Child abuse research paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Child abuse research paper - Essay Example The definition has expanded through the years as it came to cover physical injury to physical assault, neglect, emotional abuse, and coercive sexual activity. Statistics speaks about this grim situation: in 2002, 896,000 cases of child abuse and neglect were substantiated across 50 states and that according to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, about 81% of these cases were perpetuated by parents. (Runyon et al. 2006, p. 23) These kinds of reports, however, do not necessarily reflect the actual incidence of child abuse because the figures may still be higher as many cases of abuse are still estimated to be unreported. The gravity of the situation is highlighted by the fact that child abuse is one of the five leading causes of childhood death in the United States today. (Mankiller 1999, p. 87) The answer is quite complicated to the question why parents abuse their children. There are several dimensions to the issue. For example, mothers are more prone to maltreat their children than fathers or that substance abuse contribute to the emergence of child abuse, among others. These variables, however underscore the need for effective intervention approaches to address the numerous issues in the subject. This paper will explore why treatment is important, how it is being carried out and how this strategy is more effective than punishment in addressing child abuse. In the treatment of parents involved in child abuse, it is important to consider the ecological issues that lead to the abuse. For example, is there unemployment in parents or a maltreatment in the childhood history of the parents? Also, the number of children in the family, the physical or developmental disabilities that are difficult to manage as well as other care giving responsibilities must be considered. It is important that in addressing the problem of child abuse, all parts of the family system issue must be treated. Particularly,