9.7.1: Definitions

Warning: This chapter contains information about child abuse which may be triggering for some readers.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

• Define child maltreatment and explain the different types, including physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect.
• Discuss the significance of understanding these definitions for early childhood educators in identifying and responding to potential signs of maltreatment.

Definitions

Child maltreatment includes all types of abuse and neglect of a child under the age of 18 by a parent, caregiver, or another person in a custodial role (such as clergy, a coach, or a teacher) that results in harm, potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child. There are four common types of abuse and neglect: physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect.²⁷⁷

Physical Abuse

Physical abuse is a non-accidental physical injury to a child caused by a parent, caregiver, or other person responsible for a child and can include punching, beating, kicking, biting, shaking, throwing, stabbing, choking, hitting (with a hand, stick, strap, or other object), burning, or otherwise causing physical harm. Physical discipline, such as spanking or paddling, is not considered abuse as long as it is reasonable and causes no bodily injury to the child. Injuries from physical abuse could range from minor bruises to severe fractures or death.

Abusive Head Trauma Abusive head trauma (AHT), which includes shaken baby syndrome, is a preventable and severe form of physical child abuse that results in an injury to the brain of a child. AHT is most common in children under age five, with children under one year of age at most risk. It is caused by violent shaking and/or with blunt impact. The resulting injury can cause bleeding around the brain or on the inside back layer of the eyes. Nearly all victims of AHT suffer serious, long-term health consequences such as vision problems, developmental delays, physical disabilities, and hearing loss. At least one of every four babies who experience AHT dies from this form of child abuse. Long-term damage or death are the consequence of almost all victims of AHT. "Medical Team Transports Newborn from Puerto Rico" by US Air Force in the public domain. AHT often happens when a parent or caregiver becomes angry or frustrated because of a child’s crying. The caregiver then shakes the child and/or hits or slams the child’s head into something in an effort to stop the crying. Crying, including long bouts of inconsolable crying, is normal behavior in infants. Shaking, throwing, hitting, or hurting a baby is never the right response to crying. How Can Abusive Head Trauma Be Prevented? Anyone can play a role in preventing AHT by understanding the dangers of violently shaking or hitting a baby’s head into something, knowing the risk factors and the triggers for abuse, and finding ways to support families and caregivers in their community.^279 The Bottom Line Shaking a baby can cause death or permanent brain damage. It can result in life-long disability. Healthy strategies for dealing with a crying baby include: finding the reason for the crying checking for signs of illness or discomfort, such as diaper rash, teething, or tight clothing; feeding or burping; soothing the baby by rubbing its back; gently rocking; offering a pacifier; singing or talking; taking a walk using a stroller or a drive in a properly-secured car seat; or calling the doctor if sickness is suspected All babies cry. Caregivers often feel overwhelmed by a crying baby. Calling a friend, relative, or neighbor for support or assistance lets the caregiver take a break from the situation. If immediate support is not available, the caregiver could place the baby in a crib (making sure the baby is safe), close the door, and check on the baby every five minutes.^280 If an early childhood educator is growing frustrated with a child’s crying or other behaviors, it’s important that they follow the same advice they would give a parent/caregiver or find a co-worker to relieve them while they calm down.

Sexual Abuse

Child sexual abuse is a significant but preventable adverse childhood experience and public health problem. Sexual abuse includes activities by a parent or other caregiver such as fondling a child’s genitals, penetration, incest, rape, sodomy, indecent exposure, and exploitation through prostitution or the production of pornographic materials. Sexual abuse is defined by the Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act as “the employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage in or assist any other person to engage in, any sexually explicit conduct or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct; or the rape, and in cases of a caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other forms of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children”²⁸¹

About 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 13 boys experience child sexual abuse at some point in childhood. And 90% of child sexual abuse is perpetrated by someone the child or child’s family knows.²⁸²

Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse (or psychological abuse) is a pattern of behavior that impairs a child’s emotional development or sense of self-worth. This may include constant criticism, threats, or rejection as well as withholding love, support, or guidance. Emotional abuse is often difficult to prove, and, therefore, child protective services may not be able to intervene without evidence of harm or mental injury to the child (Prevent Child Abuse America, 2016). ²⁸³

Neglect

Neglect is the failure of a parent or other caregiver to provide for a child’s basic needs. Neglect generally includes the following categories:

• Physical (e.g., failure to provide necessary food or shelter, lack of appropriate supervision)
• Medical (e.g., failure to provide necessary medical or mental health treatment, withholding medically indicated treatment from children with life-threatening conditions)
• Educational (e.g., failure to educate a child or attend to special education needs)
• Emotional (e.g., inattention to a child’s emotional needs, failure to provide psychological care, permitting a child to use alcohol or other drugs)

Sometimes cultural values, the standards of care in the community, and poverty may contribute to what is perceived as maltreatment, indicating the family may need information or assistance. It is important to note that living in poverty is not considered child abuse or neglect. However, a family’s failure to use available information and resources to care for their child may put the child’s health or safety at risk, and child welfare intervention could be required. In addition, many states provide an exception to the definition of neglect for parents/caregivers who choose not to seek medical care for their children due to religious beliefs.

Abandonment is considered in many states as a form of neglect. In general, a child is considered to be abandoned when the parent’s identity or whereabouts are unknown, the child has been left alone in circumstances where the child suffers serious harm, the child has been deserted with no regard for his or her health or safety, or the parent has failed to maintain contact with the child or provide reasonable support for a specified period of time. Some states have enacted laws—often called safe haven laws—that provide safe places for parents to relinquish newborn infants.

Figure 9.7.1.1 – This is a Safe Surrender Site sign on a San Francisco firehouse.²⁸⁴

Domestic Violence

Given the magnitude of the problem of children’s exposure to violence, including the co-occurrence of domestic violence and child maltreatment, early care and education programs are serving children and families impacted by violence. Here are some key facts about domestic violence and intimate partner violence:

1. Intimate partner violence describes physical, sexual, or psychological harm by a current or former partner or spouse. This type of violence can occur among heterosexual or same-sex couples and does not require sexual intimacy. Intimate partner violence can vary in frequency and severity. It occurs on a continuum ranging from one hit that may or may not impact the victim to chronic, severe beating.
2. Domestic violence is the second leading cause of death for pregnant women, and some 25 to 50 percent of adolescent mothers experience partner violence before, during, or just after their pregnancy.
3. Witnessing family assault is among the most common victimization experienced by toddlers (ages 2 to 5). Other common forms of victimization are assault by a sibling and physical bullying.
4. In 30 to 60 percent of families where either child abuse or domestic violence is present, child abuse and domestic violence co-occur.

Children may very well experience the violence themselves; however, even when they are not directly injured, exposure to traumatic events can cause social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties. Children exposed to domestic violence have often been found to develop a wide range of problems, including externalizing behavior problems, interpersonal skill deficits, and psychological and emotional problems such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In addition, a Michigan study of preschool-aged children found that those exposed to domestic violence at home are more likely to have health problems, including allergies, asthma, frequent headaches and stomachaches, and generalized lethargy.

What Early Care and Education Programs Should Do to Help It is critical that early childhood educators be prepared to work with and guide these children and families to needed services. Teachers and administrators can support the child and family during times of stress by making hotlines and other domestic violence information available to families. The early childhood workforce is currently comprised of about 1 million center-based teachers and caregivers, 1 million home-based teachers and caregivers, and an additional 2.7 million unpaid home-based teachers and caregivers. This workforce consists largely of women, and women are disproportionately affected by domestic violence. Therefore, information about appropriate services and programs should be made available for both staff and families.^291

References

This page was from 6: Child Maltreatment by Paris. in Paris, J. (2021). Health, safety and nutrition. LibreTexts.

For references according to subscript, please see pages 145-161 of the original Health, Safety and Nutrition book (Paris, 2021) on Google Drive.