Critical Analysis of Sexual Abuse in Relation to Children and Young Adults within the United Kingdom - Essay Example

Critical analysis of sexual abuse in relation to children and young adults within the United Kingdom Introduction Numerous research studies have been conducted with an aim of assessing the level and extent to which exposure to child abuse affects the biological, sociological, physiological, and behavioral well-being of children. It has been shown that the rates of child abuse in the United Kingdom have been on the rise over the last one decade. This is because more and more children are reporting being subjected to one form of child abuse or the other. The most reported cases include sexual abuse, physical abuse, and exposure to domestic violence. In order to understand the extent to which child abuse affects children, this paper analyzes various studies carried out by different groups of researchers in different social environments. As seen in the discussion below, a wide range of a child’s developmental outcomes is compromised by prolonged exposure to environments of child abuse. The developmental aspects that are heavily compromised in both of these studies include cognitive, behavioral, social, emotional, and health functioning. Child Neglect Neglect has often been referred to as the key subject of child welfare topics due to the heavy weight of attraction that the topic has attracted over the recent few years. The issue of child neglect and abuse has been subsumed with sexual or physical abuse into a general category of child maltreatment. According to recent social care statistics in the United Kingdom, cases of child neglect have increased drastically over the last ten years (NSPCC, 2007). Whether or not the increase is a representation of a genuine increase in numbers, a shift in the definition or another change in policy and practice remains unclear. Reports by the Child Protection Register also indicate that child neglect has become the leading category for registration across the country (Cawson, Wattam, Brooker, & Kelly, 2000). For instance, in the year 2007, child neglect was highlighted as the major reason for registration in approximately 45% of cases, and this represented more than fourteen thousand children (DCSF, 2007). These figures are demonstrative of the scale of the issue of child abuse even though they are likely to be largely underestimated because neglect often goes undetected by the child protection agencies. Other sources of information indicate that child neglect accounts for a higher rate of prevalence than other types of child maltreatment such as sexual and physical abuse. According to Cawson et,.al (2000), approximately eighteen percent of a random sample of young adults between 18 and 24 years reported absence of childcare in the childhood. Out of these 20% had encountered inadequate supervision from caregivers. In an earlier retrospective study on childhood experience among some working-class women, Bifco & Moran (1998) had reported a rate of moderate to severe neglect for 17% of their sample study. The evidence from these various studies indicates that child neglect has been a major concern for child welfare activists fro a long time in the United Kingdom (De Bellis, 2005). Challenges in gathering sufficient evidence on neglect for purposes of informing policy practice lie in the complexity that surrounds the definition of child neglect. Neglect often has been referred to as a multi-faceted concept and its non-unitary nature has led to increased differences the subject is defined by practice and research (Berry, Charlson, & Dawson, 2003). The apparent lack of consensus on the definition of neglect has had a major impact on the understanding of not just the scale of the issue, but also its causes, assessment, and intervention approaches. These are aimed at preventing and mitigating its adverse effects on child health. Unlike physical abuse and sexual abuse where specific abusive actions are directed towards the concerned child, neglect is typically illustrated by the lack of provisions for a child’s basic needs (Gough, 2005). Nevertheless, beyond the agreement that neglect encompasses acts of omission in child care. The scope of child neglect varies in fundamental ways, including variations in the scope and breadth of what can be considered as basic need, and differences in what should be considered as adequate standards of provision to satisfy these basic needs (Department of Health, Home Office, and Department for Education and Employment, 2006). Going by the differences in ways in which neglect is defined and understood, the task of evaluating child neglect has become very challenging for child protection agencies in the United Kingdom. In general, the current methods of assessment have been designed to consider the needs of individual children, as well as the families. The methods have also been designed to make consideration for the severity and type if child neglect and the risk and extent of harm to the child (Jowitt, 2003). For instance, the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families is an evaluation tool used in England and the Wales. According to the Department of Health, (2000), the tool focuses on seven critical domains of a child’s developmental needs ranging from education, health, behavioral and emotional development. Moreover, issues of family and social relationships, identity, self-care skills, and social presentation are of pertinent in child development. In spite of the presence of a child protection framework, many scholars have questioned how well such assessments are conducted and the level of their efficiency in practice (Stevenson, 2005). Obesity The issue of childhood obesity has become one of the most widespread public health challenges in the 21st century. In the year 2010, the global rate of overweight children below the age of five years was approximated at forty-two million. Recent statistics indicates that childhood obesity affects at least 10-25% of the children population in most developed countries. This is so in the U.K. and the U.S. In the United Kingdom, the proportion of obese children between age six to eleven increased from 6% in a980 to 16% in 2008. Currently, over two million children in the U.K. are overweight, with seven hundred thousand of them being considered obese. