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Effects of child abuse on cognitive development
Psychological factors to child abuse
Effects of child abuse on cognitive development
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Child Physical Abuse: A Social Learning Theory and Cognitive Deficiency Approach
Christo van Bree
Crime in Context
Child physical abuse is a crime that still occurs all too often in our society. With approximately 320,000 cases of physical child abuse annually, the crime accounts for the majority of reported abuse, surpassing both sexual and emotion abuse (Finkelhor et al., 2005). Furthermore, the incidence of child physical abuse has failed to show a significant increasing or decreasing trend throughout the past decades, following a constant trajectory instead (Sedlak et al., 2010). When we ask ourselves why some parents abuse their children and others do not, we should not expect to find a uniform answer. There has until yet not been a single risk factor that invariable causes the perpetration of child physical abuse, but researchers have identified a number of risk factors that show a link with the incidence of child physical abuse.
The aim of this paper is to identify some of these risk factors with a focus on social and psychological as possible explanations. We will focus our attention on Social Learning Theory and Cognitive Theories that have identified a number of individual risk factors that increase
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The NIS classifies children as physically abused if they suffered at least a moderate injury from physical abuse. Moderate injuries are defined as physical, mental, or emotional injuries or conditions (or behavior problems) resulting from physical abuse which are serious enough to persist in observable form for at least 48 hours. Examples include bruises, nightmares, depression, and
Every year, child abuse and neglect affect more than one million children nation-wide (Currie and Tekin 1). Along with this, child abuse is the source of severe injury to more than 500,000 children and the death of over 1,500 children (Currie and Tekin 1). These outrageously large numbers reveal the extent to which child abuse and neglect impact society; however, they do not acknowledge the effect abuse can have on a child’s life and the repercussions that may occur in both the individual’s childhood and adulthood. While the effects most certainly include physical pain and possibly future disabilities, child abuse and neglect can also affects the child’s psychological welfare. Psychological effects are often more difficult to recognize, yet because certain research has been conducted, their impact on previous victims of child abuse and neglect can be determined. One of the many questions that have been extensively researched involve the connection between the psychological effects that take their toll on those previously subject to child abuse or neglect and crime that the victim commits later in his or her life. Although child abuse and neglect do not necessarily lead to crime, those who are subject to either form of maltreatment are at a significantly greater risk for partaking in criminal activity in adulthood; this idea can be supported by psychological theories, behavioral and emotional effects, and experimental data.
Child maltreatment is prevalent. A considerable proportion of young adults reported having been maltreated, neglected, or abused as children. One in five reported having been left alone at a time when a parent should have been supervising them on three or more occasions. About fourteen percent reported having been physically assaulted (slapped, kicked, or hit) three or more times. One in 20 reported having been left without basic needs (food, clothing, or cleaning) three or more times. About 1 in 25 (4.5%) report having been sexually abused by a parent or guardian on three or more instances by the time they entered the sixth grade (Hussey, Chang, & Kotch, 2006).
The visual aid included in this paper is to contrast the environment in which I was raised with the environment I will work in partnership with my spouse to create for our future children. Clearly, through critical examination I can conclude that not all children who are exposed to psychological maltreatment, demonstrate the same level of resiliency that I have demonstrated. Instead, many of the children raised in environments with varying levels of psychological maltreatment are at risk of engaging in criminal activity, experiencing cognitive and or emotional disabilities and continuing the cycle of violence with their own children (Feldman & Landry, 2012). The cycle of violence hypothesis theories that individuals who were abused as children, are more likely to choose to model the abusive behaviour they have learned when disciplining or interacting with their own children (Feldman & Landry 2012). By applying the Social-Cognitive Learning Theory to the experience mentioned in this paper, I can reaffirm that behaviour is learned through the observation of others, thus, parents are primary figures in modelling behaviour that will be demonstrated in the future. Social-Cognitive psychologist Alberta Bandura postulated that through observation, that children often model the observed behaviour of another and they
With physical violence in mind, recognizing the signs of abuse can be quite difficult. Statisticbrain.com states, “17.6% of all child abuse cases have to do with physical maltreatment, and 80.8% of the perpetrators were the child’s parent or parents” (“Child Abuse Statistics”). Then, suspicion often arises when the parent’s exp...
The sociological theory founded by Albert Bandura called Social Learning Theory can explain why a child who observes an abusive parent (or whoever they regularly associate with) transgress in violence will result in the child imitating this violent behavior in the future. Social Learning Theory emphasizes observational learning by direct experience and through the model of humans. Observational learning takes the form of three different models: the demonstration of an actual individua...
The early childhood years are a period of rapid change in the brain, this leaves children exceptionally vulnerable to psychological abuse. Psychological abuse includes rejecting, ignoring, criticizing, belittling, humiliating, threatening with violence, or otherwise terrorizing the child, all of which have the effect of eroding the child's self-esteem and sense of security. Psychological abuse can come as a result of actions that do not specifically target the child. Studies show that children who have experienced domestic violence are more anxious and insecure then those who do not. Children who observe violence react with many of the same psychological symptoms as children who have experienced it directly. Psychological abuse is often accompanied by other forms of abuse. It is difficult to prove, however, and rarely is
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 3.3 million referrals for alleged maltreatment were made in 2013. Out of the 3.3 million referrals, 899,000 children were officially documented as being maltreated(Child Abuse & Neglect 2015). Child abuse is the mistreatment of a child. Child abuse is recognized in several forms; physical, emotional, sexual and neglect. Children who experience any form of abuse will tend to withdraw themselves from their peers and sometimes from other family members who are not aware of what is taking place. Child abuse occurs not just in the homes of these children, but can also occur in schools, churches and after school programs. Anywhere a child is present there is a chance that abuse can occur. This paper will review the forms of child abuse, the effects of child abuse, reasons child abuse occurs and possible therapies to bring healing in the parties involved.
