...ISSUE BRIEF November 2009 Understanding the Effects of Maltreatment on Brain Development What’s Inside: • How the Brain Develops This issue brief provides basic information on brain development and the effects of abuse and neglect on that development. The information is designed to help professionals understand the emotional, mental, and behavioral impact of early abuse and neglect in children who come to the attention of the child welfare system. • Effects of Maltreatment on Brain Development • Implications for Practice and Policy • Summary U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families Administration on Children, Youth and Families Children’s Bureau Child Welfare Information Gateway Children’s Bureau/ACYF 1250 Maryland Avenue, SW Eighth Floor Washington, DC 20024 800.394.3366 Email: info@childwelfare.gov www.childwelfare.gov Understanding the Effects of Maltreatment on Brain Development www.childwelfare.gov In recent years, there has been a surge of research into early brain development. New technologies, such as neuroimaging (e.g., magnetic resonance imaging or MRI), provide increased insight into how the brain develops and how early experiences affect that development. One area that has been receiving increasing research attention involves the effects of abuse and neglect on the developing brain, especially during infancy and early childhood. Much of this research is providing biological explanations for what practitioners...
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...The purpose of the review is to investigate whether childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is strongly associated with non-suicidal self-injury, a post traumatic symptom, among adolescents and young adults. II. REVIEW The relationship between childhood sexual maltreatment and non-suicidal self injury can be discussed through the Glassman et al. (2007) study. The study aimed to analyze the associations between different types of childhood abuse, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, emotional neglect and physical neglect and non suicidal self-injury. A sample of ninety-four adolescents whom aged twelve to nineteen years were prepared by recruiting from local psychiatric clinics, newspapers, community bulletin boards and the internet....
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...The connection between child maltreatment and adult psychological disorders is not always looked into. However, it needs to become a more looked at problem and on a higher caliber to change it. “Child maltreatment is a major public health problem, yet a lack of understanding of its serious lifelong consequences and of the cost and burden on society has hampered investment in prevention policies and programs” (Norman, Byambaa, De, Butchart, Scott & Vos, 2012, pg. 2). Not only does child maltreatment have an effect on families and individuals it also causes an economic hardship on society. Hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent yearly on cases of maltreatment. Lanier, Kohl, Benz, Swinger & Drake (2012) state, “If this intervention has been successful in preventing maltreatment, the benefits extend beyond the family suggesting a sensible social investment” (pg. 456). It is possible that by implementing programs to assist parents and teach them new skills and techniques can not only decrease the rate of maltreatment but can also save a lot of...
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...bonds” with their children. They are not just being abused from their caregivers, but they can be abused by their neighbors, relatives or friends. Child abuse, better yet, child maltreatment is defined as a “failure to act on the part of a parent or a caregiver which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation or an act of failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm” (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services). In other words, an inappropriate act to mistreat a child by a close relative or parent by physical or sexual force. Child maltreatment has a negative often impacts...
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...Child Abuse a Lifetime Sentence Jolene Dancliff COM/156 05-6-2010 Dan Price Child Abuse a Lifetime Sentence Once into adulthood, victims of child abuse search for some form of coping mechanisms to forget or mask the trauma and the pain of child abuse. According to Shub & Cabrera (2011) “Every week 60,000 cases of child abuse or neglect are reported in the United States, and 3 million reports of child abuse or neglect are being filed every year” (p.1). Approximately 50% of child victims abuse drugs or alcohol. (Shub & Cabrer, 2011). The abuse often stems from a response to guilt or a negative self-image. Although as serious as child neglect is, physical abuse more often will result in the abuse of drugs or alcohol. Poverty, social inadequacies and lack of academic achievement all lead to the probability of an adult survivor turning to drugs and alcohol as a way to relieve their internal turmoil. Adult survivors that suffered poverty in their childhood struggle financially due to inadequate resources to obtain quality education. They also have a lack of adequate housing or access to nutritional food. These all increase the odds of the survivor turning to substance abuse. People who are abused often are unable to fit comfortably into any social setting. Because of their insecurities and their uneasiness, it is easier for them to cope when they become intoxicated or high. It bolsters confidence and gives them a false sense of confidence. However, for some...
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...care, and become unemployed with traumatized emotions and involvement with substances to try and cope. Because they are submerged to violence, abused children will grow up and learn to use violence as a main way of dealing with social situations. Victimized children will grow up with a great chance of suffering from harmful psychological problems such as depression, anxiety or psychiatric disorders. They will never be able to fully escape from their painful memories and traumas. To deal with the depression or disorder, they may lash out in violence or abuse substances to feel better. Overall, the brains development is fastest growing as a child and abuse affects the learning processes and behaviors that a child grows into. Violence and substance abuse appear in previously abused adults because the effects of child maltreatment are so harsh that they never completely fade. The violence is what they’ve learned to express and the substances are coping methods. Child Abuse Leads to Substance Use and Violence Childhood is the most precious time of our life for a reason. Not only does it start the foundation of our lives, but it shapes and molds the very person we are going to become and the characteristics we are going to acquire as we grow older. Those first years of our lives are influenced by our parents and how we are brought up. If humans are brought up with love,...
