Kindermishandeling En Verwaarlozing Over De Levensloop
Summary
Samenvatting Artikelen Kindermishandeling en Verwaarlozing over de Levensloop
51 views 4 purchases
Course
Kindermishandeling En Verwaarlozing Over De Levensloop
Institution
Universiteit Leiden (UL)
Samenvattingen van alle artikelen die je nodig hebt voor het tentamen van het vak 'Kindermishandeling en Verwaarlozing over de Levensloop', behorende bij de minor 'Kindermishandeling en Verwaarlozing: een levensloopperspectief' aan Universiteit Leiden.
Kindermishandeling En Verwaarlozing Over De Levensloop
All documents for this subject (5)
Seller
Follow
ahuisman00
Reviews received
Content preview
College 1: Introductie
● Glaser, D. (2002). Emotional abuse and neglect (psychological maltreatment): A
conceptual framework. Child Abuse & Neglect, 26, 697–714.
● Kempe, C. H., Silverman, F. N., Steele, B. B., Droegemueller, W., & Silver, H. K.
(1962). The battered child syndrome. Journal of the American Medical Association,
181, 17-24.
,Emotional abuse and neglect (psychological maltreatment): a conceptual framework
Danya Glaser, 2002
Introduction
It is increasingly accepted that emotional abuse and neglect cause significant harm to the
child’s development and that this harm extends into adult life. Evidence for this has come
from a number of follow-up and longitudinal studies which consistently show that emotional
abuse and neglect in childhood are associated significantly with a wide range of emotional,
behavioral, and cognitive difficulties in later childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.
Epidemiology
It is invariably stated in publications on the subject that emotional abuse or psychological
maltreatment are difficult to define and, therefore, to recognize reliably. Therefore, it is
thought that the number of children recognized as emotionally abused, and therefore in need
of protection and support, is an underestimate.
Beyond the stated difficulty in operationally defining emotional abuse, there are further
possible reasons for the delayed and under-reporting of emotional abuse and neglect. The
terms abuse and maltreatment are considered by some to be unnecessarily pejorative and
problematic when applied to emotional abuse and neglect. This is especially so in those
cases where there is no clear intent to harm the child, although the interaction is clearly
harmful to the child. There is a linguistic and conceptual dilemma between a wish and need
to protect children from harm, and a reluctance to label or blame caregivers who hold a
primary role and responsibility in the child’s life. This reluctance to use the term abuse leads
to under-recognition. However, the importance of using terms abuse-neglect or maltreatment
is that, in practice, these terms embody a professional imperative to intervene to achieve
protection and improve the lot of the child. There is currently no alternative and more
acceptable term to encompass this notion.
It may also be that the perceived prospect of having to defend one’s professional
assessment and opinion in a criminal court has acted as a deterrent to pursuing actively the
recognition of this form of child maltreatment. The criminal law, which requires a higher
standard of proof, is concerned with the guilt or innocence of the alleged abuser, rather than
with the protection of the child victim.
There is a continuum within the parent-child relationship, ranging from a good through
maladaptive to a sufficiently damaging relationship to merit being termed abusive. A
threshold is therefore set arbitrarily. Despite the stated difficulty in defining emotional abuse
and neglect, empirical studies have shown that both lay and professional persons are able to
recognize emotionally abusive interactions. This suggests that the difficulties in recognition
cited by professionals, and which may lead to delay, may not always be shared by the lay
public.
The harmful consequences of delayed recognition are that children are exposed to more
prolonged abuse and neglect, and that interactional patterns become entrenched and more
difficult to change. Therefore, there is a need to refine further the operational definitions and
means of recognizing emotional abuse and neglect.
Definitions
There has been considerable debate about whether the definition of emotional abuse and
neglect should refer to the maltreating behavior or to the consequences for the child, and
whether evidence of both is required for its recognition. The cumulative conclusion was that,
,for definitional purposes, evidence of the ill treatment rather than harm to the child should be
sought, because when the starting point is impairment in the child’s functioning, there may
be explanations for this other than emotional abuse and neglect. Moreover, a definition that
relies on the presence of ill effects does not allow for the possibility of effective prevention of
harm. However, in the US, many states require evidence of harm to the child for case
substantiation to occur.
The following criteria constitute and should be met for an overall definition of emotional
abuse and neglect:
● Emotional abuse and neglect describes a relationship between the parent and the
child;
● The interactions of concern pervade or characterize the relationship (at the time);
● The interactions are actually or potentially harmful by causing impairment to the
child’s psychological/emotional health and development;
● Emotional abuse and neglect includes omission as well as commission; and
● Emotional abuse and neglect requires no physical contact.
