How Child Abuse and Neglect Affect Childhood

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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. Debatably, child maltreatment can be viewed as a human rights violation that is caused by various factors involving the individua... ... middle of paper ... ...ross-Disciplinary Approach (2 ed., pp. 99-160, 211-266). Bristol: The Policy Press. Kiran, B. (2011). Child Abuse and Neglect. Journal of Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry. p.79. McCoy, M., and Keen, S. (2009). Child Abuse and Neglect. Taylor & Francis. Shreeve, D. F. (2012). Reactive Attachment Disorder: A Case-Based Approach. New York,: Springer. Smith, M., & Segal, J. (n.d.). Child Abuse & Neglect. : Recognizing, Preventing and Reporting Child Abuse. Retrieved January 14 2014, from http://www.helpguide.org/mental/child_abuse_physical_emotional_sexual_neglect.htm Vitaro, F., & Carbonneau, R. (2005). Resilient Children of Parents Affected By a Dependency. Ottawa, Ont.: Health Canada]. Welfare Information Gateway. (2013). Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect. Washington DC: Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau.

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