emotional abuse. Specific types of problems that can contribute to emotional abuse are social problems that can contribute to family stress (unemployment, poverty, isolation from relatives and friends, divorce, death, immature parents), health crises (illness of a family member, disability of a family member, drug and alcohol abuse within the family), and mental health problems (mental disability, depression).3
What are the effects?
The consequences of emotional child abuse can be serious and long-term. 3,6 Many research studies conclude that psychopathologic symptoms are more likely to develop in emotionally abused children. These children may experience a lifelong pattern of depression, estrangement, anxiety, low self-esteem, inappropriate or troubled relationships, or a lack of empathy.1,2,3,6,7 During their childhood, victims may fail to thrive or their developmental progress may be halted. Some may also become poorly adjusted emotionally and psychologically. 3 As teenagers, they find it difficult to trust, participate in and achieve happiness in interpersonal relationships, and resolve the complex feelings left over from their childhoods. As adults, they may have trouble recognizing and appreciating the needs and feelings of their own children and emotionally abuse them as well.1
What can be done for the victims?
To effectively identify and confirm emotional abuse, it is necessary to observe the abuser-child interaction on varied and repeated occasions. If emotional abuse is suspected, action can be taken regardless of whether the suspected offender is within the child's home, child care setting, or elsewhere in the community. It is the caregiver's responsibility to report and not investigate suspicions of child abuse. It is the child protection agency's responsibility to investigate reports of any type of abuse. A careful evaluation of those involved and the sources of stress should be completed by appropriate and skilled professionals. Usually, a team consisting of a child protection worker, a physician, a psychiatrist or psychologist, a public health nurse, a childcare staff, and a teacher will become involved.3
What can be done to prevent it?
Health care professionals and concerned individuals need to increase awareness for and education in emotional child abuse in the community and among parents. Secondly, parents and guardians need to be encouraged to develop strong attachments with their children and learn to express warmth and positive regard for them. Finally, families have to be encouraged to form relationships with support systems available to them. In addition, more research in topics related to emotional child abuse and parent-child relationships must be undertaken. 1
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Sources
Garbarino, J. & Garbarino, A. Emotional Maltreatment of Children. (Chicago, National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse, 2nd Ed. 1994).
Jantz, G.L. Healing the Scars of Emotional Abuse. Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell (1995).
"Emotional Abuse & Young Children"
Korfmacher, J. Emotional Neglect: Being Hurt by What Is Not There. (Chicago, National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse, 1998).
Kent, A. & Waller, G. "The impact of childhood emotional abuse: an extension of the Child Abuse and Trauma Scale." Child Abuse and Neglect. May, 1998; 22(5): 393-399.
Rich, D.J., Gingerich, K.J. & Rosen, L.A. "Childhood emotional abuse and associated psychopathology in college students". Journal of College Student Psychotherapy. 1997; 11(3): 13-28.
Sanders, B. & Becker-Lausen, E. "The measurement of psychological maltreatment: Early data on the child abuse and trauma scale". Child Abuse and Neglect. 1995; 19(3): 315-323.
child abuse
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physical, sexual, or emotional maltreatment or neglect of children by parents, guardians, or others responsible for a child's welfare. Physical abuse is characterized by physical injury, usually inflicted as a result of a beating or inappropriately harsh discipline. Sexual abuse includes molestation, incest, rape, prostitution, or use of a child for pornographic purposes. Neglect can be physical in nature (abandonment, failure to seek needed health care), educational (failure to see that a child is attending school), or emotional (abuse of a spouse or another child in the child's presence, allowing a child to witness adult substance abuse). Inappropriate punishment, verbal abuse, and scapegoating are also forms of emotional or psychological child abuse. Some authorities consider parental actions abusive if they have negative future consequences, e.g., exposure of a child to violence or harmful substances, extending in some views to the passive inhalation of cigarette smoke (see smoking).
In practice, there are borderline areas where what constitutes child abuse is not clear. For example, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled (1944) that parents do not have an absolute right to deny life-saving medical treatment to their children, but devout members of the Church of Christ, Scientist, and other churches believe in the healing power of prayer and do not always seek medical help. Most U.S. states, however, permit parents to use religious beliefs as a defense against prosecution for the withholding of medical treatment from their sick children, even in cases where the lack of treatment results in a child's death.
Causes and Effects
There are many interacting causes of child abuse and neglect. Characteristics or circumstances of the abuser, the child, and the family may all contribute. In many cases the abuser was abused as a child. Substance abuse (see drug addiction and drug abuse) has been identified as a key factor in a growing number of cases. In some cases abusers do not have the education and skills needed to raise a child, thus increasing the likelihood of abuse, and providing inadequate parental role models for future generations. Children who are ill, disabled, or otherwise perceived as different are more likely to be the targets of abuse. In the family, marital discord, domestic violence, unemployment and poverty, and social isolation are all factors that can precipitate abuse.
Patterns of abusive behavior may result in the physical or mental impairment of the child or even death. Small children are especially vulnerable to physical injury such as whiplash or shaken infant syndrome resulting from battery. Abused children are more likely to experience generalized anxiety, depression, truancy, shame and guilt, or suicidal and homicidal thoughts or to engage in criminal activity, promiscuity, and substance abuse.
Intervention in Child Abuse Cases
In the United States, New York became the first state to institute child protection laws (1875) that made abuse against children a crime, and other states soon followed with similar laws. In 1974 the U.S. Congress passed the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, which encouraged remaining states to pass child protection laws and created the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect. In addition, all states have their own reporting laws, juvenile and family court laws, and criminal laws.
Cases of child abuse are handled by an multidisciplinary team including medical personnel, law enforcement officers, the schools, social workers, and the courts. School personnel may be the first to notice and report signs of abuse. Child-abuse cases are often coordinated by a community's child protective services unit, which sends case workers to the home for evaluation and offers services to the child and family. Medical professionals may report cases, provide treatment for injured children, provide testimony in court, or help to educate parents. Law enforcement personnel may be involved when cases are reported or when there is a question of a criminal action. The courts provide emergency protective orders or decide whether the child should be removed from the home. Child abuse may be punished by incarceration of the perpetrator or by the denial of custody rights to abusive parents or guardians.
Incidence
Despite efforts to reduce child abuse in America, more than a million children are physically abused each year; about 2,000 die. Although the magnitude of sexual abuse of children in the United States is unknown, it is considered to be an escalating problem, and one that can result in serious psychological damage among victims. There are no reliable statistics available for emotional abuse and neglect, but these types of child abuse are as potentially damaging to their victims as are various forms of physical abuse. Child abuse extends across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic lines, but there are consistently more reports concerning children born into poverty. The reporting of child abuse is complicated by the private nature of the crime, the fearfulness of the child, and strong motivation for denial in the abuser.
