Child abuse is a problem that has to be overviewed in all countries in the world. Many groups and organizations work to maintain community awareness of the problem and to press for measures to eliminate all abusive treatment of children (Schwartz-Kenney et.al25). They also provide support network for victims of abuse and informative material designed to help parents and children recognize abusive behaviors. Very often child abuse goes unreported. Researchers and other professionals in the field of child protection provide their own estimates of the overall incidence of child abuse in the USA to supplement the acknowledged deficiencies in official statistics.
Current legislation on child abuse in the United States establishes definitions of child abuse and provides procedures to be followed in reporting and investigating such reports. Actions to be taken on substantiated cases are also defined within child protection legislation. Abusive treatment can be defined under the following categories: neglect or abandonment, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse. Child pornography is a separate section of child abuse that can take place in many countries, especially poorly developed. The research asserts that different types of child abuse have emotional effect on the child. Children need to be aware that their parents protect them and take care of their safety.
The available information reports that many children have been maltreated or abused by adults for many centuries, and many of the behaviors now considered abusive were acceptable within patriarchal societies (Schwartz-Kenney et.al105). Over the centuries, more of the some extreme forms of child abuse gradually became unacceptable. In 1959, the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of the Child was founded. From then, the physical and psychological maltreatment of children was one of the most abhorrent abuses that could occur in any nation. Though this legislation has not become a guarantee of child`s protection against different forms of abuse and neglect. According to the research, during the last decades a great number of American children are scared to be killed in their own families. This is evidence that the USA has the worst record of child abuse among highly-developed industrial countries in the world. Many studies report that many mothers kill their infants more often than their fathers.
The research reports that physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and emotional/psychological abuse are four major types of child abuse. Physical abuse is hurting a child by beating, choking, kicking, stabbing, throwing and other types of punishment. These actions frighten children to return home. Neglect can include failing to provide for a child`s basic needs, such as bad food, lack of affection, lacks medical care, clothing, education, etc. it is often observed in poor families, where parents are addicted to drugs or alcohol. Sexual abuse means sexual exploitation of children. This includes sexual acts with children, incest, rape, sodomy, child prostitution or pornography. Emotional abuse includes child`s constant criticism, a lack of attention, support, love and affection. This kind of attitude leads, as a rule, to delays in physical or emotional development, suicide attempts, low self-esteem and many other psychological problems. Emotional abuse is usually combined with other types of child abuse.
In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that child abuse is a problem that has to be solved by the authorities and governments. Many groups and organizations work to maintain community awareness of the problem and to press for measures to eliminate all abusive treatment of children (Schwartz-Kenney et.al25). Researchers and other professionals in the field of child protection provide their own estimates of the overall incidence of child abuse in the USA to supplement the acknowledged deficiencies in official statistics.
