Child Abuse and Neglect

Monica L. McCoy, Stefanie M. Keen

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781000453423
• Edition: 3
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Developmental Psychology
• Index: Psychology

Child Abuse and Neglect examines the latest research on this important topic, discussing what it entails, how to recognize it, and how to report it. The book begins with an overview of child maltreatment including its history, a summary of the research, and the risk factors, before exploring issues of mandated reporting. It then considers different forms of maltreatment – physical abuse, neglect, psychological maltreatment, sexual abuse, fetal abuse, and Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome. The authors discuss incidence estimates and consequences, as well as resiliency, for each type of maltreatment, and then review legal issues including forensic interviewing. The book concludes by providing an overview of what happens to a child after a report is filed along with suggestions for preventing child maltreatment.

This edition has been thoroughly updated throughout to cover the latest theory and research. Referencing the DSM-V, the book also features updated coverage of state and federal laws to reflect new legislation, and additional case studies covering real-world events such as the sexual abuse scandals within USA Gymnastics, the Boy Scouts of America, and the Southern Baptist Convention.

Written with students in mind, the book features a wealth of engaging learning tools throughout, including: Theory Highlight boxes, Focus on Research boxes, Case Examples, Legal Examples, Focus on Law boxes, Discussion Questions, and Key Terms. It will be essential reading for all students taking courses on child abuse, child maltreatment, family violence, or sexual and intimate violence taught in psychology, human development, education, criminal justice, social work, sociology, women's studies, and nursing. This book will also be an invaluable resource to workers who are mandated reporters of child maltreatment and/or anyone interested in the problem. This book is based on the legal system and the Child Protection System in the United States of America.

It is accompanied by a set of online instructor resources.

Part IIntroduction/Purpose

1Introduction

DOI: 10.4324/9780429356353-2

The purpose of this textbook is to provide you with an overview of child maltreatment. This umbrella term includes both the abuse and the neglect of children. Child abuse is the term used for acts of commission – things a parent or caretaker does to a child that are inappropriate. Child abuse can include such diverse acts as beating, sexually assaulting, or verbally abusing a child. In each case, the adult is doing something to the child that is defined as maltreatment. Conversely, child neglect is the term used for acts of omission – things a parent or a caretaker fails to do for a child when appropriate care would require that such things be done. Child neglect can include failure to provide for a child’s physical, emotional, medical, or educational needs. In cases of child neglect, the parent fails to provide for the child even the minimum necessary for adequate care. Together, child abuse and child neglect make up child maltreatment. Although most researchers in the field would agree to this terminology, it is important for readers of this literature to note that child abuse is also sometimes used synonymously with child maltreatment. In other words, when some authors write of child abuse, they often mean both abuse and neglect. I also follow this usage largely because abuse is often a less awkward term than is maltreatment. On the other hand, child neglect does not include child abuse, so when you see that term, you can be fairly certain that the focus is on acts of omission. The problem of confusing terminology is something we will need to keep in mind as we explore the literature on child maltreatment. This particular field is plagued with definitional issues. For example, what one author means by “sexual abuse” may be quite different from what another means by the same term. To be as clear as possible, I begin each chapter that focuses on a type of maltreatment by establishing a working definition for that form of maltreatment. When you read other authors’ chapters, you must be attentive to the definitions with which they are working.

Child Maltreatment

The abuse and/or neglect of children. Specific definitions vary by state and purpose (legal, research, etc.).

Child Abuse

An act, generally deliberate, by a parent or a caregiver that results in harm or death to a child.

Child Neglect

The failure of a parent or a caregiver to meet the minimal physical and psychological needs of a child.

Many students become frustrated by the lack of definitional consistency in the field of child maltreatment. Although it does not make the situation any easier to deal with, it is helpful to note that the field is a new one. Certainly, the mistreatment of children is not new; all recorded history includes references to acts we would today define as maltreatment. However, the professional examination of child maltreatment has a fairly short history. Many date the beginning of the professional research in this field to the early 1960s.

