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LaurenBush
ProfessorAltom
SeniorCapstone
February26,2015

ChildAbuse
Heboughthergifts,toys,candy,foodwhateverwouldkeepherhappyandquiet.
Hegaveherpainwhilehegavehimselfpleasure.Hefeltlife,whilehetookhersaway.
Hetookherinnocence,andleftherwithshame.Hetooktheonethingthatshecouldonly
giveawayoncehervirginity.ThiswastheheartwrenchingchildhoodofLisaScogin.
ThisactofabusebecamesuchalifestyletoLisathat,lookingback,shecannoteven
recallwhentheabusebegan,besidesknowingthatshewasveryyoung.Itlastedforyears
untilonedayafterherapedher,hetoldhertotellhimwhenshestartedtogetboyfriends
soshewouldntgivehimanSTD.ThiswasthedaythatthirteenyearoldLisarealized
whatthismanipulative,crookedmanhadbeendoingtoheralloftheseyears.Growing
up,thisrelationshipbeganasafriendlyneighborandturnedintoaclosefamilyfriend.
HegainedtrustandlovewithLisasfamily,withonlyonegoalinmind,andtohis
power,accomplishedthatgoalverysuccessfully.Hetreatedherlikeadaughterhe
playedaroundwithher,laughedwithher;heeventookherbowlingafterschool
sometimesandcontinuouslylatheredherinwhatevershewantedsothesatisfactionwent
bothways.

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Whenyoureadthingslikethisonlineorhearstoriesaboutchildrengettingraped
ormolested,itsoftenhardtograsphowsuchathingwouldhappen,especiallyforthose
whohaveneverencounteredanytypeofabuseormaltreatment.Whenyouseeastory
likeLisas,thefirstthingthatcomestomindisoften,whereintheworldwereherparents
whenthishappened?Didherparentsnotgainaninchofsuspicionafter10yearsof
sexualabuse?WhydidntLisatellanyone?Thesearegeneralquestionsweallwantthe
answertobutcannotfathomthedepthastowhytheanswerstothesequestionswouldbe
socomplex.Asidefromtheobviousfactthatchildabuseisaworldwideissue,thereare
manysmallerelementsthatcompactintothismonumentalnightmare,andthebiggest
facetofthis,itseems,isthatchildrendonotspeakup.Weshouldnotbeabletogoyears,
orevenweekswithoutknowingthatachildisbeingabused.
Asstudieshavebeendone,itisshownthatmostabusebeginsinthehome.The
NationalChildrensAlliancereportedthat,90%ofchildsexualabusevictimsknowthe
perpetratorinsomewayand68%areabusedbyafamilymember.Incontrary,isnt
homesupposedtobewhereyoufeelsafe?Ifachildhasaroughdayatschool,shouldnt
theylookforwardtocominghometomommyanddaddywheretheyfeelcomfort?The
problemariseshere.Childrenwhoareabusedinthehome,dontwanttobethere,
concludingthereasonwhymanychildrendonotspeakup.Ifachildisbeingabusedat
homeandbeingforcedtokeeptothemselves,whywouldtheygotoschoolanddareask
forhelpsotheycomehometothesamehorridhousetobeabusedfornotwantingtobe
abused.Inschools,kidsarealwaysforcedtovisitthecounselorsotheyhavethe
opportunitytogethelpandtalkabouttheirworriesandheartaches,butasweallknow,

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kidsarenttalking!Thereforecounselorsarewastingtheirbreath,childrenareloosing
time,andtheabuseisgrowingrapidly.Anothermethodneedstobeimplementedata
strongerlevelthatdoesntimplytothechildsuchaguiltybetrayalagainstthehis/her
familyabuser.
Problem
Child abuse seems to be hitting the United States like an epidemic. The few, who
have not been in a terrorizing situation of abuse, take for granted the luck that has been
bestowed upon them and forget to take a step back and observe those who are. The main
issue within abuse, no matter what type of abuse it is, is that nobody seeks for help. The
perpetrator in the situation must have a strong confidence in their threats to keep their
victim quiet.
Asmostarefamiliarwith,therearedifferenttypesofabusesuchas:physical,
sexual,mental/emotional,andevenmaltreatment.Theyareequallyimportantandoften
feedoffofeachother.Whenachildisphysicallyorsexuallyabused,theybeginto
developemotionaltraumathatcanbelifelong.Deprivedlivingconditions,poverty
affecttheeducationalopportunitiesaswellasqualityofparenting.Studieshaveshown
thatsuchconditionsleadtoharshparentingaswellaslesssupervisionof
children(Agarwal).Ratheritbephysicalabuseoftheirphysicalunhealthyliving
condition,itcanresultinbehavioralproblems.Incontrast,whenachildismentally
abusedormaltreated,thecanoftenbecomephysicallydeprivedofspecificneedssuchas:
eatingdisorders,alcoholabuse,drugabuse,suicideattempts,sexualdifficulties,andeven
actsofselfharming(ASCA).Thisdoesntincludethemanypsychologicaleffectsthat

