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April 14, 2010

Emotional abuse vs. neglect

What it is and what it’s not

Kevin Jones Jacksonville Daily Progress

JACKSONVILLE — Editor’s note: April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. This is the first in a series of articles about child abuse that the Daily Progress will publish throughout the month of April.

“Child abuse has no boundaries whether it be socio-economic lines, race, nuclear versus non-nuclear family, child abuse happens all the time,” said Brandy Young, counselor with the Crisis Center of Anderson & Cherokee Counties. 

A lot of terrible types of abuse happen daily in communities around the country but among of the least understood kinds of abuse are emotional or psychological abuse and neglect.

“Now when I say emotional or psychological abuse there is a certain definition,” said Young.  “Psychological and emotional abuse are ANY type of abuse that causes harm to a child’s well being, self-esteem or that causes harm to their personal development or self awareness of who they are.

“Neglect is different — neglect is withholding basic necessities; neglect is not housing a child properly or not feeding them adequately. However, emotional abuse frequently accompanies physical and sexual abuse, as well as neglect.”

What does emotional or psychological abuse entail? 

Emotional abuse has many manifestations, Young said. Many children have no clue that they are being abused, though, because they have not had many healthy adult interactions with which to compare their own. 

Emotional abuse comes about in many ways.  Name calling is the most common, she said. An abusive parent will say something they know is harmful to the child  and use those words to exert power and further demean the child.  Along with name calling, another common way that children are emotionally abused is threats by an abuser. 

Among the most dangerous forms of emotional abuse is manipulation.

“Take for example that I am a parent,” Young said. “If I say to my child, ‘If you do not behave today, I am not going to feed you,’ what am I doing? This is manipulation at its worst.

“Child abusers are all about power and control. This may be the most dangerous form of abuse, since the child’s very survival is based on their acceptance and compliance with the abuse. “

The Crisis Center of Anderson and Cherokee Counties fights child abuse at its most basic form, including emotional abuse and neglect.  If you would like more information or have a counseling need, contact the Crisis Center in Jacksonville at 903-586-9118.

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