Effects Of Child Abuse Research Paper

Children's Bureau. Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect. Technical Report. Washington, DC: Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2013. Web. <https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/sp_long_term_consequences.cfm>.
The report addresses the life- long impacts of child abuse and categorizes the results into physical health, psychological, behavioral and societal. Abused children are at times inflicted with head injuries which may cause bleeding of the brain, which interferes with brain development. Relevant sections of the brain could also be tampered with hence causing incidences of long-term head trauma to the affected child. Child abuse according to the report is also linked to poor physical health where the children develop cardiovascular complications, lung, and liver malfunctions as well as high blood pressure that adds up to health care costs they have to incur while growing into adulthood. Additionally, abused children with low resilience could suffer from low IQ scores and language difficulties which interferes with their studies. The report by Children’s Bureau also emphasizes the fact that risky behaviors such as alcohol and other substance abuse make abused children vulnerable to criminality which increases the number of juvenile incarceration across the globe. The report also argues that a significant portion of the abused children become perpetrators of abuse in their youthful age and once they are in their adulthood. The issues addressed in the report are therefore key to helping me compile credible arguments on the social policies that could be relied upon to reduce incidences of child abuse. However, the case that a significant number of abused children become abusive in the youth stage raises some contentions since the experiences of child abuse serve as lessons for the abused who then aim to create a better society for the future children.
Kendall-Tackett, Kathleen. "The Health Effects of Childhood Abuse: Four Pathways by which Abuse Can Influence Health." Child Abuse and Neglect (2002): 715-730. Document.
The article discusses four pathways on how child abuse influences health. The paths include behavioral, social, cognitive and emotional that have consequences on the health of the victims. Behavioral pathways according to the author lead to forms of substance abuse, eating disorders and suicidal thoughts. Additional behavioral factors that have implications for the health of the abused children include vulnerability to high-risk sexual behavior that makes them acquire sexually transmitted diseases. Alcoholism and smoking are also common behavior traits of abused children that worsen their health in their adult life. Social pathways include the fact that abused children fail to establish social connections which make them susceptible to depressive conditions. Homelessness is also a social path where elements of hunger, malnutrition, lack of medical care and poor hygiene increase exposure of the children to poor health. Emotionally, the author stresses the fact that children who are victims of abuse develop depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that increases vulnerability to mental health difficulties. Moreover, those abused tend to engage in very few social relationships with the author arguing that divorce rate is higher for those with a history of past abuse. Arguments raised by the authors add to the information needed to identify ways to which victims of child abuse could be encouraged to establish social connections. However, while it may be somehow true that abused children prefer fewer relationships and are often involved in divorce cases once they are in their adulthood, it is also evident that victims of child abuse could opt for marriage or social connections as ways of finding someone to motivate them and make them see the brighter side of life.
Lamont, Alister. Effects of child abuse and neglect for children and adolescents. Technical Report. Melbourne: Commonwealth of Australia, 2010. Document.
Lamont discusses the possible impacts of abuse and neglect for children and adolescents and groups forms of abuse into sexual, physical, emotional mistreatment, neglect and witnessing domestic violence. According to Lamont, impacts of child abuse on the victims depends on factors such as; age, severity, frequency of ill-treatment, relationship with the abusers and the type of abuse. Additionally, child abuse affects key domains in the victims life including; physical, psychological, cognitive, behavioral and social aspects. Attachment problems both emotional and social are common as Lamont argues since the source of safety for the children turn into their source of danger. The implications of such actions as Lamont emphasizes is that they interfere with communication and interactive abilities of the victims. Moreover, physical health problems including brain damage, spinal cord injuries, hearing loss and deaths are also addressed by Lamont. Trauma and psychological problems are also common where the victims are unable to integrate sensory, emotional and cognitive information. Learning and development challenges are also discussed by Lamont whereby poor academic achievement is attributed to child abuse aspects of adolescent suicide, teenage pregnancy, homelessness and depressive traits are also addressed. The key issue of contention is the fact that Lamont argues that physical, psychological, cognitive, behavior and social consequences need to be joined in discussing effects of child abuse. The article by Lamont is useful in my research works since it provides clear connections of the consequences of child abuse thereby making it easier to identify measures to deal with the issue. However, it is evident that effects of child abuse are better understood if the factors are discussed as separately since they give a concise picture of the difficulties victims of abuse go through.
National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information. Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect. Technical Report. Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information, 2005. Document. <http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov>.
The report addresses the long-term impacts triggered by child abuse and neglect focusing on physical, behavioral and societal implications. The author argues that some of the physical injuries in abused children are not immediately visible since they may be internal like with the case of internal bleeding. However, the author addresses the fact that child abuse leads to broken bones, bruises, and deaths in case of severe abuse. Physical consequences could also include serious damage to the brain that leads to cognitive delays and emotional complexities. Highly risky behaviors such as smoking, alcohol abuse and exposure to sexual activities also put the lives of the victims in danger. The report also emphasizes the fact that child abuse increases the cost incurred in health care as well as social consequences such as increased adult criminality and juvenile incarceration. The report also argues that risky behavior of the victims and their depressive states hinder the ability of a nation to have the adequate manpower due to an increasing rate of underemployment and unemployment. The report further argues that effects of child abuse depend on the resilience of the victims since those with resilient traits are still optimistic, have higher self-esteem, are creative and could still manage to be independent. By using the report, therefore, I aim to rely on the arguments in analyzing the implication and ways to save children from child abuse. However, such argument on resilient nature of some of the victims of child abuse raises contention since it is evident that child abuse has severe consequences on the lives of individuals both in the short term and long term periods. It is not the resilience of the victims that makes them cope with the trauma of child abuse but the ability to have adequate counseling and measures to identify and deal with symptoms of abused children. While the report claims that some victims could be resilient, the case might not be right since those abused could be suffering internally while pretending to be resilient.