child abuse and neglect fatalities: https://www.childwelfare. gov/can/risk_perpetrators.cfm In this next section, we provide an overview of the categories, signs and symptoms, and long-term consequences of child abuse and neglect. Indicators of bodily injury ● Fear of going home. ● Fear of parent or caregiver.
Signs of abuse or neglect include a perpetrator who acts in the following ways (Child Welfare, 2021b): ● Denies the existence of or blames the child for the child’s problems in school or at home. ● Shows little concern for the child. ● Asks teachers or other caregivers to use harsh physical discipline if the child misbehaves. ● Looks primarily to the child for care, attention, and satisfaction of the perpetrator’s emotional needs. ● Sees the child as entirely worthless, bad, or burdensome. ● Demands a level of academic or physical performance the child cannot achieve. Signs of abuse or neglect include when the perpetrator and the child both act in the following ways (Child Welfare, 2021): ● Consider their relationship to be entirely negative. The above list does not present all the signs of abuse or neglect. It is important to pay attention to other behaviors that may seem unusual or concerning. In addition to these signs and symptoms, the Child Welfare Information Gateway provides information on the risk factors and perpetrators of Neglect Neglect is the failure of a parent, guardian, or other caregiver to provide for the basic needs of the child that endangers a child's life or health; threatens a child's well- being; causes bodily injury; or impairs a child's health, development, or functioning (Child Welfare, 2021; The Pennsylvania Child Welfare Resource Center, n.d.). Neglect may be emotional (inattention to a child’s emotional needs, allowing a child to use alcohol or drugs, failure to provide psychological care); physical (failure to provide necessary food or shelter or lack of appropriate supervision); educational (failure to educate a child or attend to special education needs); or medical (failure to provide or withhold necessary medical treatment; Child Welfare, 2021). ● State they do not like each other. ● Rarely touch or look at each other. According to the Child Maltreatment 2021 report, 74.9% of child abuse victims were neglected, making it the most common type of child maltreatment (Child Welfare, 2021). In Pennsylvania, there were 692 cases of serious physical neglect in 2021, making up 9.4% of total allegations of child abuse (Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Annual Child Abuse Report, 2021). Emotional abuse Psychological or emotional maltreatment is defined as “a pattern of intentional verbal or behavioral actions or lack of actions that convey to a child the message that he or she is worthless, flawed, unloved, unwanted, endangered, or only of value to meet someone else's needs” (Gluck, 2019). Emotional abuse frequently occurs as “verbal abuse or excessive demands on a child’s performance” (HHS, 2021). It includes constant criticism; rejection; threats; and withholding love, support, or guidance (HHS, 2021). Following are some types of emotionally abusive behaviors by caregivers (Gluck, 2019): Scorn ● Demeaning the child, ridiculing or humiliating them, causing them to be ashamed, criticizing or insulting them. Isolation ● Restricting social interactions in the community. ● Confining within their environment by physically or socially isolating the child.
● Extreme apprehensiveness/vigilance. ● Pronounced aggression or passivity. ● Flinches easily or avoids being touched. ● Play includes abusive talk or behavior. ● Unexplained injuries.
● Unbelievable or inconsistent explanations of injuries. ● Injuries inconsistent with a child’s age/developmental level. ● Unable to recall how injuries occurred or account of injuries is inconsistent with the nature of the injuries. ● Multiple bruises in various stages of healing. ● Bruises located on face, ears, neck, buttocks, back, chest, thighs, back of legs, and genitalia. ● Bruises that resemble objects such as a hand, fist, belt buckle, or rope. ● Burns. Signs of neglect The following are possible signs and symptoms of neglect that may be seen in a medical context, at school, or at a day care (Child Welfare, 2021): ● The child begs or steals food or money. ● The child lacks needed medical or dental care, immunizations, or glasses. ● The child is frequently absent from school. ● The child lacks sufficient clothing for the weather. ● The child abuses alcohol or other drugs. ● The child is consistently dirty and has severe body odor. ● The child states that there is no one at home to provide care. ● Parent/caregiver seems apathetic or depressed. ● Parent/caregiver appears to be indifferent to the child. ● Parent/caregiver abuses alcohol or other drugs. ● Parent/caregiver behaves irrationally or in a bizarre manner. Terrorism ● Placing in chaotic or dangerous circumstances. ● Having unreasonable or rigid expectations accompanied by threats if not met. ● Threatening or destroying the child’s possessions. ● Perpetrating or threatening violence against the child or the child’s loved ones or objects. Exploitation and corruption ● Permitting, tolerating, or encouraging antisocial or deviant and inappropriate behavior. ● Encouraging the child or coercing them to participate in sexual activities. ● Treating the child as a slave. Absence of an emotional response. ● Being inattentive or indifferent toward the child. ● Ignoring the child’s emotional needs; avoiding visual contact, kisses, or verbal communication.
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Book Code: MPA0825
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