Children today are likely to experience or witness violence at home. Researchers are concerned about the effect domestic violence has on children, and has prompted researchers to conduct an increasing number of investigations into this issue. Social learning theory and Erikson's theory of basic trust are two tools used to predict aggressive behavior in children.
Psychological maltreatment, like many other forms of abuse can also be passed down through intergenerational transmission. It is not unlikely for parents to psychologically mistreat their children due to their own past or childhood experiences with psychologically abuse. For example, it is not uncommon during the course of an investigation of physiological maltreatment that it is discovered that the perpetrator had their own form of abuse history in the past. Often time’s people look at psychological maltreatment as a consequence resulting from some other form of abuse, mainly physical and sexual, but tend to overlook the fact that it may also occur as an individual form. Psychological maltreatment can take more than one form. During the course of researching for this paper I learned that there are three typical forms of behavior in which people follow when displaying this type of abuse against children. The three types are acting in an aggressive, rejecting, and lessening
Child maltreatment can affect any child, usually aged 0-18, and it occurs across socioeconomic, religious, ethnic or even educational backgrounds. Arguably, child abuse and neglect is a violation of basic human rights of a child resulting from social, familial, psychological and economic factors (Kiran, 2011). Familial factors include lack of support, poverty, single parenthood, and domestic violence among others, (McCoy and Keen, 2009). The common types of child maltreatment include physical abuse, emotional maltreatment, neglect, and sexual abuse among others. Abuse and neglect can lead to a variety of impacts on children and young people such as physical, behavioral as well as psychological consequences which will affect the development and growth of the child either positively or negatively based on the environment and agency. More so, emotional, cognitive and physical developmental impacts from child neglect in the early stages of childhood can be carried on into adulthood. Research findings reveal that the experience of maltreatment can cause major long-term consequences on all aspects of a child’s health, growth as well as intellectual development and mental wellbeing, and these effects can impair their functioning as adults. Commonly, the act of abuse/ or neglect toward a child affects the child’s physical, behavioral development and growth, which can be positive or negative, depending on the child’s environment and agency. Another way to understand how the act has affected the child is to look at the child for who they are, and interviewing and observing their behaviors of their everyday life.
The physical abuse of children covers a wide range of actions from what some might term ‘justifiable chastisement’ such as slapping or spanning to the sort of actions which most would agree constitute deliberate, sadistic cruelty against children.
When the topic of abuse comes up, many different forms of abuse pop into individuals heads. Whether its Physical abuse, sexual abuse, verbal abuse or even drug abuse, the list just keeps going. Now take all those different forms abuse and imagine them happening in a family. A father physically abusing his children, a mother verbally berating her daughter about her body image, a child growing up in fear. According to the research by David Wolfe in the Journal of Consulting and clinical Psychology, that the number of children that have suffered a physical injury due to physical abuse is between 1.4 and 1.9 million annually. With such a high number of physical abuse happening to children, one can imagine how high the number of all the
Violence within families often reflects behaviours learned by children from their parents. A theory is that violent behaviour is passed down from generation to generation through families (Cole & Flanagin, Pg. 2). The majority of Americans are subjected to corporal punishment at one point or another during their lifetime(Kandel, Pg. 4). Surveys suggested that almost all American parents used physical punishment at one point or another and the punishment was regared as an appropriate child rearing technique. Another survey also suggested that some psychologists belive physical punishment to be an effective and useful socialization tool(Kandel, Pg. 2). Aggression is commonly conceived as existing on a continuum, ranging from very severe parental aggression to much milder and normal parental aggression, such as use of corporal or physical punishment(Kandel, Pg. 1). A common concern is that parental use of physical punishment will lead to aggressive behaviour in children.
According to the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) (n.d.), the causes of child abuse are 1) poverty, 2) less education, 3) unemployment, 4) changes in address, 5) marital problems, 6) lack of support, and 7) isolation. These factors are not only individual problems, but also social problems. Also, factors are considered to be interrelated to each other. For instance, parents in poverty are at higher risk of abused their children because they are more likely to struggle with economic problems because of unemployment. They are less likely to have stable jobs because of lack of education.
Child abuse is one of the highest growing social problems in the United States. A social problem is, “a condition that a significant number of people believe to be a problem. A condition in which there is a sizable difference between the ideals of a society and its actual achievements” (Coleman et al. 2006:2). However, society has changed the way it views the issue, and is working towards finding a solution to this awful problem. Child abuse encompasses four main areas: physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect. Child abuse is considered a sociological phenomenon because it is a learned behavior. Learning the social patterns as to why people abuse will give a better understanding to its reasons, and also the development of society in the way that it views children. 3.6 million children were victims of abuse in the year 2006. Sixty four percent were victims of neglect, sixteen percent suffered from physical abuse, and eight percent were sexually abused. Also in 2006, 1,530 children died as a result of abuse; an average of four children everyday (Child Welfare Information Gateway 2008).