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abuse,bothphysicalandmental,haveononesself.Manyabusedchildrengrowtoform
anxietydisorders,depression,poorselfesteem,suicidalthoughts,personalitydisorder,
andoftenPTSD.MostpeoplelinkPTSDtoindividualswhoformerlyservedinthearmed
forces,butitalsogoeshandinhandwithvictimsofabuse.Posttraumaticstresswould
applytopeopleofphysicalandsexualabusemoresothanmentalabusebecausethat
individualexperiencedaleveloftraumainthepastandishavingdifficultygettingpast
thatspecificevent.Theeffectsofchildabusedonotsimplyendwhentheabuseends.
Thelongtermeffectsareextremelycrucialforeverydayinteractionandfunction.
Thefirststepinmovingforwardfromtheeffectsofabuseistounderstandthe
relationshipbetweenyourfeelingsthenandyourfeelingsnow.Manychildrendonot
speakupbecausetheabusebecomesaroutineanditstartstofeelnormaltothem;and
childrenoftengetbrainwashedintobelievingthattheyaredeservingofpunishment.The
reasonthatitbecomessoeasyforchildrensthoughtsandeverymovebecomessoeasy
tocontrolisbecausemostabusebeginsinthehome.In an article entitled Self Control
and Child Abuse Potentials in Mothers with an Abuse History and Their Preschool
Children, it is statistically proven that mothers with a history of abuse have a remarkably
higher potential to abuse their kids as opposed to mothers who have not been abused.
Child abuse can severely influence the childs development and well being and can
result in disturbed social interactions, aggressive and delinquent behavior, mental health
problems, and abnormal brain development(Henschel, 1). People under estimate the
extent to which abuse can be taken; therefore, investigating the impact that parents selfcontrol is important to understand the impact it will have on their childs level of
development and self-control. The child himself is usually the only proof that abuse is

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taking place in the home, but when parents are keeping their child quiet it is hard to find
the source of the abuse and put a flag on it.
In contrast to children being abused by their formerly abused parents, children
with no parental care at all are at a high risk for abuse and neglect as well. Unbalanced
individual care can be the cause of much social and emotional trauma in children, which
can further lead to a severe lack of trust between the child and their prime bonding
partner. Neglect has been described as the most serious type of child maltreatment and
the least understood(Dubowitz, 67), which is what promoted researchers to do a case
study on abused children. In the experiment, 10 children (both boys and girls), all from a
low socio economic background were examined. 5 of the participants had a history of
sexual abuse while the other 5 had a history of neglect. The purpose of the study was to
analyze the different outcome between the two types of abuse and in conclusion,
sexually abused children showed morbid fears for strangers and difficulty in social
adjustment. The neglect group was inhibited and restricted in social
relationships(Mondal, 3). These children are helpless and In need of freedom that they
should be receiving at home, but in contrast, need to get away from home in order to
acquire these elements.
Because the majority of abuse begins at home, school seems to be the only
realistic place to promote child abuse awareness and give help where needed. In Turkey,
an experiment was done on 4th grade students to test the effectiveness of sex education. It
was specifically a four-day training, which consisted of informative prevention lectures
and even surveys to test the childs level of knowledge on sex abuse. The experimental
group was involved in this 4-day training, while no training was given to the control