Bibliography
See J. Goldstein, A. Freud, A. J. Solnit, and S. Goldstein, In the Best Interests of the Child (1986); J. Garbarino, E. Guttmann, and J. W. Seeley, The Psychologically Battered Child (1987); D. E. H. Russell, The Secret Trauma: Incest in the Lives of Girls and Women (1986); R. E. Helfer and R. S. Kempe, The Battered Child (4th ed. 1987); D. J. Besharov, Recognizing Child Abuse: A Guide for the Concerned (1990); publications of the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect.
http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/entry?id=9968
Child Abuse Facts
Child Maltreatment 2002: Summary of Key Findings
This fact sheet presents excerpts from Child Maltreatment 2002, a report based on data submissions by the States for calendar year 2002. The National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System was developed by the Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Human Services in partnership with the States to collect annual statistics on child maltreatment from State child protective services (CPS) agencies.1
The press release announcing these data is available on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website at www.hhs.gov/news/press/2004pres/20040401.html. The Child Maltreatment 2002 report is available on the Children's Bureau Web site at www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/publications/cmreports.htm. Limited print copies are available from the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information.
Victims
An estimated 896,000 children were determined to be victims of child abuse or neglect in 2002. The rate of victimization per 1,000 children in the national population has dropped from 13.4 children in 1990 to 12.3 children in 2002.
More than 60 percent of child victims experienced neglect. Almost 20 percent were physically abused; 10 percent were sexually abused; and 7 percent were emotionally maltreated. In addition, almost 20 percent were associated with "other" types of maltreatment based on specific State laws and policies.2
Children ages birth to 3 years had the highest rates of victimization at 16.0 per 1,000 children. Girls were slightly more likely to be victims than boys.
American Indian or Alaska Native and African-American children had the highest rates of victimization when compared to their national population. While the rate of White victims of child abuse or neglect was 10.7 per 1,000 children of the same race, the rate for American Indian or Alaska Natives was 21.7 per 1,000 children and for African-Americans 20.2 per 1,000 children.
Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect
In 2002, an estimated total of 2.6 million referrals concerning the welfare of approximately 4.5 million children were made to CPS agencies throughout the United States. Of these, approximately two-thirds (an estimated 1.8 million) were accepted for investigation or assessment; one-third were not accepted.
More than one-half (56.5 percent) of all reports that alleged child abuse or neglect were made by such professionals as educators, law enforcement and legal personnel, social services personnel, medical personnel, mental health personnel, child daycare providers, and foster care providers. Such nonprofessionals as friends, neighbors, and relatives submitted approximately 43.6 percent of reports.
Approximately 30 percent of the reports included at least one child who was found to be a victim of abuse or neglect. Sixty-one percent of the reports were found to be unsubstantiated (including intentionally false); the remaining reports were closed for additional reasons.
Fatalities
Child fatalities are the most tragic consequence of maltreatment. For 2002, an estimated 1,400 children died due to abuse or neglect. Three-quarters (76 percent) of children who were killed were younger than 4 years old; 12 percent were 4 to 7 years old; 6 percent were 8 to 11 years old; and 6 percent were 12 to 17 years old.
Infant boys (younger than 1 year old) had the highest rate of fatalities, nearly 19 deaths per 100,000 boys of the same age in the national population. Infant girls (younger than 1 year old) had a rate of 12 deaths per 100,000. The overall rate of child fatalities was 2 deaths per 100,000 children. One-third of child fatalities were attributed to neglect. Physical abuse and sexual abuse also were major contributors to fatalities.
Perpetrators
More than 80 percent of perpetrators were parents. Other relatives accounted for 7 percent, and unmarried partners of parents accounted for 3 percent of perpetrators. The remaining perpetrators include persons with other (camp counselor, school employee, etc.) or unknown relationships to the child victims.
Female perpetrators, who were mostly mothers, were typically younger than male perpetrators, who were mostly fathers. Women also comprised a larger percentage of all perpetrators than men, 58 percent compared to 42 percent.
Of all parents who were perpetrators, less than 3 percent were associated with sexual abuse. Of all perpetrators of sexual abuse, nearly 29 percent were other relatives, and nearly one-quarter were in nonrelative or nonchildcaring roles.
Services
Approximately 59 percent of victims and 31 percent of nonvictims received services as a result of an investigation or assessment. Additional analyses indicated that children who were prior victims of maltreatment were more than 80 percent more likely to receive services than first-time victims. Additionally, children with multiple types of maltreatment were more than 80 percent more likely to receive services than children with only one type of recorded maltreatment.
Services included both in-home and foster care services. Almost one-fifth of child victims were placed in foster care. About 4 percent of nonvictims also experienced a removal—usually a short-term placement during the course of the investigation.
1 CPS agencies respond to referrals regarding harm to children caused by parents or primary caregivers. Incidents of harm to children caused by other people, such as acquaintances and strangers, are not included in these data. back
2 These numbers add up to more than 100 percent because some children were victims of more than one type of maltreatment.
Material courtesy of the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information.
http://frcmo.org/child-abuse-facts.htm
Child Maltreatment: Fact Sheet
Occurrence
Data on the confirmed number of U.S. child maltreatment cases in 2002 are available from child protective service agencies; but these data are generally considered underestimates (DHHS 2005):
906,000 children in the United States were confirmed by child protective service agencies as being maltreated.
Among children confirmed by child protective service agencies as being maltreated, 61% experienced neglect; 19% were physically abused; 10% were sexually abused; and 5% were emotionally or psychologically abused.
An estimated 1,500 children were confirmed to have died from maltreatment; 36% of these deaths were from neglect, 28% from physical abuse, and 29% from multiple maltreatment types.
Shaken-baby syndrome (SBS) is a form of child abuse affecting between 1,200 and 1,600 children every year. SBS is a collection of signs and symptoms resulting from violently shaking an infant or child (National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome 2005). Consequences
Children who experience maltreatment are at increased risk for adverse health effects and behaviors as adults—including smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, eating disorders, severe obesity, depression, suicide, sexual promiscuity, and certain chronic diseases (Felitti et al. 1998; Runyan et al. 2002).
Maltreatment during infancy or early childhood can cause important regions of the brain to form improperly, leading to physical, mental, and emotional problems such as sleep disturbances, panic disorder, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (DHHS 2001).
About 25% to 30% of infant victims with SBS die from their injuries. Nonfatal consequences of SBS include varying degrees of visual impairment (e.g., blindness), motor impairment (e.g. cerebral palsy) and cognitive impairments (National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome 2005).
Victims of child maltreatment who were physically assaulted by caregivers are twice as likely to be physically assaulted as adults (Tjaden et al. 2000).
Direct costs (judicial, law enforcement, and health system responses to child maltreatment) are estimated at $24 billion each year. The indirect costs (long-term economic consequences of child maltreatment) exceed an estimated $69 billion annually (Fromm 2001).
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Groups at Risk
Children younger than 4 years are at greatest risk of severe injury or death. In 2003, children younger than 4 years accounted for 79% of child maltreatment fatalities, with infants under 1 year accounting for 44% of deaths (DHHS 2005).
Risk and Protective Factors
A combination of individual, relational, community, and societal factors contribute to the risk of child maltreatment. Although children are not responsible for the harm inflicted upon them, certain individual characteristics have been found to increase their risk of being maltreated. Risk factors are contributing factors—not direct causes.
