Introduction
Child Abuse and Neglect (CAN) is a social and public health concern worldwide. It’s type of trauma which exerts a multitude of short and long term effects on children.1
Different terms like child abuse, child maltreatment, child infanticide which are hard to believe occur in all income, racial, religious and ethnic groups even in the 21st civilized century.2
Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect vary due to different parenting behaviours in different cultures worldwide. So some definitions focus on the behaviours or actions of adults while others consider abuse to take place if there is harm or the threat of harm to the child.3
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has defined ‘child abuse’ as a violation of basic human rights
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An estimation of 1.2 million children are trafficked each year into exploitative work according to the International Labour Organization (ILO).17
During 2011, a total of 33,098 cases of sexual crimes against children were reported all across the nation as compared to 26,694 cases during 2010, suggesting a recent increase in 24 percent.18 According to the latest statistics, in 2014 ,172 cases of child sexual abuse were revealed by Pune Police between January and October compared to 126 cases recorded in 2013 in the same period, a steep rise of 35 Percent.19
There can be several consequences as a result of abusive behavior towards the child. As a survivor of child abuse, there can be difficulties in physical development of the child. Child can have many health related issues like anxiety, depression difficulty in sleep, fear etc. Other effects could be lack of interest in social activities, difficulty in building healthy relationships at work and home.20
Due to an alarming rise in child abuse cases, reporting is ethical and legal obligation of healthcare professionals.21 Most common signs of child abuse are in the orofacial region an hence the dentists are in a unique position to detect the cases of child abuse.22 Lips are the most common site for inflicted injuries (54%) followed by the oral mucosa, teeth, gingiva and tongue. Such abuse cases are usually first witnessed by
The term child abuse was once as rarely heard as that of pink elephants. However rare the term has once been, it is now a term used consistently throughout the news and various other publications today. Along with the progressing decline in society's morals, has come the rapid increase of crime. One such crime is child abuse. Although child abuse is common, the act is defiling. As a result of the abuse, children who fall victim to this often need psychological treatment and counseling. Often, the child is never the same as he or she once was before. The dictionary defines child abuse as: "the physical, or emotional, or sexual mistreatment of children" (Dictionary.com). Everyday thousands of children are the victims of this abuse. The abusers range from parents, friends, total strangers, to even day-care workers.
Abuse of children has become a major social problem and a main cause of many people's suffering and personal problems. Neglect, physical abuse, and sexual abuse have an immediate and long-term effects on a child's development. The long-term effects of abuse and neglect of a child can be seen in psychiatric disorders, increased rates of substance abuse, and relationship difficulties. Child abuse and neglect is a huge problem. Parents who abuse are people who have been abused and neglected themselves as children(Long Term Consequences).
In conclusion, Child abuse and neglect is more common in children’s lives today. A child may be harmed and be right in front of us and we do not even know it. We have to watch out for the signs and symptoms to try and help a child out. We may not even realize it till it is too late. The effect can appear in all aspects of life, rather it being psychological or behavioral. These effects can range from anything such as minor physical injury, not getting along with others, or become aggressive and affect them later on in life.
Children who have been abused are left with more than just physical scars. They have many psychological, emotional, and behavioral problems as well. Their social lives are affected dramatically, and they suffer lifelong effects. (Lambert) Children tend to be emotionally disturbed years after the abuse, many have IQ scores lower than average, and some have even been classified as mentally retarded. Children who have been abused also show signs of personality and neurological changes. (Oates 119) Sexual abuse has been linked to nightmares, bed wetting, sadness, clinging behavior, and anxiety. Children also showed more aggressive and anti-social behaviors. (Oates 127) Adults who were sexually abused are more prone to depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and drug or alcohol problems. (Oates 132-133) Studies show overwhelming evidence of the effects abuse can have on a child, and the way the effects continue into their adult lives. (Oates 135)
Research has shown the relationship between the types of child abuse. According to some research, it has been stated that there are three major forms of child abuse: physical abuse, emotional abuse and sexual abuse. Studies have also demonstrated reliable evidences to support how these forms of child abuse affects children and their adulthood relationship. According to some research performed by some authors, experts who work in the field of child-care are now able to identify and understand the psychological problems that abused victims are likely to develop later in their adulthood stage. Kathryn Hildyard and David Wolfe’s essay on child neglect mentions how child neglect affects children’s health development. Child neglect is known to be the most usual form of child abuse due to the large amount of children that have been neglected or not cared for. Kristen Springer and Jennifer Sheridan’s article on physical and mental health consequences explains how physical abuse affects children emotionally in their early stages of childhood.