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... Kiddoo 1 Mona Hoyle PSY 202;Section M1 September 7, 2014 Development Across Life Span: Child Abuse and Neglect While studying the chapter in our book, Development Across Life Span, I found myself wondering what the impact of abuse and neglect had on children when they grew older. My goal for this paper is to discuss what abuse and neglect is and what psychological impact it may take on an individual when they become older. What kind of behaviors may manifest after years of abuse and/or neglect and what can be done to prevent future generations of children from experiencing trauma? WHAT IS CHILD ABUSE/NEGLECT? There are four (4) types of child abuse: emotional abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse and neglect. The CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) defines child abuse as "child maltreatment as any act of series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or other caregiver that results in harm, potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child". Physical abuse is an act by a parent or caregiver in which non-accidental injury is inflicted, such as hitting, burning, drowning, shaking, suffocating or poisoning. Sexual abuse refers to sexual activity with a child where the child is being used for sexual stimulation by the other person, usually an adult. (Myers et al.30). Emotional, or psychological abuse, is when a parent or caregiver calls a child names or makes them feel humiliated. An example would be when...
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...Impact and Relationship of Substance Abuse and Child Maltreatment: Risk and Resiliency Factors What Research Tells Us Martha Morrison Dore, Ph.D. Columbia University School of Social Work 622 West 113th Street New York, New York 10027 212/854-5461 Paper prepared for presentation at the conference entitled “Protecting Children in Substance Abusing Families,” September 28, 1998, sponsored by the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare, University of Minnesota School of Social Work, Minneapolis, MN. Researchers are just beginning to demonstrate empirically what child protective services workers have been observing for nearly two decades now: many, if not most, families who come to the attention of the child welfare system are involved with drugs or alcohol or both. Founded cases of child abuse and neglect have risen exponentially since the mid-1980s, when the crack form of cocaine, a cheap, easily used form of the drug, became widely available. Studies conducted since that time have identified substance abuse as a contributing factor in 40% to 80% of substantiated cases of child maltreatment (Curtis & McCullough, 1993; Magura & Laudet, 1996; Murphy, Jellinek, Quinn, Smith, Poitrast, & Goshko, 1991). Further, studies of substance abusing parents have found child-rearing beliefs and attitudes that heighten risk for child abuse (Williams-Peterson et al., 1994), as well as elevated rates of first-time reports to child protective services (Jaudes & Ekwo, 1995), re-reports...
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...Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Title Date Abstract This research proposal seeks to establish to recognize and understand the contributing factors to delinquency in adolescent .It’s intentions is for the criminal justice system to help with possible intervention of young juveniles before they proceed or graduate into the criminal justice system. The research proposal narrows its focus on the three major specific issues, which are neighbourhood disadvantage, lack of monitoring in adolescents and childhood maltreatment. In order to prevent the start of delinquency, one has to understand the causes of delinquency. Therefore, this research will seek to explain the causes of delinquency and methods used to eliminate such causes that would result into better community services and awareness. Introduction Juvenile delinquency is a tenacious and prevalent social problem in American communities (Thompson, 2005). Therefore as part of the society, we should seek ways and methods that can assist in intervention of prevention of juvenile delinquency. The community must identify what and at which stage of juvenile life causes the beginning of the criminal lifestyle that would result in young offenders advancing into the justice system, which will be forever labelled in their lives. The significance of this study is to develop understanding to the prevention in accordance with the factors that cause the onset of juvenile delinquency. This is important in our youth mentoring programs...
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...Child Abuse and Its Effects on the Child’s Ability to Form Attachments The moment that a child is conceived begins a lifelong journey of attachment. Studies have shown that embryos begin bonding in the womb when they feel movement, hear voices, and through the stimulation of smell and taste. This attachment with a caregiver grows even stronger when the child is born and as they move into childhood develops further into other relationships. The intensity associated with the importance of this development is best described by Perry (2001), “The most important property of humankind is the capacity to form and maintain relationships. These relationships are absolutely necessary for any of us to survive, learn, work, love and procreate” (p. 1). That is, as long as the proper environment and development is exposed to the child. Exposure to constant distress or inflicted abuse and/or neglect to a child can result in reactive attachment disorder, along with many other socioemotional problems and disorders. This will affect all relationships, as well as their ability to accomplish goals and lead a directed, goal-oriented life. When and if others intervene within the abusive situation, will determine how the child will deal with an attachment disorder. If intervention does not occur, attachment disorders associated with abuse and/or neglect can lead to violence in children and adults. There are ways to help children cope with this disorder, but it will become a struggle they will have...
