Child abuse: causes, effects, and prevention strategies

Child Abuse

There are many kinds of abuse that are perpetrated against children, and this paper delves into those issues as well as the history of child abuse and the situations children find themselves in where abuse occurs. Child abuse is a national tragedy, a shameful legacy in the United States and elsewhere, but the first step in stopping the abuse of children is in understanding the problem.

Definition of child abuse: The National Association of Counsel for Children (NACC). explains that there is "…no one commonly accepted definition of 'child abuse and neglect.'" However, the federal government defines child abuse and neglect in the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act as:

"…the physical and mental injury, sexual abuse, negligent treatment, or maltreatment of a child under the age of 18 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" (NACC).

History of Child Abuse: Ancient history is full of reports of infanticide, the most extreme case of abuse; the National Association of Counsel for Children reports that there was evidence of infanticide in 7000 BC (the intentional killing of children, condoned by parents or society), based on an "accepted procedure for disposing of undesirable children." Greek historian Siculus reported that "weak, infirm" children and those "who lacked courage" were simply put to death. The Roman Law of Twelve Tables "prohibited the raising of defective children," NACC continues. And even in the 19th century in Europe children were considered "property" and as property owned by parents, the parents were allowed to "destroy that property" (NACC, p. 2).

Child abuse began to be recognized in the late 19th century as courts began to protect children from the wrath of their guardians and parents; the first juvenile court was established in Illinois in 1899 that had the power to protect minors from abuse by anyone, including parents. In 1944, the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed the state's authority to "…intervene in family relationships to protect children in Prince v. Massachusetts" (NACC, p. 2).

Who are the perpetrators? Typically the child is abused by someone in the family, according to the Child Welfare Information Gateway (CWIG), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Parents or adult caregivers can be suspected of perpetrating abuse on a child when the parent: a) "offers conflicting, unconvincing, or no explanation" for a child's injury; b) describes the child as "evil" or in another very negative way; c) uses overly harsh discipline; c) seems "indifferent to the child"; d) is abusing alcohol or other drugs; e) behaves "irrationally or in a bizarre manner"; f) blames, belittles or "berates" the child; or g) is "secretive or isolated" (CWIG).

Age groups of victims: The Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry conducted an intervention with forty-three sexually abused preschool children "…and their parents who were evaluated shortly after disclosure of sexual abuse" (Cohen, et al., 1998, p. 44). This is not proof that sexual abuse of preschool children is widespread, but clearly there are instances of this abuse. In this empirical study, parents / abusers that participated in psychiatric treatment "…supports the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy over counseling" (Cohen, 44).

The National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) points out that children suffer from PTSD in different ways than adults, albeit children severely abused do indeed experience the symptoms of PTSD. Elementary school children don't necessarily experience "visual flashbacks" or "amnesia" resulting from trauma, but they do experience "time skew" and "omen formation" -- and typically these symptoms are unique to children (Hamblen, et al., 2009). Time skew refers to "a child mis-sequencing trauma-related events" when asked to recall that memory. Omen formation is the belief that children have that they should have seen the warning signals prior to the abuse trauma (Hamblen, p. 2).

As to adolescents (secondary school) they experience PTSD similar to how adults experience it, Hamblen explains. Children at this age may engage in "traumatic reenactment, in which they incorporate aspects of the trauma into their daily lives" (Hamblen, p. 3). Moreover, youth in secondary school may exhibit "impulsive and aggressive behaviors" after they have been physically abused and experience PTSD, Hamblen explains.