Study Guide Test #3 Flashcards
• Describe the various ways in which children are affected by crisis
May not understand/demonstrate emotions the same
May not perceive/understand situations the same
May be traumatized by different things.
Like adults, all children are unique.
Much depends on personality, age, and support
Many struggle with helplessness and vulnerability.
Adults (parents) can’t protect them
Confusion, fear, anxiety
Apparent unawareness
Overwhelming emotions lead children to familiar and comforting activities
Overwhelming emotions are too difficult to express/verbalize
Revisit the trauma through play.
Helps them discharge/express emotions
Gives them some control over outcomes
Serves as a buffer from debilitating emotions
Regression
Reverting to earlier stages of development
Emotional expressions
Anger and sadness often disguised
Guilt and self-blame
Behavioral expressions
Some become passive/withdrawn, others act out
Aggressive, misbehave, test limits
Difficulty with sleep and dreams
Demonstrate risky behaviors
Trouble in school, difficulty concentrating
• Identify the major psychosocial, physical, and cognitive changes that occur during adolescence and describe their impact on overall function and their impact on how teens respond to crises.
Identity formation
Remember Erik Erikson?
A relatively clear & consistent awareness of whom one is.
Established by:
Discovering their talents and skills
Discovering what they enjoy doing
Discovering and adhering to a set of values and beliefs.
Discovering a sense of direction.
Discovering a peer group that shares the above.
2 “pathways”
Integration vs. Substitution
Crisis/trauma can drastically affect the process of answering the question, “Who am I?”
Puberty
Period of rapid physical and sexual development
Development of primary & secondary sex characteristics
Impact at 2 levels
Connection to self-worth, self-esteem, acceptance
Hormones
Also play a role in rapid emotional shifts and extremes
“A teen who is naturally prone to mood shifts and extremes can be overwhelmed by the emotions associated with traumatic experiences.”
Cognitive Development
Remember Piaget? (shift to formal operations)
Thinking abstractly
Reason more effectively
See more than one perspective or solution
Common belief prior to 1990s….
Now, “while it is true that 95% of the brain is developed by the age 5, the most advanced parts of the brain don’t complete their development until adolescence is pretty much over.”
Corpus Callosum – holistic thinking / decision-making
Rapid neural development & networking
Prefrontal cortex – emotional control, impulse control, & logical thinking
Impact on overall functioning Egocentrism Difficulty with empathy and seeing others’ perspectives Lives an “imaginary audience” Impulsive Behavior “Why did you do that?” -- “I don’t know.” Act without thinking, don’t see long term consequences Risk-taking Live by their own personal fables Errors in thinking All or nothing thinking Jumping to conclusions Fair / unfair thinking
Impact on dealing with crisis and trauma
Misperceiving / misinterpreting situations
Tendency toward extreme thinking
Tendency toward magical thinking
Struggling with emotions
Difficulty understanding, sorting, communicating, and regulating them
Made worse during crisis
Behavioral changes
Withdraw or cling
Seek control
Increase in impulsive and risk-taking behaviors
• List the types of traumas for which teens are especially vulnerable (and be able to describe why)
Death of a family member Emotional turmoil Challenge to worldview and identity Death of a friend Most teen deaths are sudden and dramatic Natural Disaster Loss of privacy, lowered school performance, hindered progression to independence, loss of friends and other support Divorce Withdrawal as coping mechanism Cynical about commitment and responsibility Robbed of parenting when they may need it most Incorporated into their own identity
• Distinguish between the different types of maltreatment (according to NCCAN)
Physical Abuse Sexual Abuse Emotional Abuse Physical Neglect Educational Neglect Emotional Neglect
Abuse = acts of commission Neglect = acts of omission
How do we judge intentionality of neglect?
Fatalities are associated slightly more often with neglect.