Research has proven that the statistics of child abuse have risen worldwide. In the United States alone they were over 1,000 child fatalities due to child abuse in 2002(Child). In 2004, The US Department of Health and Human Services estimate that 872,000 children were determined US victims of child abuse. Approximately 17.5 percent of the maltreatment victims were physically abused(Hmurovich). Every year, there are approximately three million children that are involved in cases of child abuse. Of that, about twenty-five percent are just cases of physical abuse(Lansford). The number of abused or neglected children that are killed each year went from 798 in 1985 to 1,185 in 1996(Bean Child). Child abuse is one of the five leading cause of childhood death in the United States. Although there are so many reported cases of abuse, no one will ever know with certainty how many children have or are being abused(Mankiller). Every year, child-protection agencies receive three million referrals of child abuse or neglect involving six million children. The majority of children abused are younger tha...
The mistreatment of children is classified by four types of actions: physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect. Although, in recent years several steps have been taken to prevent the maltreatment of children it seems that child abuse is still prevalent in today's society. Countless children around the world suffer from some form of abuse and in many cases the same child experiences more than one. There is no exact number of victims because it difficult to measure the exact amount of children going through abuse. Child abuse almost always occurs in private, and because abuse is often hidden from view and its victims may be too young or too frightened to speak out, experts in child welfare suggest that its true prevalence
Child abuse in general is quite complex and at the same time one of the most challenging social issue facing people all around the USA. Child abuse cases have been recorded in all the states of the USA. The cases occur in all areas be it cities, small towns, suburbs, and even in rural areas. The vice also happens in all types of families regardless of the ethnic origin of the family or the even family income (UNICEF, 2015). It is thus important that effort is put into reducing cases of child abuse.
· Wiese, D. and Daro, D. (1995) Current Trends in Child Abuse Reporting and Fatalities: The Results of the 1994 Annual Fifty State Survey. Chicago, IL.: NCPCA.
The Center of Disease Control and prevention defines child abuse as any act or series of events that results in harm, potential harm or threatens the child’s safety (Webb, 2007). While many people believe that child maltreatment is simply physical many other forms of maltreatment occur; sexual abuse, neglect and abandonment are also common forms of abuse. Domestic Violence is also included in the definition of child maltre...
Child maltreatment can affect any child, usually aged 0-18, and it occurs across socioeconomic, religious, ethnic or even educational backgrounds. Arguably, child abuse and neglect is a violation of basic human rights of a child resulting from social, familial, psychological and economic factors (Kiran, 2011). Familial factors include lack of support, poverty, single parenthood, and domestic violence among others, (McCoy and Keen, 2009). The common types of child maltreatment include physical abuse, emotional maltreatment, neglect, and sexual abuse among others. Abuse and neglect can lead to a variety of impacts on children and young people such as physical, behavioral as well as psychological consequences which will affect the development and growth of the child either positively or negatively based on the environment and agency. More so, emotional, cognitive and physical developmental impacts from child neglect in the early stages of childhood can be carried on into adulthood. Research findings reveal that the experience of maltreatment can cause major long-term consequences on all aspects of a child’s health, growth as well as intellectual development and mental wellbeing, and these effects can impair their functioning as adults. Commonly, the act of abuse/ or neglect toward a child affects the child’s physical, behavioral development and growth, which can be positive or negative, depending on the child’s environment and agency. Another way to understand how the act has affected the child is to look at the child for who they are, and interviewing and observing their behaviors of their everyday life.
The physical abuse of children covers a wide range of actions from what some might term ‘justifiable chastisement’ such as slapping or spanning to the sort of actions which most would agree constitute deliberate, sadistic cruelty against children.
Child abuse is a situation where parent is not fully giving their child the care that they need. It is also classified as parents who mistreat their children emotionally, sexually, or physically (Watkins, 2009). The impact that child abuse has on a child is mainly physical, behavioral or in psychological nature. It is very hard to separate any of the three impacts. Any abused child will develop psychological problems, end up with some physical injuries or even adapt some unappealing behaviors.
This means that it is an issue that must be addressed soon. Children are suffering physical, sexual, emotional abuse or neglect every minute in every corner of the world, often by someone they know and should be able to trust; most often in their own home. Child abuse is increasing in all countries and cultures. One of the recent surveys
Roughly five children die every day in the United States at the hands of an abuser (Child Help, 2012). Child abuse has been an everlasting problem in the United States, making it known as a perennial problem. A perennial problem is a problem that never seems to vanish. I came to the decision to use child abuse as my perennial problem due to the fact that no child, family, or community should have to endure the tragedies that happen as a result of abuse. Child abuse is defined as doing something or not doing something that ends in harm to a child or puts the child at risk (MedlinePlus, 2017). There are four types of child abuse: physical, sexual, emotional, and neglect. Individuals, families, and communities are all impacted by child abuse.