Information on Psychology of Child Abuse

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It is no secret that child abuse is prevalent in our society and the effects of child abuse are far reached from just the home or family members. Many times, children are bullied into thinking that if they tell someone about their abuse, another family member (or themselves) could be in grave danger. Sometimes, the definition of child abuse is blurred; therefore, hard to identify. Child abuse has become so prevalent that laws are in place demanding child care workers, teachers, or medical personnel to report suspected cases of child abuse, so the child can be taken out of the dangerous environment and placed in a safe place until the accused are brought to justice.

Child Abuse Statistics

According to an article called “The Psychological Effects of Child Abuse, eighty percent of child abuse occurs in the home, mostly with a parent. It is defined as “intentional or unintentional harm or mistreatment of a child by another person, who may be his or her parents, relatives, guardians, teachers, or other children”. There are five main areas of child abuse:

•Physical abuse
•Emotional/psychological abuse
•Sexual abuse
•Neglect
•Witnessing Domestic Violence

Studies have shown that “one in four girls and one in eight boys are sexually abused by the age of 18.” Abuse can take the form of hitting, slapping, beating, burning with cigarettes, locking in a closet, refusing to feed the child, rape, or breaking bones. Many other atrocities involving children are well-documented; however, many of these forms of abuse are hidden because the child is afraid to speak up due to threats that things will get worse if they tell an adult. Child abuse can cause a child to retreat socially, fear adults, or trigger depression and thoughts of suicide. If there is physical abuse, the child may be reluctant to show the bruises and scarring and try to hide them or make excuses about them that are not true (such as, “I fell down the stairs,” I fell on my bike,” or “I got hurt playing football with my friends.” They make up these lies in order to keep their abuser from finding out and inflicting more pain than they are already subjected to.

The Lasting Effects and Psychology of Child Abuse

Even when the child is older and the abuse is somehow stopped, the child can carry emotional and mental scars on their personality well into adulthood. The effects vary from child to child, so the Child Abuse Counselor will draw up an individual treatment plan based on the child’s specific needs. Many factors go into the physical and emotional development of an abused child, such as:

•Severity and frequency of abuse
•Age of the child-abuse
•Child’s relationship with the abuser
•Availability of emotional support
•Child’s capacity to cope

In his work, Developmental Trauma Disorder: Towards a rational diagnosis for children with complex trauma histories (2005), the author, Van Der Kolk talks about trauma disorders that affect children, including child abuse. The summary of his findings can be read in his book.

How Child Abuse Affects the Brain

A study was done by Martin Teicher (MD, PHD), an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, which proved that physical, mental, and verbal abuse can adversely affect the brain and be the cause of strange behavior. The study was conducted by comparing images of the brain with victims of child abuse vs. children with no history of child abuse. Here are just a few of his findings:

•Instability was seen in the part of the brain that regulates emotions and attention.
•Due to extensive abuse, the brain experiences an overflow of stress hormones and affects brain signals, and it learns to overreact in all stressful situations.
•Right-handed victims of abuse showed altered/unusual activity in the left side of the brain, resulting in depression and memory trouble in victims.
•Altered electrical activity in the brain also created seizure-like symptoms in children with no history of seizures.
•These brain activities can trigger thoughts of suicide, occurring four to five times more than in non-victims.

Psychology of Child Abuse Requires Professional Help

The sooner a child is identified as abused, the soon interventions can take place to reverse the damage, emotionally, physically, socially, and developmentally. The interventions will possible take months or years to bring an abused child back to a normal state of mind. Extensive therapy, possible prescription drugs, and emotional support will be the key that unlocks the door of pent up emotions and fears, giving the child the opportunity to live a normal life as an adult. Since each child is different, the Child Psychologist will develop a treatment plan and support the child on the road to recovery.