More information on Child
Abuse
A child may be subjected to one or
more forms of abuse at any given time
The severity of a sign does
not necessarily equate with the severity of the abuse.
Severe and potentially fatal injuries are not always
visible. Emotional or psychological abuse tends to be
cumulative and effects may only be observable in the longer
term. Signs or indicators of abuse should be gently explored
with the child; explanations which are inconsistent with the
signs should constitute a cause for concern.
Some signs of abuse are
more indicative than others - these include:
(i) disclosure of abuse and
neglect by a child or young person;
(ii) age-inappropriate or
abnormal sexual play or knowledge;
(iii) specific injuries or
patterns of injuries;
(iv) absconding from home or
a care situation;
(v) attempted suicide;
(vi) under-age pregnancy or
sexually transmitted disease;
(vii) signs in one or more
categories at the same time. For example, signs of
developmental delay, physical injury and behavioral signs
may together indicate a pattern of abuse.
Neglect is as potentially
fatal as physical
abuse. It can cause delayed physical, psychological and
emotional development, chronic ill-health and significant
long-term damage. It may also precede, or co-exist with,
other forms of abuse and must be treated seriously.
Child abuse is not restricted
to any socio-economic group, gender or culture.
All signs must be considered in the wider social and family
context. However serious deficits in child safety and
welfare transcend cultural, social and ethnic norms and must
elicit a response.
1. Physical
Abuse:
Additional information on MSP.
Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy:
This is a condition where parents, usually the mother
(according to current research and case experience),
fabricate stories of illness about their child or cause
physical signs of illness. This can occur where the parent
secretly administers dangerous drugs or other poisonous
substances to the child or by smothering. The symptoms which
alert to the possibility of Munchausen’s Syndrome by Proxy
include the following:
(i) symptoms which cannot be explained by any medical tests;
symptoms never observed by anyone other than the caregiver;
symptoms reported to occur only at home or when a parent
visits a child in hospital;
(ii) high level of demand for investigations of symptoms
without any documented physical signs;
(iii) unexplained problems with medical treatment such as
drips coming out and lines being interfered with;
(iv)
presence of un-prescribed medication or poisons in the blood
or urine.
2. Child Sexual Abuse:
Many experts believe that sexual abuse is the most
under-reported form of child maltreatment because of the
secrecy or conspiracy of silence that so often characterizes
these cases.
See our online brochure ‘Child Sexual Explained (for
concerned parents)
here
Sexual abuse occurs when a child is used by another person
for his or her gratification or sexual arousal or for that
of others. Further examples of child sexual abuse include
the following:
(i) exposure of the sexual organs or any sexual act
intentionally performed in the presence of the child;
(ii) intentional touching or molesting of the body of a
child whether by a person or object for the purpose of the
sexual arousal or gratification;
(iii) masturbation in the presence of the child or the
involvement of the child in an act of masturbation;
(iv) sexual intercourse with the child whether oral,
vaginal, or anal;
(v) Sexual
exploitation of a child includes inciting, encouraging
propositioning, requiring or permitting a child to solicit
for, or to engage in, prostitution or other sexual acts.
Sexual exploitation also occurs when a child is involved in
the exhibition, modeling or posing for the purpose of sexual
arousal, gratification or sexual act, including its
recording (on film, video tape or other media) or the
manipulation, for those purposes, of the image by computer
or other means. It may also include showing sexually
explicit material to children which is often a feature of
the “grooming” process by perpetrators of abuse.
3. Neglect:
Further examples of neglect includes the failure to provide
adequate food, clothing, or hygiene. Not meeting a child's
need for cleanliness, clothing, emotional support, love and
affection, education, nutritious food, clothing, adequate
shelter or safety; Leaving a child unwatched; Leaving a
child in an unsafe place or causing a child to be in a
dangerous situation or place; Not seeking necessary medical
or dental attention for a child; Not having a child attend
school; Not seeking special services for children in need of
educational support.
An example of emotional neglect would be inadequate
nurturing or affection.
Harm
can be defined as the ill-treatment or the impairment of the
health or development of a child.
Neglect generally becomes apparent in different ways
over a period of time
rather than at one specific point. For instance, a child who
suffers a series of minor injuries is not having his or her
needs met for supervision and safety. A child whose ongoing
failure to gain weight or whose height is significantly
below average may be being deprived of adequate nutrition. A
child who consistently misses school may be being deprived
of intellectual stimulation. The threshold of significant
harm is reached when the child's needs are neglected to the
extent that his or her well-being and/or development are
severely affected.
4. Emotional
or Psychological Abuse:
Emotional abuse is more than just verbal abuse. It is an
attack on a child's emotional and social development, and is
a basic threat to healthy human development.
Emotional abuse can take many forms includes verbal abuse,
withholding affection, belittling, extreme punishment and
corruption, ignoring, rejecting, terrorizing, and isolating.
It may also entail the abuser minimizing, or downplaying the
severity of abuse along with the act of invalidation.
Invalidation
is to reject, ignore, mock, tease, judge, or diminish
someone's feelings. It is an attempt to control how they
feel and for how long they feel it.
Emotional abuse is normally to be found in the relationship
between a care-giver and a child rather than in a specific
event or pattern of events. It occurs when a child's need
for affection, approval, consistency and security are not
met. Unless other forms of abuse are present, it is rarely
manifested in terms of physical signs or symptoms. Examples
of emotional abuse of children include:
(i) the imposition of negative attributes on children,
expressed by persistent
criticism, sarcasm, hostility or blaming;
(ii) conditional parenting in which the level of care shown
to a child is made contingent on his or her behaviors or
actions;
(iii) emotional unavailability by the child’s parent or
caregiver;
(iv) unresponsiveness, inconsistent, or inappropriate
expectations of the child;
(v) premature imposition of responsibility on the child;
(vi) unrealistic or inappropriate expectations of the
child's capacity to understand something or to behave and
control himself in a certain way;
(vii) Under or over-protection of the child;
(viii) Failure to show interest in, or provide
age-appropriate opportunities for,
the child’s cognitive and emotional development;
(ix) use of unreasonable or over-harsh disciplinary
measures;
(x) exposure to domestic violence.
Emotional abuse can be manifested in terms of the child's
behavioral, cognitive, affective or physical functioning.
Examples of these include: 'anxious' attachment, non-organic
failure to thrive, unhappiness, low self-esteem, educational
and developmental underachievement, and oppositional
behavior. The threshold of significant harm is reached when
abusive interactions dominate and become typical of the
relationship between the child and the parent or care-giver.
Children with Special Vulnerabilities
Certain children are more vulnerable to abuse than others.
These include children with disabilities and special needs.
In addition children who, for one reason or another, are
separated from parents or other family members and who
depend on others for their care and protection - foster
care, hospitalizations, institutions etc. The same
categories of abuse - neglect, emotional abuse, physical
abuse, sexual abuse - may be applicable, but may take a
slightly different form. For example, abuse may take the
form of deprivation of basic rights, harsh disciplinary
regimes or the inappropriate use of physical constraints.
Challenging behavior
by a child or young person should not render them liable to
abuse. Children in certain circumstances may present
management problems. This should not leave them vulnerable
to harsh disciplinary measures or neglect of care.
It is sometimes difficult to
distinguish between indicators of child abuse and other
adversities suffered by children and families. Deprivation,
stress or mental health problems should not be used as a
justification for omissions of care or commissions of harm
by parents or caregiver. The child’s welfare must be the
primary consideration.
[With special thanks to the
National Guidelines for the Protection
and Welfare of Children
2004
Irish Department of Health and Children]
