The Child
Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act defines child abuse and neglect
as: “at a minimum, any recent act or failure to act on the part
of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or
emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation, or an act or failure to
act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm.”
For CAPTA, the term child is someone who has not reached the age of 18;
or (except in the case of sexual abuse) the age specified by the child
protection law of the State in which the child resides;
CAPTA defines the term "sexual abuse" as: "the employment,
use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage
in, or assist any other person to engage in, any sexually explicit conduct
or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction
of such conduct; or the rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial
relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form
of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children."
There are four forms of child maltreatment: emotional abuse, neglect,
physical abuse and sexual abuse.
Emotional Abuse: (also known as: verbal abuse,
mental abuse, and psychological maltreatment) Includes acts or the failures
to act by parents or caretakers that have caused or could cause, serious
behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or mental disorders. This can include
parents/caretakers using extreme and/or bizarre forms of punishment, such
as confinement in a closet or dark room or being tied to a chair for long
periods of time or threatening or terrorizing a child. Less severe acts,
but no less damaging are belittling or rejecting treatment, using derogatory
terms to describe the child, habitual scapegoating or blaming.
Neglect: The failure to provide for the child’s
basic needs. Neglect can be physical, educational, or emotional. Physical
neglect can include not providing adequate food or clothing, appropriate
medical care, supervision, or proper weather protection (heat or coats).
It may include abandonment. Educational neglect includes failure to provide
appropriate schooling or special educational needs, allowing excessive
truancies. Psychological neglect includes the lack of any emotional support
and love, never attending to the child, spousal abuse, drug and alcohol
abuse including allowing the child to participate in drug and alcohol
use.
Physical Abuse: The inflicting of physical
injury upon a child. This may include, burning, hitting, punching, shaking,
kicking, beating, or otherwise harming a child. The parent or caretaker
may not have intended to hurt the child, the injury is not an accident.
It may, however, been the result of over-discipline or physical punishment
that is inappropriate to the child’s age.
Sexual Abuse: The inappropriate sexual behavior
with a child. It includes fondling a child’s genitals, making the
child fondle the adult’s genitals, intercourse, incest, rape, sodomy,
exhibitionism and sexual exploitation. To be considered child abuse these
acts have to be committed by a person responsible for the care of a child
(for example a baby-sitter, a parent, or a daycare provider) or related
to the child. If a stranger commits these acts, it would be considered
sexual assault and handled solely be the police and criminal courts.
* To obtain a free copy of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment
Act (CAPTA) or the definitions of child abuse and neglect, contact:
National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect
P.O. Box 1182 Washington, DC 20013-1182
(800) FYI-3366
(703) 385-7565
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