How child abuse and other violation of the child welfare codes can be minimized?

Answer 1

You question is broad, so I'm not sure I'm giving you the answer you want.

I have worked in child welfare for 15 years in the State of Tennessee. Most of the violations I see are accidents that are reported. Because professionals are mandated by law to report child abuse, they report almost any injury that comes to their attention that may have been caused by a parent.

To reduce injuries to children, I recommend they be supervised according to the needs of their maturity and developmental abilities. When using corporal punishment, which I recommend as a last resort, the object you use should always be the same so you are familiar with the amount of force needed to impress upon your child the unacceptability of their behavior, without injuring your child. Keep in mind that positive reinforcement is usually more effective than negative reinforcement. Corporal punishment should not be used on any child that has a history of being physically abused nor on a child over 10 years old, in my opinion. Older children do not respond to corporal punishment and tend to fight back, causing injuries to themselves or their caretaker.

I read one study that the reason corporal punishment is effective is because it is administered, swiftly. The pain inflicted had nothing to do with the effectiveness of the punishment. (The study used a group of children who had a condition in which they did not have pain sensors. Those child responded the same to the discipline as the normal children.) It is important to remember that punishments communicate your displeasure to the child. This can only be communicated, effectively, to a child that you have a bond with. In cases where you do not have a bond, I recommend the child be disciplined by the person they are attached to. Attachment is the basis of good discipline. If you are working with a child that has an attachment disorder or not attached to you, I recommended you study up on behavior management programs. Children with attachment disorders perceive discipline, differently, than children who are attached to their caretaker.

Most of the other reports we receive are sexual abuse or drug abuse and neglect. I feel I could write a dissertation on the topic of sexual abuse. I think the best prevention of sexual abuse is a vigilant mother. Mothers who pay attention to the feelings they get about certain people, seem to protect their children, better. Some parents were abused, themselves, making it more difficult for them to identify characteristics that make a non-abused person uncomfortable. Those characteristics I see in sexual perpetrators are a lack of personal boundaries, extremely low self-esteem, Narcissism (compensating for low self-esteem by dominating), and a lack of socialization. These people are very manipulative and will make a parent feel bad about not trusting them with their child. So basically, don't let anyone talk you into allowing your child to be alone with them if you have any uneasy feelings or if they display those characteristics I listed above. The second thing I see that contributes to sexual abuse is moving too quickly in a relationship. Several of the clients I have interviewed, moved a boyfriend into their home after knowing them for a month or two. What the correlation is, I'm not sure. The final biggest factor I see is denial. Most cases in which, I find valid sexual abuse, are cases where the non-offending parent rules out the possibility that their paramour could or would abuse their child. To contrast, healthy parents pick of on signs of sexual abuse and when their child discloses or hints (most children feel their parents out before disclosing sexual abuse) believe their children, initially, at least. They do not rule out the possibility that their child may be telling the truth, and they get professional help, immediately. If you are a parent of a child that was sexually abused by your paramour, try not to blame yourself, though. Sexual perpetrators are very sneaky and manipulative. I have worked some cases where there were no signs of sexual abuse.