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EMOTIONAL ABUSE & THE OVERBURDENED CHILD
By Dr. Christy Wise

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that:  A child is considered to be emotionally or psychologically abused when he or she is the subject of acts or omissions by parents or other persons responsible for the child's care that have caused, or could cause, a serious behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or mental disorder.

In some cases of emotional/psychological abuse, the acts of parents, or other caretakers, alone, without any harm to the child's behavior or condition, are sufficient to warrant Child Protective services intervention. An example would be if the parents/caretakers use extreme or bizarre forms of punishment such as torture or confinement of the child in a dark closet. For less severe acts, such as habitual scapegoating, belittling, or rejecting treatment, demonstrable harm to the child is often required for CPS to intervene. (U.S. Dept. Of Health Services, 1992, pg.3)  

A parent is clearly guilty of emotional/psychological mistreatment when he or she is consistently unavailable to respond to their child's needs or ignores or rejects the child. Psychological abuse includes "such actions as chronic or extreme spouse abuse in the child's presence, permission for drug or alcohol use by the child, and refusal of or failure to provide needed psychological care" (pg. 2). In our society, the most common and likely form of child abuse is that of emotional or psychological assault. Mental Health Services are clearly in need to address this rising problem.  

Psychological or emotional abuse also takes the form of economic dominance or dependence. The U.S. Department of Social services reports that abusers:  Use the children to maintain power and control over their partners. For example, they belittle or degrade the children as a means of harassing the victim. Abusers may frighten their victims by using looks, actions, gestures, or loud voices. Abusers may threaten to take the children away from their spouse, to harm the children, or threaten to commit suicide.

People who abuse may control their partner's activities, companions, or whereabouts. They often control what their victim's do, whom they see, and where they go. Many abusers feel threatened by anyone with whom their victims have contact.   According to Garbarino, Guttman, & Seely, 1987, (pg.1) any behavior on the part of parents that "jeopardize the development of self-esteem, of social competency, of the capacity for intimacy, and positive healthy interpersonal relationships" are all aspects of psychological maltreatment.