Emotional Child Abuse

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Emotional abuse can happen to anyone. It is often unrecognized but can have a serious impact on a child’s development into aduthood. Douglas Besharov (as cited in Dubowitz, 2000), author of Recognizing Child Abuse: A Guide for the Concerned, states, “Emotional abuse is an assault on the child’s psyche, just as physical abuse is an assault on the child’s body.” Emotional child abuse and neglect can prevent a child’s cognitive, emotional, psychological or social development (Dubowitz, 2000). Emotional child abuse can include ignoring, rejecting, isolating, exploiting, corrupting, verbal assaulting, terrorizing, and neglect of the child (Dubowitz, 2000). When a child grows up in a household where emotions are not validated, accepted, or responded …show more content…

The child becomes depressed and has a lot of anxiety. This makes that child more likely to abuse alcohol and drugs. They are also more likely to become obese because they overeat as a coping mechanism. Another long-term physical health problem that can occur is acquiring a sexually transmitted disease. This happens because the child is more likely to engage in sexual risk taking as they reach adolescence. This increases the chance of getting a sexually transmitted disease. Parental neglect and abuse can affect the mental and emotional health of the child too. It can be associated with borderline personality disorders, attachment issues, affectionate behaviors, aggression, and inappropriate modeling of adult behavior. …show more content…

There are combinations of factors that wildly affect the out come of the individual. Some factors include the age of the child when the neglect and/or abuse started. The type of abuse and/or neglect the child received (emotional, physical, sexual). How severe, frequent, and the duration of the abuse is a big factor. The relationship between the child and abuser can have an affect on the child’s development. There has been research done to understand why children with similar conditions of abuse and neglect can either have a long-term affect or can go through it completely unharmed. (2013a)
Child abuse and neglect can have lifelong implications for victims, including on their well being. While the physical wounds heal, there are several long-term consequences of experiencing the trauma of abuse or neglect. A child or youth’s ability to cope and even thrive after trauma is called “resilience,” and with help, many of these children can work through and overcome their past experiences.

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