There are many different parental behaviors and parent-child interactions that are
expressions of emotional abuse and neglect. However, it is impractical to construct an
exhaustive list of them and to base a definition on them. Therefore, a conceptual framework
is called for.
In one of their practice guidelines, the American Professional Society on the Abuse of
Children (APSAC, 1995) states that ‘’Psychological maltreatment means a repeated pattern
of caregiver behavior or extreme incidents that convey to children that they are worthless,
flawed, unloved, unwanted, endangered, or of value only in meeting another’s needs.’’ The
guidelines go on to describe six forms of psychological maltreatment: spurning, terrorizing,
exploiting/corrupting, denying emotional responsiveness, isolating, and mental, health,
medical, and educational neglect.
There are certain difficulties inherent in these definitions. First, the theoretical or conceptual
basis for these forms of maltreatment is not evident. Second, several of the overall forms
may be classified simultaneously. Third, some of the behaviors listed do not clearly relate to
the overall form of maltreatment.
An alternative framework has been developed which is not based on parental behaviors or
parent-child interactions. Instead, it categorizes the different forms of emotional abuse and
neglect found within the overall definition according to a conceptual framework. This is
based on the elements that comprise a child’s psychosocial being. The elements of a child’s
being can be stated as follows. A child is:
● A person who exists;
● This child with his or her own attributes;
● A child who, by definition, is vulnerable, dependent, and rapidly developing;
● An individual possessing and experiencing her or his own feelings, thoughts, and
perceptions; and
● A social being who will increasingly interact and communicate within her or his own
social context.
Each of these aspects of the child needs to be recognized, respected, and valued by the
child’s primary caregivers or parents. The violation of or failure to respect any of these
elements of the child’s psychosocial being constitute categories of emotional abuse and
neglect.
The following five categories all fall within the overall definition of emotional abuse and
neglect (proposed by the author, Glaser, 1993):
, 1. Emotional unavailability, unresponsiveness, and neglect;
2. Negative attributions and misattributions to the child;
3. Developmentally inappropriate or inconsistent interactions with the child;
4. Failure to recognize or acknowledge the child’s individuality and psychological
boundary;
5. Failing to promote the child’s social adaptation.
Because each category addresses a different aspect of the child’s existence and needs, and
is also determined by different motivations and psychological states of the parents in respect
to the child, no two categories would be expected to be found consistently together.
However, it is possible that more than one category is recognized as present within a parent-
child relationship. When two or more categories coexist, it is possible to determine which is
the ‘’driving’’ one. The significance of determining the ‘’driving’’ category is both conceptual
and relevant for providing specific interventions.
When parent-child interactions that cause professional concern are encountered, the initial
question is whether these behaviors or interactions satisfy the criteria for the overall
definition of emotional abuse and neglect. To determine this, information from different
sources of observation and report is required. The pervasive nature of psychological
maltreatment within the parent-child relationship implies that it will be observable by different
reporters and in different settings. To identify the appropriate category, information is
required from interviews with the parents and observations of the parent-child interaction.
The format of exploratory interviews with the family is one broadly used in diagnostic child
mental health practice. However, it is important to ensure that some particular issues are
specifically explored:
● What are the family’s concerns in general and about the child in particular?
○ The terms that they use to describe the child and their affect are important
indicators of their attitude towards their child.
● Why do the children think they are being seen?
○ Many children who are emotionally abused believe or ‘’know’’ that their bad
behavior is the cause for concern.
● What are the family’s explanations for the child’s difficulties?
○ Parents who locate the problem or ‘’fault’’ in their child, without showing a
capacity to reflect about other contributing factors, are characteristic of those
falling into category 2.
● What remedies have been tried?
○ Therapeutic endeavors in psychological maltreatment are difficult to
implement and unlikely to succeed if previously tried.
○ The descriptions that some parents give of their attempts to deal with their
child may include aspects of unequivocal psychological treatment.
● What help is the family requesting?
○ Parents who request help for themselves in finding better and more
appropriate ways of dealing with their child’s difficulties are less likely to be
found to be emotionally abusive or neglectful.
○ In psychological maltreatment, typically the request is for the child to be
treated or ‘’sorted out’’, or for no help to be sought.
The issue of a threshold is often cited as a difficult one. If the parental behavior and parent-
child interactions satisfy the definitional criteria, then the threshold of emotional abuse and
neglect is reached. Pervasiveness is evidenced by descriptions that include terms such as
‘’always’’, ‘’usually’’, or ‘’often’’, and which are observed at different times and in different
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller ahuisman00. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $9.12. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
