Child Abuse

Child Abuse Child Abuse is behavior by and adult that harms a child’s

physical, mental, or emotional health and development. Some types of child

abuse are neglect, and physical abuse. An example of neglect would be

medical neglect. This is where the child does not get the proper medical

attention needed. Some examples of physical abuse would be sexual and

physiological. The American Humane Society estimates that nearly 34 out of

every 1,000 American children are abused in some way. Most children are

too afraid to admit they have been abused; in fact, less than 20 percent of the

cases reported were reported by the child being abused. The number one

cause of child abuse is stress. The maltreatment or abuse of children can lead

to death. Last year, estimated 1,196 child fatalities from maltreatment

occurred. That would mean 3 children would die every day in the United

States from abuse and neglect. Conflicts One of the most frequent and

common conflicts is neglect. This conflict is most frequent in divorce cases

and single parents. The cause of this conflict is because of the single parent is

always at work or busy with their dating/social life. Another conflict is the

maltreatment due to substance-abusing parents. A study in 1999 found that

children of substance-abusing parents were almost 3 times likelier to be

abused and more than 4 times likelier to be neglected than children of parents

who are not substance abusers. Steps to Resolution: 1. Calm down, stop

arguing, and take time to cool-off. 2. Describe the problem, be specific, get

both sides of the story, and separate feelings from the facts. 3. Think of

solutions. Write down every solution that you can think of. 4. Weigh every

solution, think about possible results, and ask yourself: ~What will happen if

we do this? ~Will we both get what we need? ~Who else might be affected

by this choice? 5. Chose one solution and carry it out. Then ask if it has been

working. Resolutions In a situation where a single parent has just come home

from a long, stressful day at work. The child ask for some dinner, and starts

to whine when the parent exclaims he doesn’t have any. The parent gets

agitated and loses it: 1. The parent just needs to calm down and separate

himself from the child until he is calmed. 2. The parent can explain to the child

that he has had a long day at work and did not have time to pick up dinner on

the way home. The child can express his feelings of hunger, and the fact that

he needs something to eat for dinner. 3. They can both sit down,

discuss/write down solutions to getting some dinner. Such as, calling for

delivery pizza or fixing something quick at home. 4. They can weigh the two

solutions, and think of the results and outcomes of each solution. They can

ask themselves the three questions. 5. As they choose the best solution, they

can ask themselves, “Did I get my dinner?”/”Did I provide dinner for my

child?” Resolving conflicts in child abuse can be difficult when someone

looses their temper, but other than that they are fairly easy to prevent and

resolve. Child Abuse Conflicts… Each and every one of us as a moral

responsibility and unfortunately, not enough of us take it.

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