Domestic Violence - Child Abuse Overview

History has taught us children have always been abused and/or neglected by one or both parents. This is nothing new, is not just an American phenomenon, is not a revelation. As far back as written history exists, men have owned their children as well as their wives, their animals, their slaves, and their other property. Children throughout history and in a myriad of different cultures and times could be sent into slavery to rapay a debt or the child might be sold outright for profit. Physical abuse, child neglect, and child sexual abuse were considered socially acceptable behavior in much of ancient times. 

Now we have a different perspective on child abuse but we also know that rarely is child abuse experienced through a single attack, a single act of deprivation, or a single molestation. Very often there are multiple forms of abuse happening simultaneously. There may be emotional abuse through excessive or aggressive parental behavior which places unreasonable demands on the child. Sometimes emotional abuse is not what the parent does to the child but what a parent fails to do at all! Children who are starved for love, for care, for support, and for guidance carry those psychological scars well into adulthood.

This program will begin with a history of child maltreatment and then take a look at modern defeintions of child abuse. Types of abuse covered include emotional/psychological abuse, neglect, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. We will then cover mandated reporting, child victim criminal law, DV and child custody issues, and criminal jurisdictions as they apply to child abuse cases.

This training program is a public service of The American Public Safety Training Institute found at www.tapsti.org