Examples of risk factors:
Disabilities or mental retardation in children that may increase caregiver burden
Social isolation of families
Parents’ lack of understanding of children’s needs and child development
Parents’ history of domestic abuse
Poverty and other socioeconomic disadvantage, such as unemployment
Family disorganization, dissolution, and violence, including intimate partner violence
Lack of family cohesion
Substance abuse in family
Young, single nonbiological parents
Poor parent-child relationships and negative interactions
Parental thoughts and emotions supporting maltreatment behaviors
Parental stress and distress, including depression or other mental health conditions
Community violence
Protective factors are the opposite of risk factors and may lessen the risk of child maltreatment. Protective factors exist at individual, relational, community, and societal levels.
Examples of protective factors:
Supportive family environment
Nurturing parenting skills
Stable family relationships
Household rules and monitoring of the child
Parental employment
Adequate housing
Access to health care and social services
Caring adults outside family who can serve as role models or mentors
Communities that support parents and take responsibility for preventing abuse
(DHHS 2003)
References
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) (US), Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACF). Child maltreatment 2003 [online]. Washington (DC): Government Printing Office; 2005. [cited 2005 April 5]. Available from: URL: www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm03/index.htm.
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACF). Emerging practices in the prevention of child abuse and neglect. Washington (DC): Government Printing Office; 2003.
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) (US), Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACF). In focus: understanding the effects of maltreatment on early brain development. Washington (DC): Government Printing Office; 2001.
Felitti V, Anda R, Nordenberg D, Williamson D, Spitz A, Edwards V, et al. Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine 1998;14(4):245–58.
Fromm S. Total estimated cost of child abuse and neglect in the United States—statistical evidence. Chicago (IL): Prevent Child Abuse America (PCAA); 2001. [cited 2005 Jan 1]. Available from: URL: www.preventchildabuse.org/learn_more/research_docs/cost_analysis.pdf.
National Center for Shaken Baby Syndrome website. [cited 2005 Jan 1]. Available from: URL: www.dontshake.com.
Runyan D, Wattam C, Ikeda R, Hassan F, Ramiro L. Child abuse and neglect by parents and caregivers. In: Krug E, Dahlberg LL, Mercy JA, Zwi AB, Lozano R, editors. World Report on Violence and Health. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization; 2002. p. 59-86.
Tjaden P, Thoennes N. Full report of the prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women: findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey. Washington (DC): National Institute of Justice; 2000 Nov. Report No.: NCJ 183721.
Child Abuse, intentional acts that result in physical or emotional harm to children. The term child abuse covers a wide range of behavior, from actual physical assault by parents or other adult caretakers to neglect of a child’s basic needs. Child abuse is also sometimes called child maltreatment.
Although the extent of child abuse is difficult to measure, it is recognized as a major social problem, especially in industrialized nations. It occurs in all income, racial, religious, and ethnic groups and in urban and rural communities. It is, however, more common in some groups, especially those below the poverty line.
Cultures around the world have different standards in deciding what constitutes child abuse. In Sweden, for example, the law prohibits any physical punishment of children, including spanking. By contrast, in some countries of Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, parents are expected to punish their children by hitting them.
Types
There are several different types of child abuse, and some children experience more than one form. Physical abuse includes deliberate acts of violence that injure or even kill a child. Unexplained bruises, broken bones, or burn marks on a child may be signs of physical abuse. Sexual abuse occurs when adults use children for sexual gratification or expose them to sexual activities. Sexual abuse may begin with kissing or fondling and progress to more intrusive sexual acts, such as oral sex and vaginal or anal penetration. Emotional abuse destroys a child’s self-esteem. Such abuse commonly includes repeated verbal abuse of a child in the form of shouting, threats, and degrading or humiliating criticism. Other types of emotional abuse are confinement, such as shutting a child in a dark closet, and social isolation, such as denying a child friends.
The most common form of child abuse is neglect. Physical neglect involves a parent’s failure to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, or medical care to a child. It may also include inadequate supervision and a consistent failure to protect a child from hazards or danger. Emotional neglect occurs when a parent or caretaker fails to meet a child’s basic needs for affection and comfort. Examples of emotional neglect include behaving in a cold, distant, and unaffectionate way toward a child, allowing a child to witness chronic or severe spousal abuse, allowing a child to use alcohol or drugs, and encouraging a child to engage in delinquent behavior. Another form of neglect involves failing to meet a child’s basic education needs, either by failing to enroll a child in school or by permitting a child to skip school frequently.
Prevalence
According to the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, in 1995 about 2.9 million children in the United States were reported as abused or neglected to government agencies that investigate child abuse. Investigators substantiated abuse or neglect for more than 1 million of the children reported. Among substantiated cases, 52 percent involved physical or emotional neglect, 24.5 percent involved physical abuse, 12.6 percent involved sexual abuse, 4.5 percent involved emotional abuse, and 17.3 percent involved other abuse, such as educational neglect or abandonment. Some children experienced multiple forms of abuse.
Many researchers believe that statistics based on official reports do not accurately reflect the prevalence of child abuse. Definitions of maltreatment vary from state to state and among agencies, making such statistics unreliable. Professionals who interact with children—such as teachers, day-care workers, pediatricians, and police officers—may fail to recognize or report abuse. In addition, acts of abuse usually occur in the privacy of a family’s home and often go unreported. Surveys of families, another way of estimating abuse, indicate that 2.3 percent of children in the United States—or about 1.5 million children—experience abusive violence each year.
The U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect estimates that 2000 children under the age of 18 are killed by parents or caretakers each year. Annually, more children under the age of four die from abuse and neglect than from falls, choking on food, drowning, fires, or motor vehicle accidents. More than 18,000 children suffer permanent disabilities from abuse or neglect annually.
Causes
Many people have difficulty understanding why any person would hurt a child. The public often assumes that people who abuse their children suffer from mental illness, but fewer than 10 percent of abusers have mental illnesses. Most abusers love their children but tend to have less patience and less mature personalities than other parents. These traits make it difficult to cope with the demands of their children and increase the likelihood of physical or emotional abuse.
However, there is no single explanation for child maltreatment. Child abuse results from a complex combination of personal, social, and cultural factors. These may be grouped into four primary categories: (1) intergenerational transmission of violence, (2) social stress, (3) social isolation and low community involvement, and (4) family structure.
Intergenerational Transmission of Violence
Many children learn violent behavior from their parents and then grow up to abuse their own children. Thus, the abusive behavior is transmitted across generations. Studies show that some 30 percent of abused children become abusive parents, whereas only 2 to 3 percent of all individuals become abusive parents. Children who experience abuse and violence may adopt this behavior as a model for their own parenting.
However, the majority of abused children do not become abusive adults. Some experts believe that an important predictor of later abuse is whether the child realizes that the behavior was wrong. Children who believe they behaved badly and deserved the abuse become abusive parents more often than children who believe their parents were wrong to abuse them.
Social Stress
Stress brought on by a variety of social conditions raises the risk of child abuse within a family. These conditions include unemployment, illness, poor housing conditions, a larger-than-average family size, the presence of a new baby or a disabled person in the home, and the death of a family member. A large majority of reported cases of child abuse come from families living in poverty. Child abuse also occurs in middle-class and wealthy families, but it is better reported among the poor for several reasons. Wealthier families have an easier time hiding abuse because they have less contact with social agencies than poor families. In addition, social workers, physicians, and others who report abuse subjectively label children from poor families as victims of abuse more often than children from rich families.