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...Running head: CHILD MALTREATMENT & JUVENILE DELINQUENCY 1 The Correlation Between Child Maltreatment & Juvenile Delinquency April 6, 2014 CHILD MALTREATMENT & JUVENILE DELINQUENCY 2 Abstract Research suggests that there is a correlation between child maltreatment and juvenile delinquency. The findings indicate that children, who have experienced abuse or neglect during childhood, are at increased risk of committing crimes in adolescence. A substantial number of children enter the juvenile justice system with a history of abuse, with approximately one third of these adolescence are actively associated with a child welfare agency at the time of their initial arrest. This paper attempts to establish a clear definition of physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as, neglect, while also reviewing a pattern of subsequent delinquency. The effects of racial, ethnic and gender differences in criminal behavior will be explored. A collaborated effort among youth serving agencies is discussed as a method of prevention of child maltreatment and future delinquency. CHILD MALTREATMENT & JUVENILE DELINQUENCY 3 Juvenile delinquency is a serious public health concern. Throughout literature, child and adolescent maltreatment are consistently identified as powerful predictors of juvenile and adult crime. In 2009, law enforcement agencies arrested approximately 1.9 million persons under the age of 18 “ (Ryan, Williams, & Courtney, 2013, p.454)...
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...Trauma, Development, and Spirituality Crissy Bontrager Liberty University Trauma, Development, and Spirituality Trauma during childhood can arise from a variety of circumstances. These circumstances can include neglect, maltreatment, various forms of abuse, divorce, to name a few. The effects of trauma during childhood vary as to the type of trauma the child may have suffered. However, the development of a child can be affected by trauma. Looking into the affects of trauma one can see how development may be affected as well as how cultural differences and spirituality may help the child cope with the affects. Thus, one must take a closer look at trauma during childhood. One of the types of trauma a child may endure is the divorce of his or her parents. Children from divorced homes often struggle in school and have difficulty adjusting. The child may feel as though he or she must choose a side, or even feel responsible for the parents divorcing (University of Phoenix, 2014). The stress of ongoing trauma in a high conflict divorce can affect the neurobiology of the development of the child’s brain. Moreover, some children exhibit signs of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) when struggling with the trauma of divorce (University of Phoenix, 2014). Thus, the level of conflict within a divorce situation directly affects the level of stress or trauma the child may endure. Additionally, other types of trauma have damaging effects beyond PTSD. A child, who suffers from...
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...evidence for borderline personality disorder being (a) caused by adverse events in childhood, and (b) treatable? Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is psychiatric disorder characterised by a ubiquitous pattern of instability and impulsivity. Those with BPD struggle to maintain interpersonal relationships due to social inhibition and impulsive aggression. They also tend to find it difficult maintaining a positive self-image, often resulting in a nagging feeling of inadequacy. Of the general population, 1-2% are affected by BPD-Many psychologists have suggested that BPD balances on the line between mood and personality (Tyrer, 2009), which means that there can often be some confusion when diagnosing. A range of factors have...
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...Impact of Childhood Sexual Abuse Shobila Kaligounder Marymount University Introduction As per UNICEF’s (2014) definition, sexual violence against children comprises any sexual activities imposed by an adult on a child against which the child is entitled to protection by criminal law. This includes: (a) The inducement or coercion of a child to engage in any unlawful or psychologically harmful sexual activity; (b) The use of children in commercial sexual exploitation; (c) The use of children in audio or visual images of child sexual abuse; and (d) Child prostitution, sexual slavery, sexual exploitation in travel and tourism, trafficking for purposes of sexual exploitation (within and between countries), sale of children for sexual purposes and forced marriage. Sexual activities are also considered as abuse when committed against a child by another child if the offender is significantly older than the victim or uses power, threat or other means of pressure. Consensual sexual activities between children are not considered as sexual abuse if the children are older than the age limit defined by the State Party. In spite of a clear definition for child sexual abuse violence in the lives of children is so real and as an international community we do very little to protect them. There is also a dearth of data to prove the prevalence of violence due to the hidden nature of the abuse and gives a false notion that it is a rare occurrence. Children are vulnerable to sexual victimization...
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...Interviews of monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs where both siblings served on active military duty in the Vietnam War. Of the 20.8% of individuals who received a lifetime diagnosis of PTSD, factors such as being exposed to trauma at an earlier age, lower education levels at the time of enlistment, history of panic disorders, and preexisting mood disorders resulted in a positive correlation with PTSD development (Koenen et al 2002:213, 216). However, preexisting depression correlated with a decrease in trauma exposure (Koenen et al 2002:214). While PTSD development has been shown to be heritable, these results demonstrating how nonshared environmental influences can still hold a significant impact in the development of PTSD, even in individuals who are raised in the same family and share the same genetic background, challenge the simplicity of Turkheimer’s first...
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