• Identify whether men or women are more likely to commit child abuse (and why)
60% of perpetrators are women
40% of them under 30
• Describe the various “contributing factors” to child abuse
There is no single cause
There is always the question of correlation vs. causation
There is a multidimensional nature
Psychological, social, family, and community factors
Family Income Low income (poverty-level) related to incidence rates in nearly every category.
Family Structure
Children of single parents at higher risk
77% greater chance of physical abuse
Children living with single father twice as likely to be abused as those living with single mother.
Absence of support network
Non-related males living in the home increases likelihood of abuse
Children in foster homes twice as likely to be abused
Family Size Incidence rates Highest for children of large families (4+) Intermediate for only children Lowest for families with 2 or 3
Other Factors
Drug / alcohol abuse by parents
These parents are three times as likely to abuse their chirldren
Domestic violence
Certain child characteristics
(ex. ADHD or autism) – leads to increased stress in the family
• Describe each of the “mitigating factors” that might influence the impact of abuse
Minimizing the impact of abuse Age Relational proximity Severity and duration Reactions of family members Support network Personal characteristics
• List the ethical principles to consider if/when a minister needs to report abuse
Why should a minister report abuse? Isn’t that interfering with their ability to be a spiritual confidant?
Alleviating pain and suffering
Protection of those who are defenseless and vulnerable
Justice and accountability
• Describe the phases and dynamics of sexual abuse
Engagement phase Enticement, entrapment, threat, or force Sexual Interaction phase Secrecy phase Disclosure phase Suppression phase Recovery phase
• List and describe some tips on how to counsel after a report of abuse
Remind the child they are not in trouble Reassure them they did the right thing Remember the two main goals: Taking care of the child Obtaining evidence Try to arrange for a minimal amount of interviews Be clear about limits of confidentiality Respect the child’s privacy Begin the interview informally Maintain calm demeanor Use good listening and communication skills Pay particular attention to body language Validate the child’s feelings Let them know you believe them Remind them of their courage Avoid questions that imply guilt or blame Document the actual words they use Tell the child what will happen next Prepare the child for the courtroom
• Identify and describe some issues that need to be addressed after a report of abuse (both in the short term and long term)
Issues that need to be addressed Damaged goods Guilt Feel responsible for the abuse or sexual activity Feel responsible for the disclosure Feel responsible for the disruption Fear Depression Low self-esteem & poor social skills
• Identify the percentage of women who experience violence by their husbands and the percentage of women in Emergency Rooms who are treated for injuries related to abuse.
25%-30% of women will experience violence by husbands at least once
30%-35% of women in ER are there for injuries related to abuse
• Identify some key milestones in the history of studying domestic violence
The expression “rule of thumb”
1960s – family violence included as a topic in social problem textbooks
1970s – first battered women’s shelters
1980s – a few separate college courses emerged
1980s – a few journals emerged devoted specifically to family violence
• Identify and correct the common myths of domestic violence
Domestic violence mostly happens in poor families.
Rates are indeed higher for low-income families
But the data is likely skewed.
Poor families who lack other resources turn to police and social service agencies
Families with other resources don’t always get counted in data
Something is wrong with battered women
This places blame on the woman for the violence. “She is a nag.” “She drinks too much.” She is crazy.”
Something must be wrong with women who don’t “just leave.”
Violence and Love cannot co-exist.
People tend to believe that they are so opposite that they cannot co-exist
But some children grow up learning they can co-exist and violent couples often can express love for each other.
• Describe each phase of the cycle of domestic violence
Tension-building phase Mounting stress and tension Cooperation turns to faultfinding Communication dwindles Couple withdraws from each other May develop a sense that violence is coming and that it is inevitable.
Acute Violence phase
Both parties feel victimized and out of control
Abuser will often fly into rampage
Remorse phase
Time of relief for both partners
Abuser is contrite and sorrowful
He is apologetic, promising to never do it again
Leads to a honeymoon phase, victim agrees to reconcile the relationship.