A Brief History of Child Maltreatment

Although we definitely hear more about child abuse today than we did in the past, this does not mean it is a new phenomenon. The psychohistorian Lloyd deMause edited The History of Childhood in 1974, which he began with the now-familiar quotation:

The history of childhood is a nightmare from which we have only recently begun to awake. The further back in history one goes, the lower the level of child care and the more likely children are to be killed, abandoned, beaten, terrorized and abused.

(deMause, 1974, p. 1)

Ancient History

Historical research seems to support this rather grim statement. A study of ancient history reveals that infanticide (the act of killing an infant) was practiced in many societies. While we still use this term today, there are two important differences to note between ancient and modern usage. First, modern developmental psychologists define infancy as the period covering only the first year or two of life (Farlex Inc., 2013). In ancient times, the term infancy covered a much longer range, being identified as the period between birth and 7 years. Second, whereas infanticide is clearly illegal today, in ancient times, it was often condoned by society. The historians TenBensel et al., (1997) noted that in ancient times children did not have the right to live until that right was bestowed on them by their father. If the father withheld this right, then the infants were abandoned. In some cases, even fathers could not grant their children the right to live. For instance, the Roman Law of Twelve Tables actually required that any “dreadfully deformed” child be put to death, no matter what the parents’ desires were for that child. Reasons for infanticide included population control, appeasement of god(s), limitation of family size, and a way for an unwed mother to deal with shame. Allowing the murder of infants for any of these reasons suggests that children did not have even the most basic right – the right to life. Children who were permitted to live were considered the property of their fathers. As such, the rule of the father over the child was nearly complete. There is ample evidence that it was even socially acceptable in certain circles in ancient Greece for fathers to allow other men to use their sons sexually (Kahr, 1991). The respected philosopher Aristotle wrote, “The justice of a master or a father is a different thing from that of a citizen, for a son or a slave is property, and there can be no injustice to one’s own property” (as cited in Helfer et al., 1997, p. 5).

Infanticide

The killing of an infant, particularly a newborn.

Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages, laws forbidding infanticide were passed. It is not clear whether the laws were carefully enforced, but the idea was taking hold that the child at least had the right to live. This does not mean that the Middle Ages were a glorious time for children. The widespread poverty of this time made children a liability. There are horrific stories of children who were severely mistreated by their parents in order to bring more money into their household. Some children were actually sold for profit by their own parents. Other children were mutilated so that they would be more effective beggars. Although wealthy strangers may have turned their back on a healthy child who was begging in the streets, it was harder to ignore a child who was blind or missing a limb; therefore, a child who was injured or deformed was likely to have more success on the streets.

Reformation

A dramatic change in the view of children occurred as a result of the Reformation of the 16th century. This religious movement, marked by a rise in Protestantism, had a significant impact on how children were regarded. On a positive note, children were seen as fragile creatures of God who needed to be safeguarded. As persons created in God’s image, they had a soul and the right to life. On the other hand, all humans were born marked with the stain of original sin. These beliefs led to a resurgence of interest in educating children in a way that would overcome the stain of original sin. Parents and teachers were urged to use strict discipline in the hopes of molding children into moral human beings (Stone, 1977). John Robinson, a pastor of the Pilgrim Fathers in the Netherlands, wrote, “Surely there is in all children a stubbornness, and stoutness of mind arising from natural pride, which must in the first place be broken and beaten down” (Stone, 1977, p. 116). The general acceptance of this approach was clear when the birch rod became a symbol of education. The normative view seemed to be an acceptance of the saying “Spare the rod and spoil the child.” Flogging became the normal punishment for any academic lapse, and records of the beatings reveal that they were often quite harsh. Children were whipped, generally with a bundle of birches, on their bare buttocks until they bled. Other teachers used a ferula (a mat piece of wood that had a rounded end with a hole in the middle) to hit students on the hand or mouth, which resulted in a painful blister (Stone, 1977). The beatings extended even into the college years. Students working toward their bachelor’s degree in the early 1600s could be flogged, not only by the college head but also by their deans and even their tutors.

