Child Abuse and Neglect

Child abuse includes all forms of physical and emotional mistreatment, sexual abuse, and neglect of a child’s basic needs, which results in actual or potential harm to a child’s physical, mental, and emotional health. Exploitation of children is also a form of abuse and includes trafficking for sexual or economic purposes, and recruitment of children into armed forces.

An abused child may experience many forms of mistreatment in any one incident or over time; for example, emotional harm is a pervading factor in all types of abuse. The abuser may be a family member, a stranger, another child, or someone responsible for a child's well-being, such as a teacher or caretaker.

Children in every society are vulnerable to abuse, gender based violence, and exploitation, however children without parental care and those in high risk environments such as conflict areas, refugee camps, on the street, or in institutions, are particularly exposed to violence, denial of their basic human rights, and deprivation. All abuse has its origins in power imbalance and therefore is typically associated with fear, secrecy, and control. This makes identifying and speaking out about abuse very difficult for children, family members, the community and social services, particularly when it is committed within the privacy of the home.

Child abuse can cause physical and psychosocial problems, including HIV/AIDS infection, and is particularly damaging when repeated over a period of time. Children may manifest abuse via destructive or withdrawn behaviours, developmental delays, injuries or other health problems. The effects of abuse will vary from child to child and depend on the source, type and extent of the abuse, the child’s developmental stage and their disposition or resilience.

The process of identifying and responding to abuse requires skilled interventions in order to prevent further harm to the child, and will typically include police, medical, psychological, and social services in order to address the safety, physical, and emotional needs of the affected children. Any care plan must be in the best interests of the child and protect them and their siblings from harm. This will include consideration of the additional risks of abuse that are present for children in institutions and care placements. Such closed environments are extremely susceptible to abuse since they are frequently isolated, insufficiently regulated, and lacking in adequate supervision and safe reporting procedures. It is the role of social services to screen and monitor all child placements, including institutional, kinship, and foster care, to ensure the child’s safety and well-being.

It is the responsibility of the whole community to protect its children. Education and community awareness for children and adults on the risks, signs of abuse, and responses is vital for children without parental care and those in high risk situations, such as during a conflict or displacement when sexual violence, exploitation, and recruitment into armed forces are prevalent.

The literature in this section describes the types of abuse in more detail, including gender based violence, and provides example child protection procedures, policy papers, and other intervention tools.

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Child neglect and poverty: A Brazilian study

Mara Silvia Pasian, Priscila Benitez, Carl Lacharité - Children and Youth Services Review, 28 Nov 2019

Considering the importance of preventing and better understanding neglect, the present paper aims to describe and discuss similarities and differences among negligent families, comparing them to other families in terms of socioeconomic aspects and risk factors related to neglect.

‘Even though I Am Blind, I Am Still Human!’: the Neglect of Adolescents with Disabilities’ Human Rights in Conflict-Affected Contexts

Elizabeth Presler-Marshall, Nicola Jones & Kifah Bani Odeh - Child Indicators Research, 28 Nov 2019

Drawing on qualitative research undertaken with adolescents with disabilities from refugee and host communities in Jordan and the State of Palestine, this article critically interrogates the framing of child neglect, which to date has situated the state as a protector rather than a perpetrator, the narrow understanding of adolescent needs and the responsibility of international actors for ensuring that the full range of human rights of adolescents with disabilities is supported.

Victimization and Adversity in Child Welfare Involved Youth: The Cumulative Influence on Child and Caregiver Reported Behavioral Health Symptoms

Brianna M. Lombardi, Sarah E. Bledsoe, Candace Killian-Farrell, Paul Lanier, Asheley Skinner - Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 27 Nov 2019

Exposure to childhood victimization and adversity (CVA) is pervasive for child welfare (CW) involved youth. However, most research with CW samples has focused on types of maltreatment and fails to recognize the additive influence of exposure to CVA beyond maltreatment. For this study, a subsample aged 8 to 17 (n = 1,887) was drawn from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) II.

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Case File Analyses in Child Protection Research: Review of Methodological Challenges and Development of a Framework

Susanne Witte - Children and Youth Services Review, 25 Nov 2019

This article proposes a three-step model for the process of case file keeping, including aspects on the level of information gathering, processing, and presentation.

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The Impact of Maltreatment on Internalizing Symptoms for Foster Youth: an Examination of Spirituality and Appraisals as Moderators

Stephanie K. Gusler, Yo Jackson, Shaquanna Brown -Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 23 Nov 2019

For this study, a sample of youth in foster care was used to provide a new examination of the relation between child maltreatment exposure and internalizing symptoms, to test the possible moderating effects of both appraisals and spirituality, and examine differences between children and adolescents.

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Exploring the protective factors of children and families identified at highest risk of adverse childhood experiences by a predictive risk model: An analysis of the growing up in New Zealand cohort

Matthew C. Walsh, Sophie Joyce, Tim Maloney, Rhema Vaithianathan - Children and Youth Services Review, 23 Nov 2019

The aim of this study was to identify what protective factors might exist amongst families who are identified as high risk by predictive risk models (PRMs).

Income instability and child maltreatment: Exploring associations and mechanisms

Emma Kahle Monahan - Children and Youth Services Review, 22 Nov 2019

The current study begins to address a gap in the literature by examining the association of income instability and child maltreatment in a sample of low-income families deflected from Child Protective Services.

Bangladesh: Policy progress report to end violence against children

World Vision, 19 Nov 2019

This report reviews the government of Bangladesh’s progress to create the minimum conditions in law and policy needed to end violence against children.

Identifying and Responding to Child Neglect within Schools: Differing Perspectives and the Implications for Inter-Agency Practice

Victoria Sharley - Child Indicators Research, 15 Nov 2019

This paper brings new understanding about the way in which child neglect is identified by school staff in Wales.

Reflections on the Traditional Role of Social Workers in Child Protection: Lessons Learned from the Strong Communities Initiative in Israel

Carmit Katz, Jill McLeigh, Asher Ben Arieh - International Journal on Child Maltreatment: Research, Policy and Practice, 11 Nov 2019

This essay provides an overview of an alternative to the traditional model of social work that was developed in the context of an initiative seeking to address the community-level factors shown to influence children’s safety. The model described in this essay was part of an effort to replicate Strong Communities for Children (Strong Communities)—which was first piloted in the USA to keep children safe by building systems of support for parents with young children —in south Tel Aviv, Israel.

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