Domestic Violence And Child Abuse

What is child abuse? From the word “abuse” we can understand that it is some sort of a maltreatment of a child, causing harm and damage both to his physical and psychological well-being. At the Federal level, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) describes child abuse and neglect as: “any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation, or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm.” Child abuse is a very substantial and widely spread problem in U.S. affecting children of any age, gender, race, background or income, with almost 3 million cases reported every year and on average, killing more than 4 children every day . The main issue of child abuse is that the abuser is usually someone a child loves or depends on (a parent, step-parent, sibling, coach, neighbor, etc.), who violates child’s trust putting personal interests first, therefore official numbers of how many children suffer maltreatment might be not accurate enough as remarkable amount of these cases go unreported. Each case of child abuse is unique, with a lot of individual factors involved, nevertheless, we can distinguish some of the common causes, such as poverty, lack of education, depression, mental or physical health problems, alcohol/drug addictions, social isolation, marital problems, insecure attachments between a parent and a child, etc.

Child abuse is epidemic in many countries as well as the United States. It is estimated that every thirteen seconds a child is abused in some manner: physically, sexually, emotionally or by neglect (Friedman). Each year, there are over 3 million reports of child abuse in the United States involving more than 6 million children. Child abuse can be reduced with proper education of the parents and with greater public awareness.

What is child abuse? From the word “abuse” we can understand that it is some sort of a maltreatment of a child, causing harm and damage both to his physical and psychological well-being. At the Federal level, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) describes child abuse and neglect as: “any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation, or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm.” Child abuse is a very substantial and widely spread problem in U.S. affecting children of any age, gender, race, background or income, with more than 1.8 million investigations done every year and on average, killing more than 5 children every day. The main issue of child abuse is that the abuser is usually someone a child loves or depends on (a parent, sibling, coach, neighbor, etc.), who violates child’s trust putting personal interests first, therefore official numbers of how many children suffer maltreatment might be not accurate enough as remarkable amount of these cases go unreported. Each case of child abuse is unique, with a lot of individual factors involved, nevertheless, we can distinguish some of the common causes, such as poverty, lack of education, depression, mental or physical health

The United States has been fighting the war against child abuse since the first case of child abuse in 1874 that included a child being beaten and chained against her will (Meadows, 2014). Many people hear the words child abuse and think of physical abuse. While, many people are correct in thinking of physical abuse, an “Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE)” study done by the CDC shows that although physical abuse is the leading form of child abuse, emotional or psychological abuse is the second leading form of child abuse (2014). Although one would think sexual abuse along with physical abuse would be the prominent form of abuse, this is not the case. One of the major reasons emotional neglect is more prominent than sexual abuse is due to the fact that emotional abuse is not being overlooked as often as it used to. In fact, it is now being seen as the gateway to physical and sexual abuse (Garbarino, Guttman, & Seeley, 1988). The amounts of consequences that come from being abused as a child are countless as well as life changing, some of these life-changing effects were identified by the CDC as drug abuse, sexual transmitted diseases, suicidal thoughts, and difficulty learning (2014).

Millions of adults each year in the USA are affected by intimate partner violence (IPV). “The National Violence Against Women (NVAW) survey conducted from November, 1995 to May, 1996 indicates that each year an estimated 8.5 million intimate partner victimizations occur among the US population ages 18 and older” (Fang & Corso, 2008, p. 303). “As recognition of IPV as a serious societal problem increases, more attention has been directed to risk and protective factors for IPV perpetration, especially the link between child maltreatment, victimization and future perpetration of IPV” (Fang & Corso, 2008, p. 303). More than 80 percent of all victims are maltreated by one or both parents. Several studies have found that children who have experienced child maltreatment (neglect, physical abuse, or sexual abuse) are more likely as adults to conduct IPV. Of these children, 54 percent suffered neglect, while almost a quarter, 23 percent, suffered physical abuse and nearly 12 percent of the victims were sexually abused (Fang & Corso, 2008).

It is estimated that between 10 and 20 percent of children in the United States are exposed to domestic violence annually (Carrell & Hoekstra, 2010). What are the thoughts and feelings of children who are exposed to violence within the home? Children who are exposed to domestic violence can become fearful and anxious. They tend to be on guard, watching and waiting for the next event to occur, a sense of hypervigilance. What are the outcomes of these children as they get older? Does the cycle of abuse continue as adults? The answers to these questions will be further discussed in this paper.

Unfortunately, seven years have now passed and Aaron now has a domestic violence (DV) criminal case pending as well as a possible child abuse case for the abuse of his son. It seems that Aaron has been having a lot of problem lately with the law as well as personal. However, those problem didn’t just start because as a child he had two adjudications of delinquency and served six months in a juvenile detention center for his actions. Yet, he did not learn his lesson from his younger actions and has now been arrested four times for aggravated assault as well as domestic battery that led to one conviction. Furthermore, he has been arrested two times for driving under the influence (DUI), and one of his DUI cases is slated for trial in three months. Therefore, he may be facing another conviction as well as some time in jail and fines once again for the DUI.

