ABUSE:  Physical Abuse

Abuse  -  Neglect  -  Sexual Abuse  -  Emotional Abuse

Teen Dating Violence  -  Abuse Help & Support

Physical abuse is characterized by the infliction of physical injury as a result of punching, beating, kicking, biting, burning, shaking or otherwise physically harming.

The statistics on physical child abuse are alarming.  It is estimated hundreds of thousands of children are physically abused each year by a parent or close relative.  Thousands die.  For those who survive, the emotional trauma remains long after the external bruises have healed. 

Children who have been abused may display:

• a poor self image

• sexual acting-out

• inability to trust or love others

• aggressive and disruptive behavior

• anger and rage

• self-destructive behavior

• self-injury

• suicidal thoughts

• passive or withdrawn behavior

• anxiety and fears

• school problems or failure

• feelings of sadness or depression

• flashbacks, nightmares

• drug abuse

• alcohol abuse

Often the severe emotional damage to abused children does not surface until adolescence or later when many abused children become abusing parents.

An adult who was abused as a child often has trouble establishing intimate personal relationships. These men and women may have trouble with physical closeness, touching, intimacy, and trust as adults.  They are also at higher risk for anxiety, depression, substance abuse, medical illness, and problems at school or work.

Children witnessing physical abuse -- and living in an environment where violence occurs -- may experience some of the same trauma as abused children.

Not all children are affected in the same way.  Children may become fearful, inhibited, aggressive, antisocial, withdrawn, anxious, depressed, angry, confused; suffer from disturbed sleep, problems with eating, difficulties at school and challenges in making friends.  Children often feel caught in the middle between their parents and find it difficult to talk to either of them.

Teens may act out or exhibit risk-taking behaviors such as substance abuse, running away, sexual promiscuity and criminal behavior.  Young men may try to protect their mothers, or they may become abusive to their mothers themselves.  Children and teens may be injured if they try to intervene in the violence in their homes.

NEXT:  Sexual Abuse

More Information on Physical Abuse

Boys Will Be Boys ~ Understanding the impact of child maltreatment and family violence on the sexual, reproductive, and parenting behaviors of young men.

Domestic Violence: Protecting Yourself and Your Children ~ Violence against a partner or a child is a crime in all states.  People who are hurt by their partners, parents or guardians do not cause the abuse.  Alcohol and drugs do not cause abuse, although they can make the violence worse.  Here are things that you can do to protect yourself and your children.

Family Violence Statistics: Including Statistics on Strangers and Acquaintances ~ Compares family and nonfamily violence statistics from victimization through the different stages of the justice system.  Family violence is defined as all types of violent crime committed by an offender who is related to the victim and includes spouse abuse, parental violence against a child, and violence among other family members.  Nonfamily relationships used for comparison include boyfriends and girlfriends, friends and acquaintances, and strangers.

Healing the Invisible Wounds: Children's Exposure to Violence - A Guide for Families (pdf) ~ How you help a child deal with violence depends on the child’s age.  Here's what you can do.

It Shouldn't Hurt To Be A Child ~ Hitting a child is neither patient nor kind, and does not accomplish the true goal intended.  It only produces feelings of anger, resentment, and low self-esteem, not the genuine willing cooperation the parent seeks.  Genuine cooperation comes from the heart.

Little Eyes, Little Ears: How Violence Against a Mother Shapes Children as They Grow (pdf) ~ Topics include what children might feel, think, and do during violent incidents against their mothers, roles they might adopt before, during or after incidents, strategies of coping and survival, and how violence may be experienced by children of different ages, from infancy to adolescence.

Mothers and Children:  Understanding the Links Between Woman Battering and Child Abuse ~ The studies reviewed here suggest that in 32% to 53% of all families where women are being beaten their children are also the victims of abuse by the same perpetrator.  Research also suggests that children who witness domestic violence, but who are themselves not physically abused, may suffer social and mental health problems as a result.

Parent Abuse: The Abuse of Parents by Their Teenage Children (pdf) ~ Parent abuse is any harmful act by a teenage child intended to gain power and control over a parent.  The abuse can be physical, psychological, or financial.

Physical Punishment and the Development of Aggressive and Violent Behavior ~ The value of physical or corporal punishment is disputed among psychologists; some regard it as harmless, while many others consider it potentially harmful.  Some researchers have suggested that parental use of physical punishment may be causally related to the development of aggression.

Swallowing the Hurt: Exploring the Links Between Anorexia, Bulimia and Violence Against Women and Girls (pdf) ~ This report examines the links between eating disorders and violence against women and girls.

Violence and the Family ~ Violence in the home may well be the learning ground for later violence in other social settings and in other interpersonal relationships.

Violence in the Family ~ The willingness to listen and to hear the cries of battered families is the first step.  As long as we refuse to ask, battered women and their children will not talk about what's going on at home.  Their shame is too deep, and they cannot trust that anyone will be able or willing to help.  The solution to stopping violence in the family is up to each of us.