While this paints a very bleak picture of childhood during the Reformation, there is some good news being reported in recent scholarship. Moran and Vinovskis (1986) found that this harsh child-rearing strategy may have been true of the prevailing public opinion, but many parents were resistant to using harsh discipline and instead raised their children with love and affection. This is also an important reminder that at any point in time, there will be great diversity in how children are treated, no matter what the current prevailing public opinion is.

Enlightenment

It was not until the Enlightenment that things begin to improve for children in terms of the generally accepted views of child-rearing. The next shift in how childhood was viewed has been largely attributed to the writings of John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Locke saw children as tabula rasa, which means blank slate. Locke viewed children not as innately flawed, but simply as blank or neutral. If children are tabula rasa, then parents and teachers need only to shape them, to mold them into whatever is good; there is no need to eliminate innate badness. Certainly, this would suggest that a kinder, gentler parent and educator were required. Rousseau’s philosophy went even further by saying that children were noble savages, neither evil nor blank, but endowed with an innate sense of right and wrong. Rousseau believed that a parent’s training would only interfere with a child’s innate, orderly, moral development. Instead of forcing or molding a child, an adult needs to be sensitive to a child’s needs (Berk, 2018). Children should be permitted to grow with very little constraint by parents or teachers.

Tabula Rasa

A blank slate; a mind that has not yet been affected by experiences or impressions.

Industrial Revolution

This shift in the view of human nature, from evil to neutral to good, does not mean that children have been treated gently since the Enlightenment! In fact, some of the saddest stories about the mistreatment of children come from the 19th century and the Industrial Revolution. Although the Industrial Revolution brought relief from hard labor for many, it was merely a new age of abuse for poor children who were brought into the labor force. Even very young children were forced to work long hours in horrific conditions in which they were exposed to occupational hazards.

Some of the most compelling child labor stories in the United States were about the “breaker boys,” who worked in the anthracite coal industry. The job for these boys was to pick impurities, such as slate, out of the coal before it was sold. In order to do this, the boys sat on benches that were suspended over the conveyor belts that carried the coal. They spent their days bent over, picking through the coal in order to remove any impurities. The air was thick with coal dust that settled in their lungs and led to harsh coughs. Their hands were covered with cuts and calluses from dealing with the rough and sharp material. The long days of their work were filled with noise and danger. Boys who fell from their suspended benches suffered burns, cuts, and occasionally death by suffocation. Some adults indicated that the work done by the breaker boys was even more dangerous than working in the mines (Hindman, 2002).

These abuses continued in the United States until child labor laws were passed and enforced. By the late 1800s, advocates for children began pushing for legislation that would protect children. By 1900, all industrialized states had some law that dealt with child labor, but the laws at this time varied substantially in terms of the rules they proposed and the seriousness of their enforcement. This discrepancy led advocates to fight for a federal law to protect children in the workforce. Initial attempts at passing and sustaining a federal child labor law were not successful for a variety of reasons, including charges that they were unconstitutional or that they gave the federal government too much power. The issue was not resolved until 1941, when the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Fair Labor Standards Act, which limited child labor. In many ways, the passing of this federal law was anticlimactic, because most child labor in the United States had been eliminated by that time (Hindman, 2002). Children living in the United States today are well protected by the child labor laws. With only a few exceptions (acting, newspaper delivery, and some types of family businesses), children younger than the age of 14 are not permitted to work. Between the ages of 14 and 15, work for pay is limited by law. When school is in session, young adolescents may work a maximum of 3 hours per day and no more than 18 hours per week. When school is not in session, they can work no more than 40 hours per week. Some dangerous jobs such as coal mining, roofing, and logging may only be done by adults. Although the enforcement of the child labor laws in the United States is not perfect, it is generally considered to be fairly good. These laws were directed at eliminating child maltreatment at work, but they were not relevant to what took place at home.

Looking at maltreatment from a historical perspective can give us hope when we consider how far we have come in protecting children. Although children today still suffer from abuse and neglect, many would argue that the lot of children is far better now than it has ever been. The progress we have made is, to a large degree, the result of the work of child advocates. Although some may judge the response to child maltreatment as too slow and too little, there have always been people who were willing to fight for children, and progress has bee...