Alcohol and drug use, common among abusive parents, may aggravate stress and stimulate violent behavior. Certain characteristics of children, such as mental retardation or physical or developmental disabilities, can also increase the stress of parenting and the risk of abuse.
Social Isolation and Low Community Involvement
Parents and caretakers who abuse children tend to be socially isolated. Few violent parents belong to any community organizations, and most have little contact with friends or relatives. This lack of social involvement deprives abusive parents of support systems that would help them deal better with social or family stress. Moreover, the lack of community contacts makes these parents less likely to change their behavior to conform with community values and standards.
Cultural factors often determine the amount of community support a family receives. In cultures with low rates of child abuse, child care is usually considered the responsibility of the community. That is, neighbors, relatives, and friends help with child care when the parents are unwilling or unable. In the United States, parents often shoulder child-care demands by themselves, which may result in a higher risk of stress and child abuse.
Family Structure
Certain types of families have an increased risk of child abuse and neglect. For example, single parents are more likely to abuse their children than married parents. However, single-parent families usually earn less money than other families, so this may account for the increased risk of abuse. Families with chronic marital discord or spousal abuse have higher rates of child abuse than families without these problems. In addition, families in which either the husband or wife dominates in making important decisions—such as where to live, what jobs to take, when to have children, and how much money to spend on food and housing—have higher rates of child abuse than families in which parents share responsibility for these decisions.
Effects on Children
The consequences of child abuse and neglect can be devastating and far-reaching. Physical injuries can range from bruises, scrapes, and burns to brain damage, permanent disabilities, and death. The psychological effects of abuse and neglect can last a lifetime and may include a lowered sense of self-worth, an inability to relate to peers, reduced attention span, and learning disorders. In severe cases, abuse may result in psychiatric disorders like depression, excessive anxiety, or dissociative identity disorder, as well as an increased risk of suicide. Behavior problems often develop after abuse, including violence and juvenile crime.
Children who are sexually abused initially may show an unusual interest in sexual organs. They may demonstrate abnormal behavior, such as public masturbation or public display of their genitals. Long-term effects may include depression, low self-esteem, and sexual problems, such as avoidance of sexual contact, confusion about sexuality, or involvement in prostitution.
Despite being abused, the majority of maltreated children do not show signs of extreme disturbance, and many can cope with their problems. A number of factors help insulate children from the effects of maltreatment. These include high intelligence, good scholastic achievement, good temperament, and having close personal relationships.
Protecting Children
Since the 1960s efforts to ensure that abused children are identified have increased greatly in the United States. From 1962 to 1967 all 50 states and the District of Columbia enacted laws that required professionals in law enforcement, medicine, education, and other fields to report suspected cases of child abuse. As a result, the number of children reported as abused or neglected has increased substantially, from about 700,000 in 1976 to about 2.9 million in 1995. Today, each state has a toll-free telephone hotline to receive child abuse and neglect reports from these individuals and the general public.
In 1974 the United States government enacted the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act. This legislation provided a federal definition of child maltreatment and established the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect. As part of the Department of Health and Human Services, the center collects data on child abuse, assists states in implementing prevention programs, and funds research on the causes, treatment, and prevention of child abuse.
Care of Abused Children
Child-welfare workers who confirm that a child has been abused or neglected usually have two options. These are (1) separate the child from the parents and place him or her with a relative, foster home, or state institution, or (2) keep the child with the parents and provide the family with social support, such as counseling, food stamps, and child-care services.
Public concern over placement of abused children in the United States grew in the 1970s as the number of children placed in foster homes continued to increase. The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 placed special emphasis on reducing the number of children in foster care and on ensuring safe and permanent living conditions for children. As a result of this law, child-welfare agencies work to avoid out-of-home placements and to reunify children in foster care with their biological parents.
The decision to separate one or more children from an abusive parent or parents must be weighed against the risks. The children may not understand why they are being removed from their home. Children may not realize they are being abused or neglected, so the removal might seem like another instance of them doing something wrong and being punished. Also, child-welfare agencies often have difficulty finding suitable placement for abused children because such children frequently require special care. If they become a burden for any foster parent or institution, the risk of abuse might actually be greater than in the home of the biological parents.
There are also risks to keeping children in abusive homes. The support services may not resolve the problems that led to the abuse and the child may be abused again or killed. Of children killed by parents or caretakers, from 30 to 50 percent have been previously identified by child-welfare agencies and either left in their home or returned home after a short-term removal.
Prevention and Treatment Programs
In the United States many types of social programs, usually at the county or state levels, have attempted to reduce and prevent child abuse. Current approaches involve identifying high-risk parents—such as young, single, first-time mothers—and providing parental skills training, counseling, education, and social support. Often trained social workers or nurses provide this support by visiting the family’s home on a regular basis, encouraging community contact, and expanding the caretaker’s knowledge about available social services.
Some home visitation programs have shown promise in reducing abuse among high-risk families. The most successful strategies provide home visitation that begins at or before the child’s birth and continues for two or more years. In one such program for unmarried teenage mothers, only 4 percent of mothers had abused or neglected their children after two years, contrasted to 19 percent of a comparison group not in the program.
Other programs, known as intensive family preservation programs, try to preserve families in which abuse has occurred rather than send the child to foster care. A caseworker visits the family’s home frequently and intensively over a period of weeks and provides counseling and practical assistance for such issues as finding employment and obtaining child care.
However, many prevention and treatment programs may not reduce the incidence of child abuse significantly. Studies indicate that the more intervention services a family receives, the more abuse occurs in the family. Intensive family preservation programs, for example, provide short-term relief, but they do not seem to reduce placement of children in foster homes or lower the risk of maltreatment. http://www.ancillaryresources.mrpete.net/about81.html
A Child is Crying
No concern should be more important to a community than the protection and welfare of its children. Babies and young children are among the most vulnerable victims of violent crime.
According to the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, 2,700,000 reports of children being abused or neglected are received each year. Data from a survey conducted by the National Committee for the Prevention of Child Abuse reveal 1,200 child abuse fatalities in a given year, three child abuse related deaths every day.
Child abuse and neglect are found in all cultural, ethnic, occupational and socioeconomic groups. It is a problem which requires our immediate and serious attention and the development of interagency and community cooperative efforts in prevention, education, reporting, training and treatment.
Many persons are in positions to observe the battered and abused child: teachers, doctors, nurses, clergy and religious educators, counselors, babysitters, neighbors and family members. Too often neglect and abuse situations are overlooked, reaching child protective agencies only after the damage is severe or irreversible. The earlier the problem is referred for help, the better the chance of helping the child and the family.
Abusing a child is a crime. Therefore, those agencies of government responsible for dealing with crime must maintain a major role in such cases. Once such intervention has occurred, however, it is recognized that it may not always be appropriate to handle this type of criminal activity with a traditional crime and punishment approach. All segments of the system must work together; pooling their collective experience and judgement. Together they should move to ensure even greater cooperation and communication between law enforcement, social service agencies and private community resources to create the necessary team approach.
