A child can be described as a younger person from either gender or sexes. According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, a child is defined as a person who is below the age of 18 years old. These minors do always have limited rights and consent to various issues and in most cases are in the care of responsible adults. Instances have been recorded where these minors have had to undergo abuse or maltreatment from those responsible in taking care of them thus leading to child abuse (Corby, Shemmings & Wilkins, 2012). Therefore, child abuse can be described as an emotional, physical or sexual mistreatment of children. It could also refer to failure to act or an act by a caregiver or parent that leads to potential or actual harm to children. The maltreatment can assume various forms such as neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse and psychological abuse. It has been noted that these abusive acts tend to take place in the community, organizations, schools and even homes where these children live.
There has been limited recorded threshold that could define actions resulting into child abuse. Social, professional and cultural groups tend to have varied opinion over what actions amount to child abuse. The society has been in the forefront to condemn acts such as child soldier, child labor and trafficking as the ones qualifying for child abuse forgetting that certain forms of the vice are going on right in the homes. Social and cultural orientations are responsible for aggravating the divide and confusing the society even further. Some communities view cultural practices of the others as amounting to child abuse and regarding their practices as superior to the others (Mathews & Bross, 2015). Some cultures promote child marriages, female genital mutilation, and discrimination that according to the United Nations and other international organizations regard as child abuse. It is evident that almost every society has its definition of a child. It is the source of the ongoing contentious debate over the appropriate age that defines a child and what actions amount to child abuse (Jenny, 2011). It is against this backdrop that the paper seeks to identify, examine, inquire more deeply the controversy and suggest possible solutions to the of child abuse.
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World Health Organization recognizes four types of child abuse namely neglect physical, emotional and psychological abuse. Physical abuse refers to the deliberate use of physical force against a child that could lead impair or cause harm to a child’s dignity, health, survival and development. The force could assume any of the following forms, burning, poisoning, hitting, suffocating, strangling and beating. Experts agree that this form of abuse do take place when perpetrators intend to instill some form of punishment to the child. In the event they end up hurting the children and thus posing serious harm to the children (Srivastava, 2013).
Sexual abuse is the other form of child maltreatment that is widely evident. It could assume the form of child pornography, displaying pornographic material to children, indecent exposure of the genitals of children, or contact by an adult to generate sexual stimulation. Any sexual activity that involves a child’s participation could qualify for child abuse because children lack consent over such issues until they reach the age of 18 years. The vice is also common in politically instable nations where war is a common phenomenon. In such areas women and children tend to be the victims of rape. Sexual abuse has been shown to be devastating among its victims (Corby, Shemmings & Wilkins, 2012). Apart from risks of contracting sexual infections other devastating effects of sexual abuse are nightmares, guilt, post traumatic stress disorder, self esteem difficulties, flashbacks and self blame. A certain survey in India revealed that out of the 76% of sexual abuse cases that occurred during childhood, 40% of them had been perpetrated by a family member (Mathews & Bross, 2015). The findings are shocking and that is why caution should not only be focused on strangers but also family members.
Psychological abuse on the other hand could refer to an abusive act in the form symbolic or nonverbal behavior that has the potential to cause psychological harm. These acts could lead to a feeling of worthlessness, unloved, endangered or unwanted among the affected children. It could otherwise impair their ability to participate in other activities. Empirical evidence has shown that psychological abuse could lead to the production of negative traits like rude attitude, routine labeling and excessive demands (Jenny, 2011). Therefore, it is evident that psychological torture among children cause s similar potential harm to growth and development of the child. It is crucial because it tends to affect the personality of the child.
Neglect as a form of child abuse refers to lack of a caregiver, guardian or parent to provide basic needs to the child. These basic needs could be items such as food, clothing and shelter. Other necessities include medical care, and monitoring to ensure that the child’s health, wellbeing and safety are not compromised. It could also refer to the ignorance of the child by those in the surrounding. Therefore, an abuse that results into lack of nurture, attention and love could amount to a charge of neglect to those in charge of a child’s growth and development. Neglect has further been divided into the following categories; abandonment, supervisory, physical, emotional, medical and educational neglects (Mathews & Bross, 2015). Studies have shown that abuse in form of neglect tend to cause emotional disconnect among victims thus causing them to have difficulties in maintaining and forming relationships in their adults.
