Types of Child Abuse, Research Paper Example

Child abuse can be described as any form of mistreatment of children including physical assaults, sexual harassment, emotional and psychological torture. All actions that can cause harm to the well being of children qualify as child abuse. According to Ferguson (2004), neglect of children also counts as child abuse. Various venues and locations where child abuse can be committed include homes, schools, churches and playgrounds.

There are distinct types of abuse, but the emotional effect happens to be the major factor that connects all these types of child abuse. Children are not independent and therefore are in constant need of obviousness, structure, clear instructions, and assurance that their parents are watching over them (Petit & Curtis, 1997). Children who go through abuse cannot foresee how their parents will respond to their actions. Their lives show fickleness and fear of reprisal. When a parent slaps a child, comments harshly to a child or keeps a child in the dark over the next move that he or she will take, a child will definitely feel lonely, rejected and scared (Pipe et al., 2013).

Emotional abuse is a type of child abuse that generates psychological defects and social anomalies from long periods of yelling, rough treatment and destruction of the ego of the child (Pipe et al., 2013). An old saying holds that stones can break bones, but words will never cause harm. On the same note, emotional abuse can cause long-term mental and social development problems. Children who go through emotional abuse grow into adults whose lives are characterized by psychological scars.  Emotional abuse entails acts of humiliating a child, making comparisons to other successful children, belittling a child and yelling at a child. It also includes maintaining long periods of silence as punishment to a child. When parents or any other guardian engages into critiquing children in a negative way, such children loose self esteem and begin feeling discouraged as they grow and this ultimately affects their psychological and emotional well being (Petit & Curtis, 1997). Denying children freedom to move around and play with their fellow children by strictly restricting them and locking them in a confined place also constitute child emotional and psychological abuse.

Another type of child abuse is neglecting and abandoning children. Child neglect and abandonment is the failure to provide food, clothing, shelter, and guidance to the extent that a child’s health, security, and wellness are at risk (Petit & Curtis, 1997). Neglect also includes lack of attention from people who live around a child and their denial of important resources for normal development.  Neglected children stay away from school, beg food, lack good health, are always unclean and lack good clothes in harsh weather conditions. On the same note, abandoning children constitute child abuse and happens in various ways. There has been many cases where children have been found abandoned on streets by either their parents or guardians never to be seen again (Ferguson, 2004). Child abandonment as a form of child abuse also takes  form when parents or guardians decides to stay in a place separate with their children without necessarily making close follow up of the well being of their children. Such parents are irresponsible and make children suffer due to lack of care, love and passion (Petit & Curtis, 1997).

Physical abuse is also another crucial type of child abuse. Children are said to have been abused physically if they are subjected to aggression. They are also physically abused when subjected to acts of violence that cause physical harm and injury to their bodies. Subjecting children to labor intensive activities also constitute child abuse which is mostly termed and child labor (Pipe et al., 2013). Subjecting children to harmful conditions such as cold and extreme heat that cause harm to the body of the child also constitutes physical abuse. Physical abuse manifests itself on the body of the child both internally and externally through symptoms like burning, skin bruises and lacerating, scratching, roughing and broken bones. When a child’s body exhibits scars and fractures; this clearly depicts that the child is going through physical form of abuse (Pipe et al., 2013).

Lastly, there is a type of child abuse known as sexual abuse. This is also among the most crucial types of child abuse as it causes long term physical, psychological and emotional development issues to the life of a child. A child is said to be sexually abused when he/she is forced into an act of sexuality by a mature person (raping children) (Ferguson, 2004). Such children get physical injuries in their private parts and this may affect them throughout their lifetime. Mutilating children also affects their sexual well being and this constitutes sexual as well as physical abuse. In addition, introducing children to sexual behaviors at an early stage as well as exposing them to pornographic and other erotic media also constitutes sexual abuse.

References

Ferguson, T. H. (2004). Protecting children in time: Child abuse, child protection, and the consequences of modernity (p. 36). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Petit, M. R., & Curtis, P. A. (1997). Child Abuse and Neglect: A Look at the States. CWLA Stat Book, 1997. Child Welfare League of America, c/o PMDS, PO Box 2019, 9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-2019.

Pipe, M. E., Lamb, M. E., Orbach, Y., & Cederborg, A. C. (Eds.). (2013). Child sexual abuse: Disclosure, delay, and denial. Psychology Press.