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), most children in the U.K. become obese or overweight due to high caloric imbalances that are precipitated by the heavy calories and less expenditure of the same. The increase in obesity trends has also been linked to decreased rates of daily exercises and increased consumption of unhealthy foods. Exposure to Domestic Violence In a study conducted by, Crooks, Lee, Faffe, and Mclntyre, Wolfe (2003), it was found that co-occurrence of child abuse exacerbated the level of behavioral and emotional problems. However, it was noted that sex, age, and type of the outcome were not substantial moderators, and this was linked to the considerable heterogeneity within each of the groups under study. The authors identified more than forty studies that offered relevant data for inclusion in their meta-analysis. In 99% of these studies, the authors found that prolonged exposure of children to domestic violence most often than not resulted in behavioral and emotional problems. The study noted that minority children who are often exposed to domestic violence often live in areas with high poverty levels. Additionally, in violent households where children are present, substance abuse has been shown to be prevalent in more than one-third of the cases. These results indicate that households, where children find themselves at the center of domestic violence, are likely to have other risk factors. These include things such as substance abuse, poverty, low educational standards on the part of the caregiver, and single-parent households (Taylor & Daniel, 2005). One shortcoming of this study is that it did not include the outcomes of children in single parent households for possible comparison between any levels of violence in such households and the level of outcomes in two-parent households. The gender of the children was also not taken into consideration for purposes of determining whether there is any significant correlation between the gender of the child and the impacts of domestic violence on such either gender. The findings of the study above were closely correlated with the results of another study conducted by Kitzmann, Gaylord, Holt, & Kenny, (2003). The meta-analysis study conducted by the researchers examined one hundred and eighteen studies on the psychological results of children who had been exposed to inter-parental violence. In a similar trend to the earlier study by Crooks, et.al, (2003), the researchers noted a significant association between child problems and exposure to domestic violence. More than fifty percent of all proven cases of domestic violence had children at their center. In fact, domestic violence was found to be more prevalent in households that had children. The results indicated that where the couple involved in domestic violence were married, children were very likely to be present during the violent incidents. Thus, group comparison studies indicate that child witnesses to domestic violence had worse developmental outcomes. However, the study found that the outcomes of child witnesses to domestic flare-ups had no significant variation from the outcomes of children coming from environments of physical abuse. As seen from earlier studies such as Cleaver, Unell, & Aldgate, (1999), one notable thing from the study was that children portray multiple developmental problems in their response to domestic violence. The implication here is that children with prolonged exposure to abusive have a high likelihood of showing a diverse range of social, behavioral, and academic problems. Furthermore, the study reported that children brought up in violent relationships demonstrated individual variations in their expression of developmental issues. In fact, these differences were masked within the many group analyzes. Assessment or Recommendations Underlying effective analysis in the children protection field is the understanding of the importance of attaining outcomes (Barlow and Scott, 2010). In child protection, the major goal is to make a positive difference in the lives of the concerned children and their extended family. The best outcomes are attained when there is a remarkable improvement in family functioning, and the well-being and safety of the children have been guaranteed. This relies on the ability to make a comprehensive assessment and selecting interventions that are most likely to have a formidable positive impact (Wilson, & James, 2007). Holistic approach Many scholars have stressed the need to adopt holistic evaluation of children’s lives and this is essentially important in suspected cases of severe child neglect. This is as a result of the many potential contributing variations and factors in the understanding of child neglect. Thus, the success of assessment studies of child neglect relies on from the consideration of factors in the family, personal, and social levels. The success of assessment studies also depends on the understanding of the inner world of the self, as well as the outer world of the environment in which the child lives. Child-centred According to Horwath, (2007), there is a need for childcare practitioners to remain child-focused in their evaluation of neglect. Furthermore, they should consider the particular developmental needs of the child and make consideration for the ways in which the inability of parents and caregivers to complete their parenting tasks affects the specific child. In this regard, there is a need to consider several factors such as gender, age, support networks, culture, circumstances, and special needs (Horwath, 2007: p. 40). The understanding of children’s developmental requirements and processes is a pivotal component of any assessment process and informs the fundamental areas stipulated in any assessment framework. According to Tanner and Turney (2000), there is a need to assess the nature and extent of relationship breakdown in the family set-up when it comes to parent-child interactions. There is also the need to understand why and how childcare is lacking, as this will facilitate the implementation of