Child abuse and neglect happen among all sectors of our society. It is not bound by socioeconomic, religious, racial or ethnic status. Physical Abuse Physical abuse is the infliction of physical injury as a result of punching, beating, kicking biting, burning, shaking or otherwise harming a child. The parent or caretaker may not have intended to hurt the child, rather the injury may have resulted from over-discipline or physical punishment. Child Neglect Child Neglect is characterized by failure to provide for the child's basic needs.
Neglect can be physical, educational, or emotional.
The assessment of child neglect requires consideration of cultural values and standards of care as well as recognition that the failure to provide the necessities of life may be related to poverty. Sexual Abuse Sexual Abuse includes fondling a child's genitals, intercourse, incest, rape, sodomy, exhibitionism, and commercial exploitation through prostitution or the production of pornographic materials. Emotional abuse includes acts or omissions by the parents or other caregivers that have caused, or could cause, serious behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or mental disorders. In some cases of emotional abuse, the acts of parents or other caregivers alone, without any harm evident in the child's behavior or condition, are sufficient to warrant CPS intervention. For example, the caregivers may use extreme or bizarre forms of punishment, such as a confinement of a child in a dark closet.