Certainly our understanding of "private community resources" should include the religious community, with its vast pool of volunteers which are, by the very mandate of their faith, committed to ministering to human need.
We must be concerned with the detection, treatment and, above all, the effective prevention of child abuse and neglect for the sake of children, parents and society as a whole.
Scriptural References About Children
The following list is not exhaustive, but contains a sufficient number of scriptures to suggest possibilities to use for addressing the concerns of children and others in society who are vulnerable. This is not an attempt to "proof text." The suggested scripture passages should be considered within the framework of their contexts. The reference is accompanied by a clue phrase.
These scriptures may be used in a variety of ways -- as texts for sermons or homilies on care for children, as the basis for a Biblical litany or a dramatic reading, as memory verses, or to make banners or posters.
From the Hebrew Scriptures
Genesis 21:16
Let me not look upon the death of a child.
Genesis 33:14
I will lead on slowly according to the pace of the children.
Deuteronomy 4:10
... that they may teach their children also
Deuteronomy 6:7
...and you shall teach these words
I Samuel 3:8
Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy.
I Samuel 16:11
There remains yet the youngest.
Psalms 8:2
... out of the mouths of babes and infants
Psalms 22:9
Thou didst keep me safe upon my mother's breasts.
Psalms 27:10
My father and my mother have forsaken me.
Psalm 68:5
Father to the fatherless
Psalm 103:13
As a father pities his children...
Psalm 128:3
Your children shall be like olive shoots around your table.
Psalms 129:1
Sorely have they afflicted me from my youth.
Psalms 131:2
... like a child is quieted at its mother's breast
Proverbs 10:1
A wise son and a foolish son
Proverbs 13:22
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children.
Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go.
Proverbs 31:8
Open your mouths for the rights of all who are left desolate.
Ecclesiastes 12:1
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth.
Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born.
Isaiah 11:6
And a little child shall lead them.
Isaiah 49:20
The children shall say..."The place is too narrow for me. Make room for me..."
Isaiah 49:25
I will save your children.
Isaiah 58:7
Hide not yourself from your own flesh.
From the Talmud
Nedarim 81a
And be needful (mindful) not to neglect the children of the poor
Zohar 1.227b
A blessing of a parent's children is his own blessing.
From the New Testament
Matthew 2:16
Then Herod... killed all the male children... two years old or under.
Jesus
Matthew 7:9
Who would give a son a stone instead of bread, etc.
Matthew 18:2-6
Whoever receives one such child receives me... Whoever causes one of these little ones to sin... better he be drowned in the... sea
Matthew 23:37
How often would I have gathered your children... as a hen gathers her brood under her wings?
Mark 7:27
Let the children first be fed.
Mark 9:37
Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.
Mark 10:13-16
Let the children come to me; do not hinder them.
Luke 18:17
Receive the Kingdom of God like a child.
John 21:15
Feed my lambs.
The Epistles
I Corinthians 13:11
When I was a child I spoke like a child, I thought like a child...
Ephesians 6:1
Children, obey your parents in the Lord.
Ephesians 6:4
Parents, do not provoke your children to anger.
James 1:27
Religion that is pure... is this: to visit orphans... in their affliction.
General Information
There are four categories of child abuse:
Child Neglect
Child Physical Abuse
Child Sexual Abuse
Child Emotional Abuse
Particular information on each of these will follow this general information which is relative to all categories.
Who Are the Victims?
Children 0-5 account for 43% of all child abuse reports. The average age of children with major physical injuries due to abusive treatment is 5. It is obvious that very young children are the most vulnerable to physical injury by a parent or caretaker.
More than 1,100 cases of child sexual abuse are reported everyday, which translates into more than 400,000 cases each year. (1)
Overall reporting rates are essentially the same for both boys and girls. However, reported cases of sexual abuse are 78% female. (Note: This may be a reporting issue. More recent reports indicate that there may be many more boys molested than previously thought. They seem to not divulge as readily.)
Who Are the Abusers?
Child abusers are usually ordinary people caught in situations that are beyond their capabilities. Child abuse cuts across all boundaries of economic level, race, ethnic heritage and religious faith.
90% of physical abuse and neglect cases involve caretakers of children.
Contrary to popular belief, perpetrators of sexual abuse are well known to the child in 85% of reported cases. This statistic dispels the myth that only strangers molest children.
Why Does Abuse Happen?
The "why" is a complex issue. Child abuse is likely to occur when:
An adult has the potential for abuse. Having the potential is usually the result of being abused as a child, being isolated, being unable or unwilling to seek help, being unable to meet one's own needs, and viewing a child with unrealistic expectations.
An adult views a child as being different from the parent's preconceived expectations. The parent perceives a child as being different from other children or as having special needs. Perhaps the child was the result of an unwanted pregnancy, a difficult birth, or perhaps that child was conceived in order to solve the parents' own problems.
There is a crisis or series of crises. The crisis need not be major, but it is a crisis that precedes and precipitates the incident. It may be stress from a job or a personal situation or argument or something relatively minor, such as the car not starting.
How serious Are the Long-Term Effects of Abuse?
Results from a number of research studies strongly suggest that the single most common element in the lives of abusive or violent adults is the experience of having been neglected or abused as children.
For example:
Two out of every three prisoners convicted of first degree murder report previous childhood histories of physical abuse.
Hard core juvenile delinquents experienced a history of severe physical punishment and assault in the home.
Prostitutes report histories of sexual abuse as children.
Our society pays a high price for the tragedy of child abuse. Billions of dollars are spent in the areas of medicine, education, social services and lost productivity. (2)
But In My Congregation? YES
Although the research is limited, most child protective services and treatment centers indicate that there are as many cases of ongoing or previous child abuse coming from the church, temple and synagogue families as from the population in general.
This is verified by the studies that have been made by Christian and other religious counselors at faith-based colleges, Bible schools and seminaries; and by pastors and rabbis who have opened the subject in their churches and congregations. (3)
Pastors, priests and rabbis who have, in some way, made it known to their congregations that they are aware of the extent and nature of child abuse, are usually immediately approached by victims, non-offending spouses or even the perpetrator himself or herself. This is because the incidence of abuse and neglect is so high, both in the general population and in our congregations as well.
However, if a victim feels that there may be lack of understanding or in-sensitivity to the victim's concerns on the part of the spiritual leader, the chances are very slim that such problems will ever be divulged to him or her.
James Williams, M.D., S.J. is both a pediatrician and a Jesuit priest. He practices at the Children's Center of the Oakland Children's Hospital, Oakland, California. Dr./Fr. Williams makes the following statement: "I think there is a natural tendency towards denial initially. That was certainly the case among physicians years ago with physical abuse... an attitude of 'This is unbelievable. This can't really be happening.' I don't think clergy are alone in sharing that reaction. But all of us who are in a position to help must quickly realize that it is real... and we all have a job to do. That can mean becoming a prophet... unwilling at times. I mean, prophets usually say unpleasant things. And they are not always treated kindly..." (4)
Appropriate intervention by clergy and congregations involves, at a minimum, identification, referral to treatment and spiritual ministry. The issue of the pastoral privilege of confidentiality vs. the need for the child to be protected will be considered on page 73.