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group. The purpose of this experiment was to see if there was a positive outcome for the
group that had training, which in conclusion, was a success. These students scored
enormously higher than those of the control group and the effects lasted up to 8 weeks.
These surveys are important because early retrospective surveys of adults who were
abused as children reveal that only 3% to 6% of those abused ever reported the abuse
during childhood(Hasirci, 1). The resiliency of these kids is astoundingly low simply
because they are not surrounded with the pressure to seek help, where as it is the other
way around. This experiment goes to show that a simple four-day training has a lasting
and positive effect on children, which is a progressive step toward a positive outcome.
Looking deeper into the parent-child interaction and the identified impact that parents
have, the prevalence of this abuse often seeps down to the root of ones economic or
social status. , A child is abused every 40 secondsalmost 3.2 million children were
subjects of abuse or neglect investigations (Langwith, 13). We immediately see the
increasing amount of danger that kids are put in every day and the consequences that they
have to deal with after having been abused. Why are they getting abused? How are they
getting abused? What triggers this need to hurt an innocent child? I would imagine that
these questions not only run around in my mind, but these blameless children as well.
Although poor people can be excellent parents, earlier studies have linked child abuse
and domestic violence to poverty and stress (Newton, 48), which now puts the spotlight
for abuse on indigent parents.
Because of many social disadvantages and the acute stress that comes with
economic troubles, mental health problems are often a result of this. Around 30% of
adults with mental health problems have dependent children(Ofsted, 2013), which again

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arises the question how can we prevent this? This level of abuse is now involved in a
large economic and social matter, which requires more than a one-session quick fix with
the school counselor. Parental mental health problems can lead these parents to become
insensitive to their childs needs and unresponsive to their gestures, which begin to build
up vexation in the child. It is also Important to understand patterns within childs daily
routine, especially at school. A child might get to school late and be hungry, so does this
mean that they have a parent whose health is mentally unstable, or is it simply an
innocent occurrence that happens to everyone? It is important to see if there is a pattern
with this occasion- does the student continue to come to school late and without food?
This not only an example of a social and economic disadvantage that represents a level of
maltreatment in the child, but also leads to an educational problem that teachers are not
interacting with regularly.
With school being a key factor in child abuse prevention and education, the child
protection guidelines for the national school board was questioned on rather or not there
procedures were being carried out. A survey of newly qualified primary-level teachers
was given to analyze the level of safeguard given by teachers. Teachers play a vital role
in the practice of child protection monitoring in schools(McGarry, 1), which is why it is
important to understand the role that teachers are actually playing while in the classroom.
The study found that the awareness of child protection guidelines was not consistent.
28% of teachers that were surveyed reported that they had not even heard of the
guidelines and 74% found out about the guidelines during their teacher education.
Teachers are lacking in many areas which are composed of: reported awareness of child
protection guidelines, knowledge of the schools procedures, experience of child

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protection training and perceived confidence in identifying and reporting concerns over
the safety of a child(Buckley, 4). The main root of this issue comes from the lack of
confidence in teachers. If they do not have confidence in their ability to depict a child
being abused, they will simply never be able to fully or efficiently do their job.
Most people would probably assume abused kids are easy to pull out of a crowd;
they probably are swarmed with scratches and bruises, right? This is the problem with
detecting abuse. Over 700,000 children per year in the US alone are identified as victims
of physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, exposure to violence, and or some other form of
maltreatment(US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration f children
and families 2010). If we cant even open our eyes to a number of these 700,000 children,
I cant even imagine how many more kids are being abused yet it still goes unseen. These
children are likely to experience poor academic development, which leads to a high rate
of school dropouts, criminal involvement, and assorted mental health issues. So many
things are overlooked and it is sad to think that children will develop mental health
problems simply because they experience a high level if stress due to maltreatment.
Solution
Throughresearchandknownfact,itisobviousthatinmostcases,abusedoes
definitelybegininthehome.Becausehomeisnotsoprevalentforchildrentoseek
warmthandsafetyintodaystime,itiscrucialthatschool,beingtheaveragechilds
homeawayfromhomeprovidesacomfortingenvironmentforallchildren.Notonly
shouldschoolsprovidealevelofcomforttostudent,butbecausechildrendonotseek
helpandkeeptothemselves,itisimportantthatteachershaveawaytodetecttheabuse
orneglect.Ihaveprovidedasolutiontohelpteacherskeepupwiththehomelivesof

