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What are the factsabout childabuse?■ Children in the United

States are more likely to bevictimized violently in their ownhomes than on the streets. (Current Trends in

Child Abuse Prevention, Reporting, and Fatalities:The 1997 Fifty State Survey. Chicago, IL: PreventChild Abuse America, 1999)

■ In 1997, 47 out of 1,000 children were reported

abused or neglected and 15 out of 1,000 wereconfirmed as abused or neglected. (Current Trendsin Child Abuse Prevention, Reporting, and Fatalities:The 1997 Fifty State Survey. Chicago, IL: PreventChild Abuse America, 1999)

■ Children under age 12 make up about onequarter of all juvenile victims known to police

and at least one-half of the juvenile victims ofkidnaping and forcible sex offenses. Girls predominate as victims of sex offenses and kidnaping, but boys predominate as victims of all othercrimes. (Characteristics of Crimes Against Juveniles.

Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile Justice andDelinquency Prevention, 2000)

■ More than 70 percent of reported sex offenses

involve juvenile victims. (Characteristics of

Crimes Against Juveniles.

Washington, DC: Office

of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention,2000)

■ Only 11 percent of the child victimizers in violent crimes are strangers. (Characteristics of Crimes

Against Juveniles.

Washington, DC: Office of

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention,2000)

Resources for Information

and Assistance

Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline

1–800–4–A–CHILD or 1–800–422–4453

www.childhelpusa.org

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children

1–800–843–5678

www.missingkids.org

National Center for Victims of Crime

1–800–FYI–CALL or 1–800–394–2255

www.ncvc.org

National Children’s Alliance

Regional Children’s Advocacy Centers

1–800–239–9950

www.nca-online.org

National Council on Child Abuse & Family Violence

1–800–222–2000

www.nccafv.org

National Organization for Victim Assistance

1–800–TRY–NOVA or 1–800–879–6682

www.try-nova.org

Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center

1–800–627–6872

TTY 1–877–712–9279

www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/ovcres/welcome.html

Prevent Child Abuse America

312–663–3520

www.preventchildabuse.org

This brochure was developed by the National Center for 

Victims of Crime under a project supported by Grant No.

97–VF–GX–K007 awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime,

Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

Points of view in this document are those of the author

and do not necessarily represent the official position

or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.
What is child abuse?

Child abuse is generally defined as any act or conductthat endangers or impairs a child’s physical or emotional health or development. Child abuse includes anydamage done to a child that cannot be reasonablyexplained and is often represented by an injury or seriesof injuries appearing to be intentional or deliberate innature. Child abuse includes physical abuse, sexualabuse, emotional abuse, and neglect (which is the failure to provide a minimum standard of care for a child’sphysical and emotional needs).Although child abuse may not always lead to seriousinjury, one should assume that all child abuse experiences are harmful.Child abuse is seldom a single event. Rather, it occurswith regularity, often increasing in violence. It crossesall boundaries of economics, race, ethnic heritage, andreligious faith. A child abuser is usually closely relatedto the child, such as a parent, stepparent, or other caregiver. The child abuser is rarely a stranger. Child abuse happens in every community, rural and urban, throughout the Nation. It is a crime and should be addressedthrough child protective services and the legal system.The degree of harm a child experiences as a result ofchild abuse depends on the nature of the abuse, the ageof the child, and the child’s environment. In homes inwhich child abuse occurs, fear, instability, and confusion replace the love, comfort, and nurturing that children need. Abused children live in constant fear ofphysical harm from a person who is supposed to carefor and protect them. They may feel guilt at loving theabuser or blame themselves for causing the violence.Abused children may experience stress-related physicalailments and hearing and speech problems.Child abuse is often found inhomes in which domestic violence occurs. Children may beabused and threatened as a wayof punishing and controllingthe adult victim of domestic

violence. Sometimes, they may be injured unintentionally when acts of violence occur in their presence.Often, episodes of domestic violence expand toinclude attacks on children. However, even whenchildren are not attacked directly, they experienceserious emotional damage as a result of living in a violent household. Children who live in abusive environments believe that abusive behavior is acceptable,but it is not. Children from violent homes also havehigher risks of alcohol or drug abuse and juveniledelinquency.What can you do?If your child, or any child, tells you that he or she hasbeen abused, one of the most important things you cando is respond in a calm manner. Listen to the wordsand feelings of the child, and observe his or her bodylanguage. Try to find out what happened, and reassurethe child that he or she has done nothing wrong. Letthe child know that you will do whatever you can tokeep him or her safe. It is better for you not to handlethe situation on your own. Your community hasresources that can help you and/or the child throughthis difficult time. Child abuse is against the law, so itis important to seek professional help and not intervene alone.Parents have an obligation to keep their children safeand protect them whenever possible. If a family orhousehold member or third party has been abusingyour child, it is your responsibility to seek immediatemedical attention for the child and make sure that thechild is out of physical and emotional danger. Theabuse should be reported to either local child protective services or law enforcement. On receiving yourinformation, these authorities will determine the appropriate course of action. A parent who knows his orher child is abused but fails to respond can be heldaccountable under child protection laws for failing toprotect the child.Children experience the same emotional reactions asadults and can experience posttraumatic stress disorder.

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