Assignemnt Papaer About Child Abuse And The Social Problem

Child Abuse
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Child Abuse
Child abuse is among the various social problems experienced worldwide. It is associated with significant declines in social and psychological functions among children. The problems relating to child abuse can persist into adolescence and even adulthood. Child abuse contributes greatly to childhood morbidity and mortality. However, there is the lack of a single, universally-accepted definition of the concept of child abuse. Without a clear definition, it is difficult to determine actions, omissions, or behaviors that amount to child abuse. The earliest efforts to define it were initiated by professionals and academics while attending child maltreatment cases. Currently, child abuse takes four broad types: physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and psychological abuse (Al Adhayani,Watson& Watson, 2013). Child abuse cuts across all societal levels, educational levels,religions, and cultural and ethnic lines. It affects about 40 million global children annually (Al Adhayani, Watson& Watson, 2013). This essay examines the significance and effects of child abuse as well as the necessary interventions that could help in alleviating the problem.
Child abuse is a great concern to the whole society. Notably, it has widespread negative effects on children as well as adolescents and adults. While much of its negative effects are manifested at childhood, they can persist into adolescence and even adulthood. I chose the topic of child abuse for various reasons. First, I have experienced the problem in the society while growing up and it has become more prevalent in the recent years. As such, I hope this paper will provide important insight that will contribute positively towards finding solid solutions to the problem. In addition, due to its negative physical, social, and emotional consequences, it is critical to get insight into the symptoms and signs relating to child abuse. Such symptoms and signs will enable one to identify and assist child abuse victims within the society. From the perspective of a social worker, I will recommend some of the strategies that could help the community to alleviate this problem. This is particularly important owing to the fact that some people do not consider dangerous parenting actions and styles as child abuse. In other words, some people assume that dangerous parenting actions and styles are a normal part of parenting.
As aforementioned, child abuse is a social problem which is associated with significant declines in social and psychological functions. This calls for the need to examine its negative social, emotional, and physical effects on children especially infants and young children. Before examining these effects, it is noteworthy that child abuse is classified into four broad categories: sexual, neglect, physical, and emotional abuse. Physical abuse involves the caregiver’s omissions, behaviors or actions that lead to perceived or actual physical injury. The physical consequences relating to child abuse are physical injuries and physical disabilities among others. Extreme physical abuse could result in increased child mortality. In addition, prolonged physical abuse could also lead to severe brain damage...