Emotional or psychological abuse
Emotional or psychological abuse involves the child being exposed to persistent emotional maltreatment. This form of abuse has a severe adverse effect on the emotional development of the child.
Emotional abuse can involve:
- Making the child feel worthless or unloved.
- Making the child feel inadequate or valued only where they meet the needs of another person.
- Humiliating the child.
- Threatening abandonment and/or deprivation of contact.
- Having expectations that are inappropriate for the age of the child.
- Having interactions with the child that is beyond their developmental capability. This would be evident in a young child being expected to behave like a much older child.
- Allowing the child to see or hear ill treatment or serious bullying of another person.
- Causing or allowing the child to feel frequently frightened or in danger.
- Being overly protective can also be considered a form of emotional abuse as it prevents the child from exploration and consequent development.
Children may demonstrate both physical and behavioural signs of emotional abuse including:
- Sleep disturbance.
- Speech disorders.
- Bed wetting (of new onset).
- Fear.
- Confusion.
- Extreme shyness and passivity.
- Low self-esteem.
- Compulsive behaviour.
- Unexplained depression, anxiety or fearfulness.
- Marked change in the child’s behaviour or emotional state that cannot be explained by a stressful event which could involve acting out abuse that they have witnessed or experienced.
- Running away from home or unexplained absence from school.