ABSTRACT
Child abuse is a general term and includes physical abuse, psychological or emotional abuse, sexual abuse, assault or exploitation, and neglect. Child maltreatment is a less specific term that is often used to describe child abuse. Child sexual abuse is usually defined as any sexual contact between a child and an adult and, if there is a sufficient age difference, between juveniles. Emotional abuse involves coercive, demeaning, or very distant behavior by a parent or other caretaker that interferes with a child’s normal psychological or social development. Emotional abuse involves acts, or the failure to act, on the part of parents and other care-givers that may cause serious emotional, cognitive, or behavioral problems in a child. A child who has been victimized by abuse will frequently not be forthcoming in reporting abuse. Children often experience acute shame or fear of reprisal from the abuser.
