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Mandatory Child Abuse/Neglect Reporting
Please consider the following scenarios and discuss your thoughts. Some of these issues may require you to consult outside resources including online research.
I will also upload all reading materials to further help you with this. Please go over all readings thoroughly so that it can help you answer the questions. Please watch all videos. Please cite every sources you use including videos. 1 paragraph for each questions please.
Recognizing and Reporting Child Maltreatment.
Please watch the following video clip:
- If your daycare provider accidentally gives your child a double dose of Tylenol, does it amount to child abuse/neglect? Does it matter if your child was hurt or not?
- A mother was found to be living in the car with her baby for a few weeks because she is homeless. Should it be called in to child abuse hotline by you under the Mandatory Reporting Law? What should you do as a DCP&P case worker in this case?
- What is sexual abuse accommodation syndrome? What are its usual symptoms?
- What is the difference between secure, insecure and ambivalent attachments? Why is it important for a case worker to know the difference in child welfare cases?
- Your 16 year old teenage son, 50 pounds bigger than you, pushes you against the wall. In anger you slap him on his face and cause a black eye. Should you be charged with child abuse? What should you do as a DCP&P case worker?
- You went to your girlfriend’s house to have a glass of wine and chat. Your girlfriend started getting drunk and smoking pot while her baby was sleeping in the crib. Do you have a duty to report? Give reasons why?
- At the Walmart parking lot, you noticed that a two-year-old child refused to sit in the car seat and the frustrated mom started slapping the child. Do you have a duty to report?
- Nancy’s mother was concerned that Nancy was taking painkillers while caring for a newborn, but did not report. Did she have a duty to report? Nancy drops the baby and the baby is injured with permanent brain damage. Should DCP&P place the baby with the grandmother knowing she failed to report or protect the baby?
- Your neighbor babysits your child and passes out because of excessive drinking. Your child was left in the crib unharmed. Should that amount to child abuse/neglect?
- What is the role of the New Jersey Office of Law Guardian? How is it different from CASA?
- How is Child Abuse defined in the State of New Jersey? If your 5 year old child goes to her best friend’s house to play and her 12 year old brother hits her with a baseball bat causing her a skull fracture. Is it child abuse pursuant to NJ Statutes? If the parents were binge watching “Game of Thrones” upstairs in their bedroom, what, if any, civil or criminal charges will they be facing?
- How is Child Neglect defined in the State of New Jersey? Mary has five children and she is a single parent who works 2 jobs . She is struggling to pay rent and her monthly utility bills. You find out that one of her children, 5 year-old Bill, had never been to a dentist and suffers from severe tooth decay and pain. Do you have a duty to report? What would you do as a DCP&P case worker in this case?
RISK FACTORS FOR CHILD MALTREATMENT
FAMILY FACTORS
PARENT GENDER
Men and women are not equally likely to be perpetrators of child maltreatment. When it comes to child neglect, female caregivers are more likely to be guilty. Of all neglect charges, 86% are made against women. This is largely accounted for by the fact that, in our culture, women are far more likely to be the primary caregivers for children than are men. On the other hand, 62% of all abuse charges are made against men, and men account for 87% of the charges of sexual abuse (Sedlak et al., 2010).
Parental substance abuse is frequently associated with all types of maltreatment; almost 80% of the families who come to the attention of CPS have some sort of substance abuse problem (Winton & Mara, 2001). However, the relationship between parental substance abuse and child neglect is stronger than is the relationship between parental substance abuse and other types of maltreatment (M. G. Smith & Fong, 2004). When states were asked to report which problems were most likely to lead to child maltreatment, 85% listed substance abuse as one of the top two (poverty was the other leading cause).
There are a number of mechanisms whereby substance abuse may lead to child mal-treatment. First, the direct effects of the drugs, or withdrawal from those drugs, may cause the parents to act out in anger or frustration. Many drugs are noted for their disinhibition of aggressive impulses. In an unimpaired state, an adult may well be able to resist the temptation to strike a child who is pestering him or her. However, while a person is under the influence of drugs, his or her inhibition mechanism is compromised. Even if adults do not become aggressive when under the influence, they are likely to show impaired judgment in other ways. You have probably noted, in yourself or others, the tendency to make particularly poor decisions when a substance like alcohol is involved. Parents who are addicts may also focus on the drug to the point that they cannot meet their children’s need (Kelley, 2002). Finally, if a pregnant woman uses drugs, she may have a direct impact on the fetus.
