What Can Be Done To Prevent Child Abuse?

Child abuse is one of those crimes that do not make top news coverage and many probable are asking why that is? What are the contributing factors to child abuse and what can be done to prevent it? All are valid questions but, some are easier to answer than others. Child abuse is happening within the confines of homes which can make it harder to report or to discover. What needs to be understood is that you are dealing with a child. Their minds are still in the process of being developed. There are numerous reasons why children wont report child abuse. The main one is shame or fear from the acting parent. The statistics on child abuse is far from what other countries would consider normal in a developed country such as the United States. It has been discovered that about 4% to 16% of children are physically abused each year in high-income nations, including the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and Canada. Around 15% are neglected, and up to 10% of girls and 5% of boys suffer severe sexual abuse; many more are victims of other sexual injury, (Trauma, Violence, Abuse 2016). These are more than just statistics and formulas. These are children that …show more content…
Also I would like to discuss the routes we can take to identify child maltreatment and abuse before it goes down the long and rough road of full fledge abuse. Abusive behavior comes in many forms and kinds but the common factor is the emotional effect on the child itself. Children need predictability, structure, clear boundaries, and most of all that the parents is looking out for their safety. Abused children cannot predict how their parents will act. Their world is an unpredictable, frightening place with no rules. Whether the abuse is a slap, a harsh comment, stony silence, or not knowing if there will be dinner on the table tonight, the end result is a child that feel unsafe, uncared for, and