The intent of this paper is to delve into the subject of child deprivation and neglect. Being a parent, it is difficult to fathom neglecting my child of nurturance and love. I believe that nurturance and comfort is something that is instinctually given to children by their parents. As this paper will show, though, some parents have difficulty in doing so for a number of reasons.
“The Child Welfare Information Gateway” defines child neglect as, \"A condition in which a caretaker responsible for the child, either deliberately or by extraordinary inattentiveness, permits the child to experience avoidable present suffering and/or fails to provide one or more of the ingredients generally deemed essential for developing a person\'s physical, intellectual, and emotional capacities.\". However, there are significant differences in the judgments of professionals as to what constitutes child neglect. Variations from state to state and even in cultural standards can mean the difference between a serious allegation of child neglect and simple parenting techniques. Communities’ definition of child neglect also vary widely. For instance, one community may see leaving your child home alone in order to go to work as acceptable while others see it as neglect.
The consequences of neglect and deprivation are distressing. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are at least two theories attached to understanding child neglect. The first theory, the attachment theory, states that neglected infants and toddlers do not develop secure attachments with their caregivers. Because of the hostile, rejecting, and inattentive attitude the children encounter, they develop insecure, nervous and disoriented attachments with their neglectful caregivers. These feelings of insecurity hinder the child’s ability to develop his/her own feelings of self-confidence and independence. Therefore, developmentally speaking, neglected children are virtually unable to become socially and emotionally competent unless and until their environment and amount of nurturing they receive improves.
The second theory, the social learning theory, has also been relied upon to explain the costs to neglected children. Quite simply, neglected children appear to be passive and socially withdrawn in their interactions with peers. Social learning theory suggests that neglected children\'s behavior is learned from the less active, socially withdrawn behavior that they observe exhibited by their parents.
Research evidence from studies of neglected infants and toddlers reveals that children who are victims of physical and emotional neglect suffer severe and progressive problems in functioning. These studies suggest that the failure to develop secure attachments with primary caregivers results in further developmental problems. Byron Egeland’s “Mother-Child Interaction Study” revealed significant developmental deficits in neglected preschool children. Behavior that indicates infants\' lack of secure psychological attachment to their mothers began to show at 12 months of age and got progressively worse through the preschool years. Two-year-olds demonstrated significant insufficiency in coping skills, more frustration, anger, and noncompliance when compared to non-neglected children. Neglected preschool children also exhibited lower self-esteem, less impulse-control, and expressed more negativity than the non-neglected children. When placed in an experimental situation, where desirable toys were placed in a locked glass box that prevented access to the toys, the neglected children were the least creative in seeking solutions to the dilemma. They were distractible and hyperactive, refusing to seek help. They were also less persistent in problem solving than the non-neglected children.
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