"Military chaplains are obligated to maintain privileged communication. Confidentiality and other reporting standards as set forth in their respective service regulations, as well as by their individual faith groups." (PERS 042P)
The other three factors will then be considered separately as part of each of the four categories: neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse and emotional abuse.
(1) National Committee for Prevention of Child Abuse, Chicago, Illinois.
(2) Spelman, Cornelia, "Highlights of Official Child Neglect and Abuse Reporting," 1984 -- American Assn. For Protecting Children, Inc. "Talking About Child Sexual Abuse," National Committee for Prevention of Child Abuse, 1985.
(3) Rotzien and Hart, "Survey of Pastors and Counselors on Incest," Pasadena: and Gil, Vincent E., "In My Father's House: So. California College, Costa Mesa, CA.
(4) From Angels Among Us, Guidebook to film, California Department of Social Services.
Child Neglect
The Problem in Context
The definition of neglect is relative to the standards of the society where it occurs. To be sure, there are parental failures, such as starving an infant, whose effects are so physical and, again, so obvious that abhorrence of them hardly seems a matter of culture. Yet, there have been communities as civilized as the Greeks in which damaged infants and unwanted daughters were simply left on hillsides to die of exposure. Americans, whose culture is so strongly influenced by the Judeo-Christian ethic, would regard such actions as more than neglect, as infanticide or child murder. Therefore, it is clear that any definition of neglect is culturally relative, and that the meaning in the United States, or even in one area of the United States, need not be the same as might apply elsewhere.
In the context of American society, the definition of neglect cannot stray too far from that which is acceptable to "most people," or Child Protective Service workers would not have community support behind them. Fortunately, despite a number of gray areas and ambiguities, there seems to be substantial agreement about what constitutes below standard child care. On "gut level" issues regarding child care, reactions of social workers are very similar to those of low-income, blue collar mothers; and the latter, in turn, are generally in surprising agreement with upper income and middle class mothers. While blue-collar mothers put more emphasis on physical care, there is also great similarity of opinion about emotional care and cognitive stimulation.
Although there is some consensus about what constitutes minimally adequate child care, because of the nature of American society there are limitations as to what professionals can do about neglectful parents; laws protect these families from unreasonable intrusion.
Definition of Neglect
Child neglect may be defined as a condition in which a caretaker responsible for the child either deliberately or by extraordinary inattentiveness permits the child to experience available present suffering and/or fails to provide one or more of the ingredients generally deemed essential for developing a person's physical, intellectual and emotional capacities.
Note: Every state has, in its child protection laws, a definition, often more specific than this general definition. The state's Attorney General's office or the Child Protective Services of the local Department of Social or Human Services can be contacted for a copy of the law for their state.
Dynamic View of the Neglectful Family
Many children have one parent who does not function well, but the slack in meeting their needs is picked up by the other parent, or by a substitute parent figure. The parents of the neglected child however, are much alike, so that if one is inadequate the other is likely to be also. In many cases, of course, children live with only one parent. Parental failure of a single parent can result in neglect.
It is generally accepted that in two parent situations both the physical and psychological care received by a child is determined in large part by the character structure of the mother and, to somewhat lesser extent, by that of the father. In most families, child care is still generally the responsibility of the mother. However, an inability to form interpersonal relationships is the most significant deficit in the fathers. This does not detract from or diminish admiration for parents who, despite poverty, inadequate and even dangerous housing, and a plethora of illnesses and emotional upsets, care for their children adequately. However, those identified as neglectful, whether they be a low, middle, or upper income family, are more vulnerable because of life-long traits; and their child care does, in fact, deteriorate.
It is often said that you cannot give love if you have never received it. Neglectful parents often report profound sadness over not having been loved or wanted by their own parents. Many have been in formal placement as children; even more have been given to relatives to rear for long periods of time. One mother's salient memory is hearing her mother say, "I cursed the day you were born." Such mothers started life lonely, and lonely is the way they live.
Characteristics of Neglectful Parents as Compared to
Non-Neglectful Parents
Neglectful parents are less:
Involved with others
Able to plan
Able to control impulses
Confident about the future
Verbally accessible
Equipped with sense of workmanship
Neglectful parents are more:
Plagued by psychological and psychosomatic systems
Socially isolated -- formally and informally
Isolated from informal helping networks
Indicators of Possible Child Neglect (1)
Note: The presence of any one, or even a few of the following indicators does not necessarily determine that the child is being neglected according to legal definition. However, the larger the number of indicators present, the more likelihood there is of neglect. Clergy are, of course, encouraged to be alert for indicators in children with whom they come in contact.
Child's Appearance and Activities
Consistently dirty, unwashed, hungry, or inappropriately dressed
Without supervision for extended periods of time or when engaged in dangerous activities
Constantly tired or listless
Has unattended physical problems or lacks routine medical care
Is exploited, overworked, or kept from attending school
Has been abandoned
Child's Behavior
Is engaging in delinquent acts (e.g., vandalism, drinking, prostitution, drug use, etc.)
Is begging or stealing food
Rarely attends school
Caretaker's Behavior
Misuses alcohol or other drugs
Maintains chaotic home life
Shows evidence of apathy or futility
Is mentally ill or of diminished intelligence
Has history of neglect as a child
Overly self absorbed
(1) Child Abuse Handbook for Professionals. ICAN, Los Angeles County, (April 1986).
Child Physical Abuse
Definition of Child Physical Abuse
The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect defines child physical abuse as:
"The physical injury or maltreatment of a child under the age of eighteen by a person who is responsible for the child's welfare under circumstances which indicate that the child's health or welfare is harmed or threatened thereby..." (1)
Note: Every state has, in its child protection laws, a definition, often more specific than this general definition. The state's Attorney General's office or the Child Protective Services of the local Department of Social or Human Services can be contacted for a copy of the law for their state.
A Comment About Definitions
Dr. Phil Quinn, formerly a severely battered and abused child, now director of ICARE, a child advocacy organization in Hermitage, TN, makes the following, rather sardonic comment:
"The problem of defining exactly what constitutes child abuse is a difficult and perhaps insurmountable one, particularly in a culture which condones the use of violence in recreation, discipline, and relationships. A society rooted in violence, even against children.
"The debate rages on and children continue to die. Few surviving victims of severe child abuse would have as much difficulty defining it." (2)
Punishment/Discipline
The issues of discipline and punishment always arise in any consideration of child physical abuse because this is the primary justification given as reason to beat, burn or cut a child.
For this reason there will follow a separate consideration of corporal punishment or discipline, particularly in the light of Biblical injunctions concerning the use of the rod. However, a statement on the subject by the Medical Director of a Child Protection Team in a Florida Regional Medical Center seems to fit, more appropriately in this definition section.
"For children in abusive families, 'discipline' is neither educational nor constructive. It does not teach proper behavior attitudes. It simply produces injury -- either physical or emotional -- that frequently requires some sort of medical intervention. 'Disciplinary' actions that leave marks are abusive actions." (3)
Indicators of Possible Physical Child Abuse (4)
Note: The presence of any one, or even a few of the following indicators does not necessarily determine that the child is being physically abused according to legal definition. (The possibility of accidental injury must always be kept in mind.) However, the larger the number of indicators present, the more likelihood there is of physical abuse. Clergy are, of course, encouraged to be alert for indicators in children with whom they come in contact.
