Running Head: Child Abuse

Child Abuse
Arlene Herrera
The University of Texas at El Paso
RWS 1301

Abstract
Child abuse is when an adult uses their power to mistreat a child. There are four major types of
child abuses which are physical, sexually, neglect, and emotional. In this research paper it

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explains the negative effect of each type and the percentage of cases that each one has around
Texas. The first type is physical abuse, which is causing trauma to a child or hitting them causing
an injury. Next is forcing someone to have intercourse or molesting someone called sexual
abuse. Finally there is neglect and emotional which go hand to hand with each other. Both
happens when an adult is not providing the attention that a child needs which can also lead to
low self-esteem affecting them emotionally.

Key Words:
Child Abuse
Physical
Sexual
Emotional
Neglect

Child Abuse
I had to stay in the same place Id just been raped in. I didn't know at the time that is
what is called: the word rapewas not in my vocabulary (Jaycee Dugard, 2011) . Anyone can
be a victim of a rape. Jaycee Dugard was only eleven years old when she suffered from child
abuse. When some people think of child abuse they think it's just physically abusing them, but

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what they don't know is a child can be abused in all certain ways. In child abuse there are four
major types; Physical, Sexual, Neglect, and Emotional. Each of these have their own distinct
effect on the youth.
In the book Child Abuse the author mentions the four types and the harm it does to the
kids.It specifies that when someone is overpowering a child in an aggressive action it can be
signs of physical abuse (2009). It then goes to explaining sexual, which is when an adult or
someone touches a child inappropriately. Another way to say child sexual abuse can be child
molestation. With emotional abuse people didn't think that was one of the types, but emotional
abuse can hurt as much as physical, sexual, etc. Emotional abuse is basically being verbal. By
calling a child names or telling them things such as you mean nothing can get into their head
making them want to do something terrible to themselves as well as lowering their self-esteem.
Lastly is neglect abuse, which is not paying any attention to the kids and leaving them
unattended. Physical neglect refers to not directly harming a child's physical form,but indirectly.
For example, not feeding or bathing a child are signs of neglect .
In the article of Jasmin Cori(2016, August 2), she explains how emotional abuse can
harm a kids self- esteem. Calling a kid horrible names and using cruel words on them is just as
equivalent to hitting them. Another way can be the body language that the parent gives their kids.
As simple as a look can intimidate their child negatively.
About a year ago a couple in El Paso, Tx was charged with sexual child abuse came out
of an article by (Hunt, D 2015). They were the foster parents of the two children that were under
their supervision. Investigators think they might be other victims involved as well. In this article
it shows how some people might look like they're doing something polite to help out children,
but in reality they are using them in a way probably to get money and hurting the poor innocent

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kids. This case was in our city in El Paso, and even though it might seem like we don't have a lot
of cases of child abuse we do.
The Lee & Beulah Moor Childrens Home has an article explaining the number of child
abuses that were recorded in 2014. The El Paso county investigated 4,979 reports but only about
1,339 were actually victims. Physical and sexual abuse were the highest numbers of child abuse
with 379 and 166 cases.Emotional abuse being the lowest with 56 cases(Lee & Beulah Moor
Children's Home, 2014). In Texas the highest abuse is sexual at 62% from ages 6-12 years old.
And the lowest being child neglect with 1% from ages 13-17 years old. A research of 43,000
victims 33% were males and 47% were female (Children's Advocacy Centers of Texas, 2016).
Females have always been the highest percentage of sexual child abuse, but that also doesn't
mean males can't get abuse. Just like females, males can get abuse in all certain ways. It doesn't
mean it has to be the same type of abuse for example here with sexual. Males were only 14%
behind females which is not a lot. Meaning males can be sexually abuse as well.