Multiple factors have been attributed to child abuse ranging from individual to societal factors. At the individual level personal history, sex and age have been linked as contributive factors that influence child abuse. Societal factors that have been implicated are cultural norms, inadequate safety nets and economic inequality. Family orientations have been shown to contribute to child abuse. Families marred by violence whereby spouses tend to abuse one another are likely to experience child abuse. Most cases the child might suffer neglect or even physical violence because of mistreatment from one of the parents. In the event the parents separate the effects will be conspicuous and the child might suffer more abuses. Another form of abuse result when parents set targets or expectations that are above the child’s ability. In the event the child fails to meet the target, he or she might experience neglect or physical abuse from the parents (Corby, Shemmings & Wilkins, 2012).
Unintended pregnancies have also been shown to result into multiple abuses. The most common form of abuse is neglect. These pregnancies are always associated with unhealthy relationships that lead to violence among lovers which could also be extended to the child. Another impact of such pregnancies is poor mental and maternal health that tends to adversely affect growth and development of the child. Such relationships also lead to insufficient mother to child relationship because most mothers tend to have limited time with their children thus leading to emotional and supervisory neglects (Srivastava, 2013).
Physical ability has also been shown to be a determining factor in child abuse. Those that are disabled tend to be at risk of almost every form of abuse. Several studies have shown that the disabled children tend to be at risk of child abuse because they lack ability to defend themselves during such acts. The mentally and the physically disabled have been shown to be the highest victims of sexual violence. Perpetrators find an easy time with them because they least can tell or comprehend what happens to children (Mathews & Bross, 2015).
Substance abuse is the other factor that has implicated in child abuse. Parents or individuals who engage in substance abuse are likely to mistreat children compared to their counterparts. Studies have associated abuse of cocaine to sexual abuse while alcohol to physical abuse. Experts also believe that some people engage in substance abuse to forget past injustices inflicted on them. As a result the also end up abusing others. Poverty has also been implicated because it contributes to several social vices. It has been shown that it is the number one contributor of neglect that drives children into other forms of vice like child trafficking and child labour (Reece, 2000).
In a bid to solve the issue of child abuse that is prevalent in the society, various mechanisms need to be put in place. One such remedy would be to set up support group structures that would help monitor and reinforce parenting skills. It can be achieved by incorporating personnel like nurses and social workers to help in taking care of children. Programs should also be incorporated in the school curriculum that aims towards teaching the children safety measures from perpetrators. Accordingly, this will help in creating awareness among the minors and empower them to take control of their security from those with the intention of abusing them (Jenny, 2011).
International awareness ought to be promoted in order to sensitize communities that still hold on to practices that undermine children safety. Organizations like the World Health Organization, United Nations and other related organizations should lead the pack in creating global awareness in demystifying and eliminating stereotypes associated with children abuse. It could only be achieved by reaching out to communities that still practice child marriages and female genital mutilation (Corby, Shemmings & Wilkins, 2012). Adequate funding should also be channeled towards these programs in order to reach out to those neglected children in the society.
In conclusion, it is evident that the source of the contention is largely attributed to cultural difference. These cultural orientations tend to define the child in the society, prescribe punishments in the society and actions that could amount to child abuse. It is also evident that what the western culture considers an abuse to children is different from the Asians, and even to the Africans. Therefore, efforts should be geared towards coming up with international standards that govern child protection and promote awareness in order to come up with harmonized and widely accepted standards. Accordingly, this could help reduce cases of child abuse that is prevalent in the society.
References
Corby, B., Shemmings, D., & Wilkins, D. (2012). Child Abuse: An Evidence Base For Confident Practice . Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Education.
Jenny, C. (2011). Child abuse and neglect: Diagnosis, treatment, and evidence . St. Louis, Mo: Saunders/Elsevier.
Mathews, B., & Bross, D. C. (2015). Mandatory reporting laws and the identification of severe child abuse and neglect . Dordrecht: Springer.
Reece, R. M. (2000). Treatment of child abuse: Common ground for mental health, medical, and legal practitioners . Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Srivastava, R. N. (2013). Child abuse and neglect: Challenges and opportunities . New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers.