Child's Appearance
Bruises or welts on body or face (especially in various states of healing, in unusual patterns or clusters which would reflect the instrument or in multiple areas of the body).
Burns (cigar or cigarette burns, glove or sock-like burns on extremities, doughnut-shaped burns on buttocks, or any burn that shows the shape of the item used, such as an iron).
Fractures (spiral fractures of long bones without a history of twisting force as the cause, multiple fractures in various stages of healing, any fracture in a child under two).
Lacerations and abrasions (especially around the mouth, lip, eye, or external genitalia).
Human bite marks.
Child's Behavior
Wary of physical contact with adults
Apprehensive when other children cry
Demonstrates extremes in behavior (either extreme aggressiveness or withdrawal)
Seems afraid of parents
Reports injury by parents
Caretaker's Behavior
Has history of abuse as a child
Uses harsh discipline inappropriate to child's age, transgression, and condition
Has performance expectations which are beyond the age capabilities of the child
Offers illogical, unconvincing, contradictory, or no explanation of child's injury
Seems unconcerned about child
Significantly misperceives child (e.g., sees child as bad, evil, a monster, etc.)
Psychotic or psychopathic
Misuses alcohol or other drugs
Attempts to conceal child's injury or to protect identity of person responsible
(1) Public Law 93-37.
(2) Quinn, Phil, Cry Out, Abingdon Press, Nashville.
(3) Tokarski, Penny, M.D., Orlando, Florida: Abuse and Religion, Lexington Books.
(4) Child Abuse Handbook for Professionals, ICAN, Los Angeles Co., California.
Child Physical Abuse and
Corporal Punishment/Discipline
Although the phrase, "Spare the rod and spoil the child," is not a Biblical text, there is no doubt that it reflects the meaning of two or three of the strongest Biblical Proverbs on child rearing.
These passages from the book of Proverbs read, "He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him." (1) "Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him." (2) "Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you beat him with a rod, he will not die. If you beat him with the rod you will save his life from Sheol" ("soul from hell" Authorized KJV). (3)
All other Biblical texts which speak of child rearing, with the possible exception of Hebrews 12:6 which speaks of "chastising" (scourging" in the Authorized KJV), use more general, positive terms such as "discipline," "nurture" and "train up."
There are those texts that would even seem to contradict the Proverbs texts, a primary example being Ephesians 6:4, "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the nurture and instruction of the Lord."
Professionals who daily must deal with child physical abuse uniformly speak of the fact that most physical abuse results from attempts to punish or control the child, which attempt has escalated to produce physical harm. For this reason, many are concerned when religions, on the basis of the above quoted passages, advocate the use of the rod.
One pediatrician who works with physically abused children in hospital emergency room situations has said, "I do not understand that quote from Proverbs which says, 'If you beat him with a rod he will not die.' The fact is, many do die."
All Biblical scholars, including fundamental Christian teachers, know that, on the surface, at least, there are apparent contradictions between various sections and books of scripture. However, the fundamental scholar, who believes in the literal inerrancy of the entire Biblical text, will resolve these by pointing out the differences of time, place and dispensation.
In the case of potential child abuse by physical beating, it becomes extremely important that such scholars do resolve these apparent discrepancies. Perhaps this could be done by pointing to the "New Covenant" emphasis upon the positive teachings which follow the model of Jesus' treatment of children, or of the apostle Paul's definition of love in I Corinthians 13. (Note: the reference here has been to Christian scholarship. It is of
interest that there seems not to be as much emphasis on these "use of the rod" passages as justification for corporal punishment in the Jewish tradition which gave us these Proverbs.)
It is not the place of this discussion to deal with theological issues, however. The manner in which this is resolved theologically must be left to each minister, priest, rabbi or imam. The following information from various individuals who have seriously considered the issue of corporal punishment and physical child abuse is given only as information which may be helpful to those seeking a non-abusive interpretation. (4)
The Concerns Of:
A MEDICAL DOCTOR, DIRECTOR OF A CHILD PROTECTION TEAM:
"For children in abusive families, 'discipline' is neither educational nor constructive. It does not teach proper behavior or attitudes. It simply produces an injury -- either physical or emotional -- that frequently requires some sort of medical intervention. 'Disciplinary' actions that leave marks are abusive actions...
"Professionals today have come to realize that the problem is far more complex and varied. In one case the parent and the child may not be acting 'on the same wavelength.' In another the child may be the 'target child' in the family -- singled out for physical and verbal abuse. In still another a victim may crave attention to the point of misbehaving in order to receive it.
"In just as much of need of nurturing, the abusing caretaker may see the child as a reflection of himself or herself, or believe the child deliberately misbehaves to defy authority. It has been shown that abusing parents are frequently treating their children as they were treated during childhood. Although they may be 'regular people,' and not psychopaths, they may still be socially detached or depressed, have a poor self-concept, and be stressed with marital problems, financial difficulties, or substance abuse. Placing such an adult with such a child in a situation of stress or crisis often results in injuries." (5)
A DIRECTOR, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CENTER
"Not all child abusers are Christian and not all Christians are child abusers. But a surprisingly high number of cases of reported child abuse occur in Christian families. Moreover, the abuser often bases the justification of their behavior on Christianity. A father, when confronted by state child protection workers resisted their assistance and said, 'What do you mean I can't beat my child? I'm a Christian.' This Christian father, who had paddled his child with such force that he caused injury, had not sought help to control his anger and violence. He had been taught his responsibility as a parent involves the regular use of corporal punishment and had used it to the extent that it was abusive. Herein lies the problem." (6)
A PSYCHOLOGIST
In a study of 230 graduate students, psychologist Goodwin Watson found that students who had rated their parents in the top quarter as to punitiveness and strictness revealed the following in extensive self-reports of their emotional health.
"More hatred and restraint toward their parents
More rejection of their teachers
Poorer relations with their classmates
More quarrels with friends
More shyness
More unsatisfactory love affairs
More worry and anxiety
More guilt
More unhappiness and crying
More dependence on parents" (7)
A PARENTING TEACHER
"... In direct contrast to the conventional and 'common sense' belief of parents that punishment must be used to prevent aggressive behavior of children, the evidence clearly indicates the opposite -- namely, harsh punishment actually promotes aggression.
"Physical punishment literally trains youngsters to be aggressive and to use violence themselves. Thus, every generation learns to be violent from the previous generation. Consider these frightening findings from a survey by Straus, Gelles & Steinmetz, 1980:
"Nearly 100% of children whose parents used a lot of physical punishment had severely assaulted a brother or sister, as compared to only 20% of children whose parents did not use physical punishment.
"Husbands who had experienced severe violence at home as children have a 600% greater rate of wife-beating than husbands who came from non-violent homes." (8)
"A study conducted in Oregon showed a positive correlation between school vandalism and corporal punishment. Schools using more physical punishment had more vandalism; those using less physical punishment had less vandalism." (9) (10)
A CHRISTIAN WRITER, D.MIN.
