Child abuse is more than just physical abuse. Child abuse is considered when an adult is threatening or violent towards a child, including neglect.
When it happens in the home, this is domestic violence, typically by someone who is either the child’s parent or caretaker.
Nonetheless, there are situations when children are abused by other adults whom they depend on, such as daycare providers, teachers, clergymen, and athletic trainers.
Abuse is occasionally, but not always, intentional. Abuse and dysfunctional behavior may arise if parents or other caregivers are unable to handle caring for the child.
Child abuse is defined as any willful harm or mistreatment of a kid under the age of 18.
Many manifestations of child abuse might take place at once.
- Physical abuse. When a child is purposefully hurt physically or placed in danger physically by another person, it is considered physical abuse.
- Sexual abuse. Any sexual activity with a child is considered child sexual abuse. This may entail intercourse or purposeful sexual touching, oral-genital contact, or other forms of sexual contact. This can also include non-contact sexual abuse of children, such as exposing them to pornography or sexual activity, watching or recording them engaging in sexual activity, sexually harassing them, or using them as prostitutes, including for sex trafficking.
- Emotional abuse. Emotional child abuse means injuring a child’s self-esteem or emotional well-being. It includes verbal and emotional assault — such as continually belittling or berating a child — and isolating, ignoring, or rejecting a child.
- Medical abuse. When someone provides misleading information about a kid’s ailment that necessitates medical attention, they are engaging in medical child abuse and putting the youngster at danger of harm and needless medical treatment.
- A child is neglected when they are not given enough food, clothing, shelter, affection, supervision, education, or dental or medical care.
Child abuse and neglect are preventable.
The CDC has identified five evidence-based strategies for preventing and treating child abuse and neglect.
- Increasing household financial security and implementing family-friendly work policies increase the economic support provided to families.
- Through public relations initiatives and legislative measures to limit corporal punishment, change social norms to promote parents and good parenting.
- Through preschool enrichment programs with family involvement and high-quality child care through licensure and accreditation provide high-quality care and education early in life.
- Boost parenting abilities to support a child’s healthy growth through interventions like home visits and parent skill-building techniques.
Through improved primary care, behavioral parent training programs, treatment to minimize the harms of abuse and neglect exposure, treatment to prevent problem behavior and later engagement in violence, and intervention to lessen harm and prevent future risk.
National Child Abuse Prevention Month