So many people today underestimate child abuse. They think it’s just a rare occasion when a parent, guardian, or even a stranger gets out of control; yet child abuse is much more than that. It is estimated that there are about 50,000 reports of child abuse a week (Iannelli 1/1). So many people are oblivious to this horrible but true fact, and we have to do something to stop it. Worldwide, thousands upon thousands of children are abused and neglected (Iannelli 1/1). Spreading knowledge of this horrific problem is the first step to preventing it from happening as much as it does today.
In 2007, the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, or NCANDS, received data from around the country and discovered that children who are younger than one year old are the most vulnerable to child abuse, about 42% (Child 1/1). Young children are especially exposed to child abuse because of their weakness and helplessness. The next largest group of abused and neglected children is one to three year olds. They make up about 33% of abused children. From there, the older the children, the smaller percent of them are abused, where only 6.5% of abused children are twelve to seventeen years of age (Child 1/1). About 33% of abusers were abused as children (Some 1/1). Parents who were abused as children are also very likely to abuse their own kids (Saisan, Segal, and Smith 1/1). A recent study showed that four out of ten imprisoned men and women reported being physically or sexually abused at least once in their lives (Some 1/1). The sad truth is that young children are the most defenseless, exposed, and powerless when it comes to abuse and neglect.
Cause and effect. Someone breaks the rules, they get in trouble. They study hard for the quiz, so they ace it. Someone gets angry, frustrated, or aggravated; a child is most likely whom they go for to release their anger. Although the causes are varied, the effects of child abuse are nearly always devastating (Newton 1/1). It is proven that many children who were abused are highly likely to experience psychological problems well into their adulthood (Newton 1/1). They can range from a broken wrist to the worst imaginable: death. 80% of abused or neglected infants develop some form of attachment disorder (Becker-Weidman 1/1). Abused children are twice as likely to develop any form of anxiety disorder when they grow older, three times more likely to become seriously depressed when they get older, and four times more likely to have issues interacting socially with others (Becker-Weidman 1/1). All these disorders could have been prevented if only the abuser had made the better choice.
Every case is different. It’s unbelievable the multiple ways people abuse children, as well as sickening. There are three basic forms of child abuse: physical, sexual, and emotional (Wynne 1/2). Basic forms of physical abuse include hitting, kicking, and burning. Sexual abuse is the act of raping or sexual contact. Emotional abuse is the act of not physically but verbally criticizing, teasing, mocking, rejecting, or insulting (Saisan, Segal, and Smith 1/1). All of these types of abuse are equally painful to the child.
Even though it’s not always in the news, or an important bulletin on the radio, child abuse is still something important to think about. So many people fail to report abuse because they insist “it’s none of their business” or because of fear that the person they are reporting will become mad at them (Child Abuse: Facts). Poor children are going through things and seeing things that most adults haven’t, which isn’t right at all. Before someone writes a report, they need to have knowledge on the subject if they want to ace it. So, we need some background information about child abuse before we stop it together, which is the only way.