"The debate about whether spanking is discipline or punishment has raged for centuries and continues today. Its proponents argue that it teaches the unpleasant consequences of certain behavior and thereby serves as a deterrent to repeated misbehavior. To the extent that it teaches children to control themselves, it is discipline, they say.
"There can be no doubt that spanking can 'work.' Pain is an incredibly effective motivator. Violence gives immediate short-term control. And this is what most parents want when they are looking for something 'that works.'
"But hitting teaches children some very important lessons about human relationships. It teaches that some hitting is acceptable -- but not all hitting. It teaches that is OK for big people to hit little people -- but it is not OK for little people to hit back. It also teaches a definition of parental love: Parents who love their children hit them.
"Many hidden problems inherent in spanking can have a serious impact upon the lives of children, their families, and society in general. There are as many definitions of spanking as there are people who do it. Parents tend to define spanking by their own experience. If what they are doing falls within the range of their own childhood experience, then -- regardless of its severity or effect upon the child -- it is not child abuse." (11)
Alternatives?
There are alternative parenting possibilities which nurture and discipline, but are not punitive and do not create the danger of escalation into physical child abuse. Information on these parenting programs may be obtained from local child abuse and child advocacy agencies, parenting programs, colleges and universities. One of these models contains a Biblical component for those with this orientation who are interested in alternatives.
(1) Proverbs 13:24 (RSV)
(2) Proverbs 22:15 (RSV)
(3) Proverbs 23:13, 15 (RSV)
(4) Delaplane, David. The Spiritual Dimension in Victim Services, Denver, Colorado
(5) Tokarski, Penny, M.D. Abuse and Religion, Lexington Books, 1988.
(6) Fortune, Marie. "A Commentary," Center for Prevention of Sexual and Domestic Violence, Seattle, Washington.
(7) Watson, G.A. Journal of Social Psychology, 1984: 5, 102, 105.
(8) Straus, M., Gelles, R., and Steinmetz, S., Behind Closed Doors: Violence in the American Family. New York: Anchor Books, 1980.
(9) Hyman, I., McDowell, E., and Raines, B. "Corporal Punishment and Alternatives in Schools," Inequality in Education, 1975: 23, 5-20.
(10) Gordon, Thomas, "Crippling Our Children with Discipline," Boston University: Journal of Education, Volume 163, #3, Summer 1981.
(11) Quinn, Phil D. Min., Spare the Rod, Abingdon Press, Nashville, Tennessee.
Child Sexual Abuse
A Major Issue for Clergy
Clergy need only be reminded of the extensiveness of the incidence of child sexual assault to realize how important it is for them to have some understanding of this subject. Although, because of the nature of this crime, there may never be a totally definitive statistic, ongoing studies continue to confirm the long-standing ratio that approximately 1 in 4 girls and approximately 1 in 7 (reduced from 1 in 10 through further disclosure of male sexual abuse) will have been sexually molested before the age of 18.
This certainly means that clergy and congregational lay leaders will come in contact with the issue often, either as a present event, or in difficulties experienced by adults who were molested as children. It has been the experience of those working in the field that whenever a minister, priest, rabbi, or imam indicates that he or she has given some attention to the subject, immediate divulgence comes forth from members of the congregation. (NOTE: this is also true in the case of spousal abuse.) The challenge to minister to this need is great.
Definition of Child Sexual Abuse
National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect defines child sexual assault as:
". . . Contacts or interactions between a child and an adult when the child is being used for sexual stimulation of the perpetrator or another person when the perpetrator or another person is in a position of power or control over the victim."
NOTE: Every state has, in its child protection laws, a definition, often more specific than this general definition. The state's Attorney General's office or the Child Protective Services of the local Department of Social or Human Services can be contacted for a copy of the law for their state.
Sexual abuse of children is often hidden in the corners of family life and social relationships -- with outsiders (strangers who attack, molest, or harass) less often involved. In a New England survey by David Finkelhor about one-third of victims were molested by a relative, another one-third by an acquaintance. (1) In a paper presented to the American Academy of Pediatrics, Dr. M. Rimsza has estimated only 10% victimization by strangers (25% family/relative, 60% close acquaintance -- neighbor, baby-sitter, friend of the family, etc.) (2). Various other surveys paint a similar picture: "... 50% to 80% of child sexual abuse victims are abused by people they know; and parents or other relatives account for 30% to 50% of the reported cases." (3) (4)
The Pedophile
There are people in our society who prey on children sexually. Many of these people go to great lengths to get themselves into positions that give them access to and authority over children, and then use that position to victimize children. For such people, the betrayal of the trust put in them is secondary to the pleasure of sexual conquest, even over very young children. No congregation is immune from these people, who may outwardly appear to be very appropriate choices for church or sabbath school volunteers or employees.
Even though the higher percentage of molestation is by someone known to the victim, it is very important for clergy in particular to give careful attention to the fixated offender, the pedophile. This person's primary sexual attraction is toward children, either sex. The pedophile will go to almost any length to have sexual experiences with such children.
Single mothers are particularly vulnerable to the designs of the pedophile. This person will offer to be a friend to the child participating in sports, taking on hiking trips, etc. The mother, anxious for the children to have a male image, often readily goes along with these offers from "such a nice person." The fixated pedophile is "very good" to the child as one might expect in pursuing a sexual experience. There is some grooming behavior.
It is possible that a pedophile tends to be attracted to a child of the particular age at which he, himself, was molested as a child. For this reason he may "go through" a family victimizing each child as he or she passes through that particular age window.
The reason for the importance of this information to clergy is that churches, mosques, temples and synagogues are very vulnerable to the advances of the pedophile. Congregations function on volunteer help, youth workers, Sunday, Sabbath school and C.C.D. teachers, nursery assistants, etc. This individual will volunteer for these positions in order to get at the children. Interestingly enough churches, temples and synagogues become targets because of the frequent tendency of leadership to not be as observant, or to deal with "messy" issues "in-house" if they are exposed. Also, in many cases there is reluctance to prosecute a religious institution or worker. All of this speaks to the importance of screening volunteers.
Some simple rules reduce a congregation's vulnerability to pedophiles. Putting windows in classrooms and their doors makes classes safer, as does a policy of keeping the door open. Always have more than one adult involved with youth events. This is particularly important for off-campus activities. Supervisory leadership can make a habit of dropping into classes and youth events.
Oversee counseling situations so that counselors have a context in which to discuss their activity. Many counselors are including a second person, sometimes a spouse, in the counseling environment. Windows and open doors can also help keep counseling environments from being totally unmonitored. Without such protection, individual leaders can be vulnerable to false accusations. Both youth and their leaders need a safe environment. None of these protections should be offered out of fear. Rather, suggest them as a way of building a more trustworthy environment for everyone involved.
The single most important protection against pedophiles in a church is to insist on screening all church staff and volunteers when they first assume responsibilities with youth. This will seem excessive and distasteful to some at first, but if asked from everyone, no stigma is attached to anyone. Implementing a successful screening policy not only protects children, but also the church, temple, mosque or synagogue. If abuse occurs and the case goes to court, congregational leadership will be asked how youth ministers and volunteer leaders were screened. If screening was not considered, the legal, financial exposure is much greater. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/publications/infores/clergy/chldabus.htm