FAMILY VIOLENCE: DEFINITIONS AND ISSUES

1. FAMILY VIOLENCE: DEFINITIONS AND ISSUES

2. I. FAMILY VIOLENCE • Socially constructed • Pivotal issues or cases define the phenomena and legislative change • There is a continuum of violence

3. II. Physical Child Abuse and Neglect • Maltreatment of children goes back to ancient times • Children are property: Spare the rod, spoil the child • First court case of child abuse: Case of Mary Ellen (1874) • Kempe et al. (1962) defined child abuse as a clinical condition, “battered child syndrome”

4. III. Child Sexual Abuse • Maps onto the Previous Movements • Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation Act (1978) • Child Sexual Abuse and Pornography Act (1986)

5. IV. Intimate Partner Violence • Early marriage laws gave men the legal right to hit their wives (“Rule- of -Thumb) • First spousal abuse law: 1870 • First Shelter for battered women and children: Haven House (1964) • Violence Against Women Act: (1995) • Marital Rape: First successful conviction (1979)

6. VI. Elder Abuse • One of the last forms of violence to be identified- 1980s • Late 1980s: mandatory reporting laws for elders

7. VII. Courtship Violence and Date Rape

8. VIII. Themes of Abuse • Issues of power and control • Issues of ownership • Growing awareness of family violence in the 1970s and 1980s • Cultural sanctions or prohibitions of family violence determine its prevalence

9. IX. Myths of Family Violence • Family Violence is Rare • Only poor people are violence • Abused children always become abusive parents • Battered women “ask” for it; Women who are raped on a date “were asking for it.”

10. Child Abuse: Definitions

11. I. Definition of Child Maltreatment • Child abuse and neglect or child maltreatment is the physical or mental injury, sexual abuse, negligent treatment, or maltreatment of a child under the age of 18 by a person who is responsible for the child's welfare. The child's health or welfare is harmed or threatened by these actions.

12. II. Prevalence of Child Physical Abuse • Official Statistics: Aggregates CPS reports across the 50 states • 3 million children were reported in 1995 • 1/3 (996,000) were substantiated • Majority were child neglect (54%), 25% were physical abuse • Surveys of discipline and conflict resolution • Gallup poll ; 5% of children or 3 million met criteria for physical abuse

13. III. Issues related to reporting differences • Definitional Issues Vary • Caseworkers are very busy • Physical abuse tends to get less attention • Poorer people tend to get identified more readily

14. IV. Definition of Child Physical Abuse • Nonaccidental use of force by a parent or other caretaker that results in the child's pain, bodily injury, impairment, or death.

15. VIII. At Risk Children • Ø  Unwanted children who resemble someone the parent dislikes • Ø  Poverty, family size, and other aspects of a stressful environment • Family stressors • Parents who have rigid attitudes about parenting • Substance abuse within the family • No Single Profile for a child abuse

16. IX. Developmental Victimology • Risk Factors • Child Abuse Homicides • Handgun homicides

17. X. Childhood Dependency and Victimization • Type of victimization may depend on child’s dependency status

18. XII. Effects of Child Physical Abuse • Initial Responses • Medical/Physical Effects • Psychological Effects • Pain • Fear • Confusion • Poor Self image • Disrupted Attachment • Dissociation • Acting out Aggressively with Siblings

19. XIII. Effects of Child Physical Abuse • Long-Term Effects • Behavioral Effects • Aggressive and Violent Behavior • Nonviolent Criminal Behavior • Substance Abuse • Self-Injurious and Suicidal Behavior • Anxiety and Depression • Interpersonal Problems • Academic Performance

20. XIV. Coping Resources • High self-esteem • Greater Problem Solving Skills • Intelligence • Having one positive person in the child’s life • Degree of predictability in the child’s life