Child Maltreatment in the United States - Case Study Example

Families, Delinquency, & Crime “Child Maltreatment in the United s” of SOC 428 September 26, 2008 Introduction Child Maltreatment, or Child Abuse as recognized in the community, is a dynamic process that takes place in the child and the parents’ interaction and with the community (Andrew, 2004). It occurs when a parent’s need for control heightens into uncontrollable behaviors and the child regains control that also becomes out of control. In this paper, child abuse is proven to be prevalent in our society with the use of statistical data which showed how child abuse is transmitted across generations. Familial abuse and extra-familial sexual abuse are also discussed along with their etiologies. Moreover, theories of delinquent behaviors are also identified. One possible reason why children engage in anti-social behaviors is the absence and inadequacy of parent concern and support that children need. Part A Prevalence of Child Maltreatment in the United States There are far too many children who are terribly abused and mistreated in the United States today (Chang, Hussey, & Kotch 2006). Its estimated number is nearly 1 million and 18, 000 suffered from permanent disabilities. The child protective services (CPS) in the United States collectively faces more than 50, 000 referrals concerning children who are abused and neglected (National CASA Association, 2005). According to the year 2006 statistics of the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), the four most prevalent types of maltreatment are supervision neglect, physical assault, physical neglect, and sexual abuse. Supervision neglect was common with 41.5% of the respondents due to their parents or adult caregivers abandoning them at home alone when they need adult supervision (Chang, Hussey, & Kotch 2006). The second prevalent type was physical assault or “being slapped, hit or kicked” by a parent or adult caregiver with 28.4%. Physical neglect or a circumstance, where a parent or adult caregiver did not meet the basic needs of the child, is the third most common type of abuse, accounted in 11.8% of the respondents. And lastly, the fourth most prevalent type of abuse is sexual abuse with a percentage of 4.5% due to the sexual penetration done by a parent or other adult caregiver. Prevalence of the Cycle of Child Abuse in our Society The National Incidence Study (NIS), another major source of US maltreatment data, suggested that each year, 2.3% to 4.2% of US children are maltreated. In 1986 to 1993, it was estimated that child abuse has risen in an average of almost 10% per year and 149% in 1980 to 1993. Two of the enormous growths of the most prevalent type of child abuse were physical abuse, with 102% or almost 15% per year, and sexual abuse, with 83% or almost 12% per year. Transference of Child Abuse Among Generations The rising prevalence of child abuse can be caused by the transmission of abusive behavior across generations. Several children learn violent behaviors from their parents or adult caregivers (Encarta, 2008; Keith, n.d.). The cycle of child abuse usually begins in the early years of the child and “progressively” worsens as the child grows older. Many studies have shown that 30% of these abused children tend to grow up to be abusive children while only 2 to 3 percent of all children grow up to be abusive parents. Familial and Extra-Familial Sexual Abuse Etiologies Sexual Abuse is one of the most prevalent types of child abuse in the United States (Chang, Hussey, & Kotch 2006; Crosson-Tower, 1999). The two classification of sexual abuse is based on the identity of the person responsible for child abuse. Familial Abuse or incest is a sexual abuse characterized by a blood relative, a surrogate parent, or older siblings while the other type is the Extra-Familial Abuse when a child is perpetrated outside the child’s family. However, there is a question why there are children who are abused while others are not (Crosson-Tower, 1999). Abuse done inside the family is usually caused by social isolation. There are millions of children who become victims of sexual abuse because they are left alone, unsupervised, and who does not have physical presence of parents, friends and neighbors. The mother of the child is also a factor because of her absence, emotionally detachment, sexually addictedness, unfinished school, and self-isolation. There are also other factors such as low income household, alcohol intake of the parent/s, and other emotional and mental problems. In Extra-Familial type of sexual abuse, most children are molested by acquaintances or strangers and some are abused to use in sexual trafficking, pornography, prostitution and other forms of misuse of adult power (Crosson-Tower, 1999). This kind of sexual abuse often happens for the same reason as the familial type: lack of parental judgment or poor adult supervision. Causes of Delinquent Behaviors Among Children The risk factors associated with the increased probability that children will engage in delinquency behaviors have been found in prior research studies to be the individual, family and the school (Sprott, Doob, & Jenkins, 2001). Social interactions with friends, self-image, hyperactivity, depression, and parent’s account of learning disabilities are included in the individual risk factors. Youth who goes through penal parenting and the absence of parental nurturance were included in the family risk factors associated with delinquency. Also, children who feel unsafe at school, feeling an outcast, bullied and those with low educational goals will probably engage in violent acts and delinquent behaviors regarding property. Generally, the more risk factors the children encounter, the more they are to be heavily involve in delinquency. Theories of Anti-Social Behaviors There are three theories of delinquency that explains how children and youth engage in antisocial behaviors (Sandon, 2006). The first theory is called the Social Learning Theory formulated by Albert Bandura, in which he stated that “human learning is a continuous reciprocal interaction of cognitive, behavioral, and environmental factors.” Robert Merton devised a framework for understanding antisocial behaviors called the General Strain Theory wherein youth are pushed to aggression caused by negative emotional reactions in an aversive situation in which they cannot break away from. The third theory Behavioral Theory is formulated by Pavlov, Watson and Skinner wherein they view reinforcement and punishment can reinforce particular sorts of behavior. Part B Among the three differing viewpoints on why people engage in delinquent behaviors, I think the best ones that explain how children acquire delinquent behaviors are the Social Learning Theory and the General Strain Theory. Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory is also called observational learning (Sandon, 2006). It states that learning occurs through simple process of observing and imitating other people’s activities. The child first observes and then imitates the behavior they see of adults or other children around them. Bandura has proven it in his study where he concluded that violence shown in mass media can create a tremendously negative impact on the behavior of children. He called this the direct learning through immediate matching of the behavior that is observed to the modeled behavior. Ronald Akers and Robert Burgess, criminologists who also developed social learning theory, combined encouraging factors such as social pressure from delinquent peers, and discouraging factors such as parental response in dealing with aggression of their children. The General Strain Theory, on the other hand, was formulated by Robert Merton (Sandon, 2006). Merton believes that once the society fails to instill upward mobility and a desire for selected goals, anomie or strain forces some people to violate the law to attain those goals. He thought that the lower-class persons are more inclined to fall in the ravages of anomie because of their desires to attain the economic rewards of the larger society. Youth are being influenced into delinquency by negative emotional reactions in an aversive situation (Sandon, 2006). According to Robert Agnew, another Strain theorist, experiencing terrible situations at home like arguments and violence is a major type of strain. The fact that they cannot escape from the situation irritates them and may lead to “desperate avoidance and/or anger-based delinquency.” Also, the emotional atmosphere, as well as aggressive ideas and relationships, can do more injury to the child than physical distress. Both theories have stated that arguments and violence in aversive situations, especially at home, is a major factor for children to engage in delinquent behaviors. These arguments and violence may be shown to children in television shows or from their parents or other caregivers and children inside the home. Aggressive social relationships can cause children to observe their violent actions and imitate them when they grow up. However, the Social Learning Theory did not mention the society as a factor to children engaging in delinquent behaviors while the General Strain Theory stressed that society mainly initiates children to engage in delinquent and deviant behaviors because of the goals and expectations it demands. Failure to do meet those goals and expectations cause them to do behaviors that can destruct others, as well as themselves. The theory that best explains why children engage in aggressive and deviant behaviors is the Social Learning Theory. This theory narrowed down on society and focused mainly what happens inside the home that causes children to engage in deviant behaviors. Besides the violence portrayed by television shows, the aggressive social relationships that children have with their parents, siblings or other adults can cause them to mimic these behaviors as they grow older. It is also true that lack of parental response can cause children to not have good role models of behavior. Conclusion Studies have shown that the main causes of children engaging in aggressive and delinquent behaviors are found inside the child’s home. Children being able to witness arguments, violence, and aggressive social relationships that parents portray to them or to others can have a negative impact to them. Prevention should directly be offered toward families. It is best to do is to improve the quality and harmony of the family system. Parent Education allows the parents to do their roles more effectively and can lessen the stress parents feel. Programs should help family assist its members and units and to improve the community circumstances to a healthy family living. Similar to what Crosson-Tower has said, these programs should focus on the parents’ improvement of coping skills, teaching them about child development, aiding in bonding and communication with their children, and fostering help in finding approaches to resources. One program called the Responsive Parenting assists in promoting positive parenting. This program was intended with issue-oriented discussion groups where topics such as children’s developmental stages, children’s fears and feelings, family relationships, positive discipline, children’s independence, cooperation and responsibility, and children’s self-esteem will be discussed. Family counseling is one practice that old established social agencies have already been offering. They offer help specifically on the medical, emotional, and broader psychological states of the family to prevent the problems from getting too serious. Advisory function is also done by family physicians, attorneys or friends of the family. All in all, incidences of child abuse and neglect should be decreased and there is something that should be done. Efforts in decreasing child abuse should be directed to an alteration of the helping system, the society, and additional research in aiding child abuse. As for the parents, it is known that they are the main cause of those problems. But instead of looking at them as a cause, professionals should also help the parents in aiding their own problems before the abuse worsens. Mainly, it all boils down to one thing: Parents should stop letting children experience a lifetime of adult deviance no matter what the reasons are. Bibliography Andrew, G. (2004). A grounded theory of child abuse. Retrieved from http://library2.usask.ca/ theses/available/etd-08242004-131610/unrestricted/finalversion24aug.pdf Chang, J. J., Hussey, J. M., & Kotch, J. B. (2006). Child maltreatment in the United States: Prevalence, risk factors, and adolescent health consequences. Pediatrics, 118, Retrieved September 20, 2008, from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/118/3/933 Child Abuse (2008). In Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 21, 2008, from http://http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761562624/Child_Abuse.html Keith, K. L. (n.d.). The cycle of child abuse. Retrieved September 20, 2008, from http://childparenting.about.com/cs/familyissues/a/childabusecycle.htm Sprott, J.B., Doob, A. N., & Jenkins, J. M. (2001). Problem behavior and delinquency in children and youth. Juristat, 21, Retrieved September 21, 2008, from http://www.statcan.ca/ english/freepub/85-002-XIE/0040185-002-XIE.pdf Sandon, A. (2006). Juvenile delinquency theories. Retrieved September 24, 2008, from http://www.articlesbase.com/law-articles/juvenile-delinquency-theories-67589.html National CASA Association (2004). 2003 National CASA Association Annual Local Program Survey. Seattle, WA. www.casanet.org. Read More