Child abuse and neglect is a national problem which has increased to epidemic proportions in the United States. More than 2.5 million reports of child abuse are made in the United States annually with over hundreds of deaths related to child abuse that has been reported each year. In 2013, an estimation of 1,520 children died from abuse in the United States. In that same year, Children’s Advocacy Centers around the country had served nearly 295,000 child victims of abuse, providing victim with support to these children and their families. Moving to 2014 this number was maxed to over 315,000. An estimation of 679,000 children were victims of abuse. There were 47 out of the 50 states that reported approximately 3.1 million children who received preventative services from Child Protective Services agencies in the United States. In the first year of a child 's life it was the highest rate of victimization of 23.1 per 1,000 children in the national population of the same age. Of the children who experienced abuse, nearly 80% sufficer neglect; 18% suffered physical abuse; and 9% suffered sexual abuse.

Child abuse is the “saddest and most tragic problem” in the United States today (Child Abuse). Every year more than 3 million reports of child abuse are made in the United States involving more than 6 million children. Victims range from ages of a few weeks to late teenage years.

Domestic Violence is violence between intimate partners. Intimate partners can be people who live together or people who are currently dating or have dated in the past. “Perhaps a better definition of domestic violence is emotional abuse, physical abuse, or sexual abuse between people who have at some point in time had an intimate or family relationship.” (AAETS). Emotional abuse is when an intimate partner has continuously criticized you, manipulated you with lies, and humiliated you in public or private. Physical abuse is when an intimate partner has hit you, thrown objects at you, or threatened to hit you with a weapon. Sexual abuse is when an intimate partner has criticized you sexually, raped you, or insisted on touching you

What is considered “Domestic Violence”? Can just about anyone claim they are victims of Domestic Violence or is there certain types of people that classify for it? Not anyone can claim domestic violence, one must have actual proof of being beaten or abused. Domestic violence is a pattern of behavioral or mental abuse, which involves acts of violence by one person against another in a domestic context, such as in marriage. Intimate partner violence is domestic violence against a spouse or other intimate partner. Domestic violence can take place in heterosexual or same-sex relationships. Domestic violence can also take a number of different forms. While some of them include, but don’t always limit to physical, emotional, verbal, economic and sexual abuse. They can range from marital rape to violent physical abuse that results in disfigurement or death. Awareness, perception, definition and documentation of domestic violence differs widely from country to country. There may be a cycle of abuse during which tensions rise and an act of violence is committed, followed by a period of reconciliation and calm. Not that many people know that they can seek out help, some are afraid that if they go out and tell people they are being abused either the abuser will either abuse them more than they already are being abused or even possibly kill them. These are some general facts and statistics based upon people who are abused and people who are not.

According to WHO (2017), child maltreatment sometimes referred to as child abuse and neglect, it includes all forms of physical and emotional ill-treatment, sexual abuse, neglect and exploitation that cause an acute or potential harm to the child’s health, growth, development, and dignity. Child abuse and maltreatment are one of the biggest issues in child health. According to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), in 2015, an estimated 1,670 children died from child abuse and neglect in the USA. Victimization rates were highest among the youngest population of children from birth to 3 years. Children in their 1st years of life had the highest rate of victimization at 24.2 per 1,000 children of the same age in the national population (DHHS, 2017).

Child abuse has been defined as, any intentional act that results in physical or emotional harm to a child. This could cover any behavior from assault, to neglect, to molestation. (Encarta 1) In 1995, a study was done by the National Center on Child Abuse & Neglect. They concluded that in the United States alone, approximately 3 million children are victims of some sort of maltreatment each year. This means that an unimaginable amount of our county’s adolescents are being seriously mistreated, and the numbers are rising steadily. While the specific definition of child abuse may differ from state to state, the effects unfortunately do not. Physical maltreatment, neglect and sexual abuse create immediate

Domestic violence is defined as “a pattern of behavior which involves violence or other abuse by one person against another in a domestic setting, such as in marriage or cohabitation” (Domestic Violence , n.d.) Domestic abuse has serious long term consequences, and can affect anyone. Whether you are a man or woman, rich or poor, black or white, domestic abuse still occurs, it is predominately impoverished women who cannot afford a good lawyer and feel they have no way out. These women are scared and have no money or means to defend themselves. There is a big elephant in the room when it come to domestic violence, women are too embarrassed to talk about it, and often those aware don’t know what to say so they ignore it. Unfortunately, domestic abuse against women does not stop once she gathers up enough courage to leave her abuser, the abuse continues by means of emotional trauma, custody battles, and difficulty in the system.

Adolescence, the stage in life that while not yet adults they are not quite children either. A factor that creates violent and aggressive adolescents includes being exposed to child abuse and domestic abuse. Moylan, T. Herrenkohl, Sousa, Tajima, R. Herrenkohl, and Russo (2010) look at the relationship between those who were exposed to either child abuse, domestic abuse, or both and the outcome of aggressive adolescents. Families were first assessed when children were in preschool, eighteen months to six years old. The second data collection occurred when the children were eight to eleven years old. The final assessment occurred when the children were fourteen to twenty three years old. Assessments included searching official records of abuse cases, the mother’s statements as to the discipline used during the time of childhood, and how the adolescents look back and view the discipline their mother gave them. It was concluded that adolescents that were exposed to either child abuse, domestic abuse, or both had higher rates of behavioral problems such as internalizing or externalizing aggression. Rates were even higher when adolescents were exposed to a combination of abuse. This study provides evidence that even at an older age of adolescence exposure to domestic and child abuse can do everlasting harm, social service systems could use studies like this one to implement more coping groups for those children that came from environments of aggression as stated in the article.