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theirstudentandbeabletobetterdetecttheredflagsathome.Ihavecreatedan
interactiveworkbookforstudentstohavefunwithinclassbutwillprovidenecessary
informationtotheteacherandsecrecyforchildren.Thisisawayforthestudentto
releasetheirfeelingsandthoughtsintheworkbookwithoutfeelingthelevelofpressure
theywouldfeelbytalkingtoacounselor.Therearemanyreasonswhyabusedchildren
donotdiscussitwithothers.Thechildmaycareaboutorfeelprotectiveoftheperson
whosexuallyabusedthemandmayfeeltheydbebetrayingthispersonbytellingabout
thesexualcontactandtheabusermayusethisinformationtohelpmaintainthe
secrecy(Stopitnow.org).Thisisasignificantreasonaloneastowhyachildwouldkeep
quiet,andtalkingtosomeoneaboutitwouldbetraythatprotectionorsecrecywiththe
perpetrator.
Althoughthisworkbookwillbeinteractive,itwillprovideavarietyof
informationthateachstudentcanlearnfrom.Theworkbookitselfwillbecomealog,so
theteacherwillbegettingdailyreportsfromthestudent.Therewillbesimplequestions
like,whatdidyouhavefordinner?In2012,stateagenciesfoundanestimated686,000
victimsofchildmaltreatment(Fedderson).AccordingtotheUnitedStatesDepartment
ofAgriculture(USDA),15.8millionchildrenunder18intheUnitedStateslivein
householdswheretheyareunabletoconsistentlyaccessenoughnutritiousfoodnecessary
forahealthylife.Manypeoplethinkabuseisstrictlyphysicalharmyougiveto
someonebutchildrenwhoaregoingwithoutmealsandnotbeingsuppliedenough
nutrientstolivehealthy,arebeingabusedaswell.Whenstudentscontinuallylogwhat
theyeat,itsoundslikeaninnocentquestiontothembutwillgivetheteacheranoutlook

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onthelivingenvironmentofeachchildandwillputeasyredflagsonthekidswhoarent
meetingtheirfoodneeds.
Theappearanceoftheworkbookisimportantaswell.Studiesandexpertshave
shownthatcolorcanstimulatehormonesthataffectourmoodthroughthecentral
nervoussystem(Huffington).Red,orange,andyellowareallwarmcolorsthatevoke
feelingsofhappinessandoptimismbutyellowandredoftenmakepeoplehungry.Redby
itselfcanbringasenseofpassionaswellasanger.Greenrepresentshealthandhelpsone
relax,whilebluecancreatecalmingchemicalsthatprovidestrust,securityandevena
friendlyfeeling.Thisisjustanoverviewofhowhumansperceivecolorandhowspecific
colorsmakeusfeel.Thepointoftheinteractiveworkbookistotriggerthingsthata
counselorcannot,andtriggeringsomeoftheunderlyingemotionscouldhelp;using
differentcolorstotriggerdifferentemotionscouldhelpachildopenupmore.Achild
readingapersonalquestioninacalmingbluecouldhelpthemopenupratherthanadark
harmingcolorthatcouldretrievethememoriesofabuseandcloseupachanceofopening
up.
Theworkbookwillcoverthedifferenttypesofabusefromsexualandphysicalto
emotionalandmental.Eachaspectisequallyimportantandoftenthephysicalandmental
feedofeachotherandcausemorehardtotheabusedindividual.Childrenthathavebeen
sexuallyabusedforaextendedperiodoftimelooserealizationofwhatrightandwrong
is;sotheyneedtoberemindedwhatisokayandwhatisnot.Itisimportanttoprovidea
safeopportunityforchildrentobringtheirproblemstothesurfacesotheycanfacethem,
controlthem,andeventuallyrelinquishthem.