more focused intervention strategies. Multi-disciplinary As seen in the Assessment Framework for Children in Need and their Families in the United Kingdom, there is a need for professionals adopt inter-agency and inter-disciplinary approaches in child protection measures. This principle should extend not just to the assessment practices, but also to other care planning initiatives and delivery of services. The need to establish such collaborative approach is particularly important in cases of child neglects because neglectful families usually experience diverse multiple problems. Thus, sharing of information between child-care professionals is essential in the construction of a comprehensive picture of the apparent risk to the child. In fact, such a comprehensive picture was apparent in the inquiry of the death of Victoria Climbie during the laming’s inquiry (Laming report, 2003). Buckley, (2005) also suggested that multi-disciplinary approaches may be less well defined when it comes to child neglect as compared to cases of physical or sexual abuse. This is because the criminal nature of sexual and physical abuse offers clearer structures that enable cooperative practices between all stakeholders such as the police, social workers, and other associated agencies. It is noteworthy that multi-disciplinary practices may be hindered by the perception of referrers such as teachers and nurses regarding the potential for lack of feedback or response from the social services departments. Thus, there is a need for accountability and clear communication channels in any multi-disciplinary approaches that may be adopted in child protection initiatives. Conclusion It is clear from the research studies above that the interrelated issues of harm, risk, and needs are essential in child protection assessment and associated interventions. It is noteworthy that the risk is future-oriented and is mostly concerned with the potential of harm being experienced by the concerned child or children. On the hand, harm refers to the damaging consequences or effects of neglectful or abusive behaviors. The presence of certain risk factors or indicators (for example prior harm), provides a suggestion of an exacerbated likelihood of future harm. The presence of resilience or protective factors can serve to neutralize these risk factors. It is notable that assessments and evaluations in child protection often require the practitioner to accurately identify any harm that the concerned child or children may have gone through. Moreover, the present risk, protective factors, as well as the family needs are priority areas that need attention on the basis of the results being targeted. Borrowing on knowledge from a diverse range of domains, such as empirical, theoretical, personal knowledge, and professional experience can effectively strengthen the quality of children protection assessment. Thus, it is important for the child protection practitioner to master a good grasp of procedural knowledge including organizational and legislation policies, procedures, and practice guidelines. It is important to note that legislation offers the framework for the evaluation and assessment since it sets the boundary for the concerned authority to intervene in the family life. For instance, it is only through the assessment that the child protection practitioners can learn whether the child or children has been abused or is at risk of potential harm. The assessment also helps to determine whether the parents are able and willing to take care of every child, and these key concepts and terms are set out in the legislation. Legislation also spells out how any investigations are to be carried out, the authority that needs to be informed of any actions, the authority that needs to be consulted before any action, the action that need to be carried out, the legal protections available for the actions, and the rights of children who have been placed under protective care. Thus, legislation provides many provisions that are aimed solely at ensuring a balanced use of power in the child protection work. The contemporary critical and structural theories often shift the emphasis from the individual parent to examining the structural and social arrangements. Thus, by drawing attention to the effects of patterned inequalities and the extent of social, cultural, and economic factors that define social norms about parenting. References Barlow, J. and Scott, J. 2010. Safeguarding Children in the 21st Century. Dartington: Research in Practice. Berry, M, Charlson, R & Dawson, K. 2003. Promising Practices in Understanding and Treating Child Neglect. Child and Family Social Work, 8 (1); 13–24 Bifulco, A & Moran, P. 1998. Wednesday’s Child: Research into Women’s Experience of Neglect and Abuse in Childhood, and Adult Depression. London: Routledge Buckley, H. 2005. Neglect: No Monopoly on Expertise’ in J Taylor and B Daniel (Eds) Child Neglect: Practical Issues for Health and Social Care. London: Jessica Kingsley Cawson, P, Wattam, C, Brooker, S & Kelly, G. 2000. Child Maltreatment in the United Kingdom: A Study of the Prevalence of Child Abuse and Neglect. London: NSPCC Cleaver, H, Unell, I & Aldgate, J. 1999. Children’s Needs – Parenting Capacity. The impact of Parental Mental Illness, Problem Alcohol and Drug Use, and Domestic Violence on Children’s Development. London: Department of Health Crooks, C., Faffe, P., Mclntyre, A., Lee, V., & Wolfe, D. (2003). The Effects of Children’s Exposure to Domestic Violence: A Meta-Analysis and Critique. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 6, 3, 171-187. De Bellis, M. 2005. The Psychobiology of Neglect. Child Maltreatment, 10 (3): 150–172 Department for Children, Schools and Families. 2007. Referrals, assessments and children and young people who are the subject of a child protection plan or are on child protection registers, England – year ending 31 March 2007. Statistical First Release 28/2007, accessed at [30th March 2015] Department of Health, Home Office, and Department for Education and Employment, 2006. Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families, London: The Stationery Office Horwath, J. 2007. 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