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Jaycee is an author that wrote the book A stolen life( 2011) . A book of her child
experience from when she was kidnapped and abused at age eleven for eighteen years. She was
walking home one day after
school when a car pulled up to her
and snatched her away. Jaycee
was kept in a small house for
eighteen years where she was
abused in all ways from physical,
sexual and emotional abuse. In her
book she explains the horrifying
things her kidnapper would do to
her. The author mentions
remembering the man stopping to ask for directions and then pulling her into the car. This shows
that people might look nice, but have bad intentions. Also, it's a way to open the eyes of a parent
to show them that it might be easy for them to send their kids walking home to and from school.
Jaycee also mentions the house she was living in was right in the backyard of her
kidnapper moms house. This lead us to the Journal of Castiglia where she explains that in some
cases the mother of the victim denies that her child is getting abused when she knows what is
actually happening. The man exploits a female child while the parent denies it. In this cases it
makes the parent and the male incest. Which means that the male can be related to the child and
still have sexual intercourse with her. Incest represent about 15% to 20% of sexual child abuse.
In a research of Marshall, Puls, and Davidson (1988) they studied 382 children in a clinic in

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Arizona, only about half of them were sent by social service or law enforcement. Out of half of
the children that were sent 50% were being sexual abuse.
When a doctor gets a child as a patient with bruises all over the body and he/she wants to
see if there's abused involve they have to call either child protective services, or a child pediatric
(Magana, J. 2015, May 13). Magana mentions in her article that child abuse is challenging to
diagnose, but also that a lot of the times when a toddler has bruises and cuts on their body doesn't
mean theyve abuse; it can be from their childhood. Kids are young and reckless sometimes, so
they dont know whats wrong or right. Playing outside and running all around with their friends
sometimes causes them to fall and get cuts on their knees, In her article she also explains some
signs that can lead to child abuse. It is important that we know the difference between the two.
In the website The national Center For Victims of Crime it gives a research of child
sexual abuse. It states that sexual abuse is difficult to identify it because it's not reported oftenly.
David Finkelhor is a director of the Crimes Against Children Research Center that did studies
in child sexual abuse. He states that 1 of 5 girls and 1 of 20 boys are victims of child abuse
( David Finkelhor). Adults such as males and females remember being sexually assault in their
childhood. Over the years the percentage of youths has gone up for sexually victimized: raising
from 16% to 28%.
Being abused at a really young age can traumatize a child for their entire life. Even
though it happens at an age when the kids are young and have no idea what's going on or what
they did for them to be mistreated, it makes them think that probably it's ok to be doing that.
They might not remember the good times they had in their childhood, but for a fact they'll
remember the horrible things they went through. Due to people always remember when
something bad happens to us.

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Child abuse is not a way that someone wants to be remember by. The word child abuse
sounds horrifying itself and the fact that an innocent child is involved is just disgusting. A kid as
young as 5 years old doesn't know what's going around them. They should not have to go
through the dreadful abuse from someone of power.. So for someone to go to court and testify
that the kid caused it is absurd. All a child wants at a young age is to play with friends, and have
love from their parents and family.

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References
Castiglia, P. T. (n.d.). Growth and Development. Sexual Abuse of Children, Journal of Pediatric
Health Care, 9. Retrieved October 20, 2016, from
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/089152459090094M/part/first-page-pdf

Child abuse (for youth ages 12 and older) (eBook, 2009 ... (n.d.). Retrieved October 21,
2016,from
http://www.worldcat.org/title/child-abuse-for-youth-ages-12-and-older/oclc/938944575

Cori, J. (2016, August 2). Impacts of Childhood Emotional Abuse - Jasmin Cori.

Dugard, J. L. (2011). A stolen life: A memoir. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Hunt, D. (2015, May 27). El Paso foster parent charged with sex abuse of 2 children in her care;
husband wanted in cases. El Paso Foster Parent Charged with Sex Abuse of 2 Children in
Her Care; Husband Wanted in Cases. Retrieved from http://www.kvia.com/news/el-pasofoster-parent-charged-with-sex-abuse-of-2-children-in-her-care-husband-wanted-incases/56441131

Lee & Beulah Moor Childrens Home Child Abuse and Neglect in El Paso (2014). Retrieved
from http://leemoor.org/getinvolved/the-need/

Magana, J. (2015, May 13). Child Abuse: Background, Pathophysiology, Epidemiology.

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Statistics - Children's Advocacy Centers of Texas, Inc. (n.d.). Retrieved October 21, 2016