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Youngchildrendonothavetheabilitytoexpresshowthefeel,especiallyliving
orhavelivedthroughasituationoftraumatizingsexualisation,abuse,vulnerability,and
betrayal,whichiswhytheinteractiveworkbookishelpful.Notallchildrencopethrough
playtherapyoroneononeinteractionwithanadultwhomtheydonottrust.Many
childrenaretothemselvesandaremoreopenwhentheyarealone.Manykidsexpress
themselvesthroughdrawing,coloring,andsimplywriting.Thisworkbookwilltarget
thesetypesofkidstheoneswhoarehardertoreach.Therewasacasestudydoneona
girlfromIndiawhowassexuallyabusedandabandonedandafteranalyzingherina
playfulenvironment,itwassaidthatShewasextremelywithdrawninhersocial
interactions,andcompletelylackedsocialskills.Shedidnotrespondtoanyofthe
gesturesmadebytheotherchildrentotalkorplay(Singhal).Thisisaccurateformany
childrenwhoarephysicallyorsexuallyabused.Thebecomewithdrawalandlosetheir
skillofsocialinteraction,sonotonlyisthatasigntowatchforintheclassroom,but
thesechildrenmightopenupmoreonpaper.Creativewritingisspecificallyatoolin
helpingwiththehealingprocess.Theprimarywaytocounteractfragmentationisto
cognitivelyandsymbolicallyintegratefeelingandexperience.Thesenseof
defectiveness,blame,andshameareallmitigatedbypersonalwritingbecausewriting
externalizesandobjectifiesexperience,thusremovingitfromintenselyselfcritical
internalprocesses(Gold).Beinginvolvedintheworkbookcanincreaseselfesteem
whichwillleadtolessisolationandprovideamorepositivehealingatmosphere.

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Work Cited
Agarwal, Vivek. "Effects Of Adverse Childhood Experiences On Children." Journal Of
Indian Association For Child & Adolescent Mental Health 11.1 (2015): 1-6.
Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 Feb. 2015.
EEN-EROUL, Aye Rezan, and zlem KAF HASIRCI. "The Effectiveness Of
Psycho-Educational School-Based Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Training
Program On Turkish Elementary Students." Educational Sciences: Theory &
Practice 13.2 (2013): 725-729. Academic Search Complete. Web. 9 Sept. 2014.
Dubowitz, H(ed) (1999) Neglected Children: Research, Practice and Policy. Thousand
Oakes: Sage.
Food and Nutrition Service. Characteristics of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program Households: Fiscal Year 2012. (2014). USDA FNS. February 20, 2014.
Fedderson, Yvonne, Sara Omera. Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse.
https://www.childhelp.org/child-abuse-statistics/.
Gold, Richard. Understanding the Trauma of Child Abuse.
http://www.pongoteenwriting.org/Understanding-the-Trauma-of-ChildAbuse.html. 2009.
Henschel, Saskia, Marijn Bruin, and Eva Mhler. "Self-Control And Child Abuse

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Potential In Mothers With An Abuse History And Their Preschool Children."
Journal Of Child & Family Studies 23.5 (2014): 824-836. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 9 Sept. 2014.
Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/how-color-affectsmoods_n_3995681.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/how-coloraffects-moods_n_3995681.html

Langwith, Jacqueline. Child Abuse: Introducing Issues With Opposing Viewpoints.

Detroit: Greenhaven Press, c2011
Mcgarry, Kathryn, and Helen Buckley. "Lessons On Child Protection: A Survey Of
Newly Qualified Primary-Level Teachers In Ireland." Child Abuse Review 22.2
(2013): 80-92. Academic Search Complete. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.
Mondal, Pritanka, and Sanjukta Das. "Early Abusive Experiences And Psychological
Consequences: A Study With Institutionalized Children." SIS Journal Of
Projective Psychology & Mental Health21.2 (2014): 98-103. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 9 Sept. 2014.
National Children's Alliance. "National Statistics on Child Abuse." Accessed February
19, 2014, http://www.nationalchildrensalliance.org/NCANationalStatistics.
Newton. Langwidth, Jacquline. Child Abuse: Introducing Issues With Opposing
Viewpoints. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, c2011
Singhal, Meghna, and Honey Oberoi Vahali. "Building Broken Sandcastles: Explorations
In Play Therapy With A Sexually Abused Child." Journal Of Indian Association

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For Child & Adolescent Mental Health 10.2 (2014): 132-144. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 26 Feb. 2015.
Seven Colors That can Change your Mood and Outlook. Huffington Post.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/how-color-affectsmoods_n_3995681.html.