Mental Health
Parental Mental Illness and Problematic Personality Traits
As a group, people who abuse children are more likely to suffer from mental illness than are nonabusers. Maternal sociopathy and serious mental illness are both associated with an increased risk for child maltreatment (J. Brown, Cohen, Johnston, & Salzinger, 1998).
Depression
Depressed mothers were less emotionally involved with their children and showed less affection than did nondepressed mothers. Not only were depressed mothers lacking in positive interactions with their children; they were also more likely to be overtly hostile and to use harsh punishment than were other mothers.
Intergenerational Transmission
the passing down of a trait or behavior from one generation to the next.
There are a number of reasons to explain why a maltreated child may grow up to be an abusive parent. First, the parent is simply doing what he or she knows. Most of what we learn about how to parent is from watching how our parents reared us. Researchers have noted that children as young as 3 years of age will interact with infant siblings in a manner that is similar to that used by their mothers. In other words, as early as the preschool years, children learn to parent by observing their own mothers (Ney, 1989). Even if we say we will not do what our parents have done, following through with this can be difficult, especially during times of frustration or stress. Second, being the victim of maltreatment can lead to problems such as poor attachment skills, lack of empathy, and social isolation
Family Structure and Functioning factors
Families in which maltreatment occurs tend to score lower on a host of measures related to family functioning. In other words, child maltreatment is not the only problem seen within the family. Members of maltreating families report less togetherness and less communication within the family than do nonabusive families. Persons living in families that maltreat the children also report fewer positive interactions and a lower level of verbal exchange within the family (Paavilainen et al., 2001). There are also specific familial factors including single parenting, domestic violence, and large family size that increase the risk for child maltreatment.
CHILD FACTORS
there are things about children that may increase the chances that they will be the victims of maltreatment. For instance, female children are at a greater risk for sexual abuse than are male children; younger children are more likely to be victims of maltreatment than are older children. Neither of these factors can be changed, but each points to a population that may need more protection. Young children are vulnerable for a number of reasons, including the fact that they are more dependent on caregivers than are older children; it is generally accepted that parents may use physical force against them; they are in greater danger of sustaining an injury due to their smaller size and strength; and they may have greater problems with regulating their emotions (Belsky, 1993). Children with difficult temperaments, disabilities, psychiatric illness, or retardation are also at a greater risk for physical abuse (J. Brown et al., 1998; Hibbard & Desch, 2007). Murphy (2011) reported that not only were children with disabilities 3 to 4 times more like to be victims of child maltreatment, they were also more likely to be seriously harmed by maltreatment than were children without disabilities.
EXTRAFAMILIAL FACTORS
Maltreating parents often have very little social support from either family or friends. Many times, maltreating families are best described as socially isolated. Abusive parents report less involvement with their communities and churches than do nonabusive parents (J. Brown et al., 1998).
Poverty
There are several reasons why an association might exist between poverty and child neglect. Dubowitz (1999) points out that families that are poor are more likely to be faced with a host of factors that are less common among the more affluent, such as extreme stress, unemployment, unstable housing, poor community support, dangerous environments, and minimal access to health care. In many cases, the parents’ inability to cope with all of these things makes them unable to adequately provide for their children.
Cultural Factors
one also needs to consider the broader society. For instance, how accepting is a given culture of violence? When we listen to the music of the times, watch the movies being released, and tune in to the daily television shows, what messages are we receiving about violent behavior? Are children portrayed as innocent or as sexual beings? What messages are being sent about the importance of patient, nurturing parenting? What is the level of acceptance for corporal punishment by parents; how far can parents go before their behavior is considered inappropriate? What is the political climate with regard to parenting? The U.S. government has historically been reluctant to interfere with the sanctity of the family, and this cautious.
Americans are also generally accepting of corporal punishment. Interestingly, the only people you can legally hit in the United States are children. This attitude probably grows out of the prevalent societal thought that children are the property of their parents. Even though corporal punishment is not considered abusive in the United States, it has been noted that abusive parents are more likely to make frequent use of physical punishment and power assertion than are nonmaltreating parents (J. Brown et al., 1998).
Risk Factors vs. Protective Factors
Just as there are risk factors for abuse, there are also protective factors that can prevent abuse, even when multiple risk factors are present. Diverse factors ranging from good health to a supportive extended family to good schools can all serve as compensatory factors. All of these factors make abuse more or less likely; none of them guarantees either abuse or safety. In assessing a particular situation, we should attempt to measure both the risk factors and the protective factors in the child’s environment. When the risk factors outweigh the supportive factors, maltreatment is more likely to occur.
