When one thinks of child abuse, the first thing that comes to mind is a child with broken bones and bruises. Although, abuse can be in the form of emotional, sexual, as well as the most obvious, physical abuse. Child abuse is a global problem that victims are too frightened to identify their abusers while others, aware of the abuse, choose to ignore it.
Child abuse is the key reason why children are becoming more emotionally and mentally unstable. The failure to meet a child's needs for attention, affection, and nurturing is the appropriate definition for emotional abuse. This includes verbal assault, close confinement, and/or knowingly permitting antisocial behavior(Child Abuse); it can also be continuous treatment of sibling inequality. In 2005 a study showed that 7.1 percent of children were emotionally abused. This type of abuse is parallel to neglect but deals with the emotional development of a child instead of the withholding care of a child. It's essentially the lack of concern by the parent or caretaker of the child's emotional well-being (Crosson-Tower). Unless one actually sees the emotional abuse directly, it is difficult to observe; in the school setting, children who have been emotionally abused may show signs of delayed development, speech disorders, and failure to thrive syndrome. Emotional abuse can be seen through these behavioral indicators, but in many times, these indicators will not be immediately apparent (Crosson-Tower). A study showed that 80 percent of young adults who have been emotionally abused as children had developed one of more psychiatric disorders by the age of 21 (Consequences).
An act of a person who forces or threatens a child to have any form of sexual contact or to engage in any type of sexual activity at the perpetrator's direction is known as sexual child abuse. It can manifest in numerous ways, including an adult or older child pressuring a younger child to: participate in sexual activities, exposure to private parts, or using a child to create child pornography.
