THE IMPACT OF NEGLECT AND ABUSE ON CHILDREN’S LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Question 1

GENERAL BACKGROUND FACTS

Answer 1

• Children may experience abuse and/or neglect (AN)

- The highest rate of child abuse is experienced by children between birth and 3 years of age

Question 2

American Society for the Positive Care of Children, 2015

Answer 2

-Over the past 10 years, more than 20,000 American children are believed to have been killed in their own homes by family members. That is nearly four times the number of US soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The child maltreatment death rate in the US is triple Canada’s and 11 times that of Italy.

Question 3

Sheehan Stanford Child Neurology

Answer 3

• Abused babies- about 25% die and up to 50% survive with significant neurological deficits

Question 4

Neglect

Answer 4

• Is the failure to provide for a child’s basic needs

- It can be emotional, educational, or physical

Question 5

Children who experience physical neglect

Answer 5

• Often experience this because their parents are unable to provide what they need—they are poor
• May be inappropriately left at home alone

Question 6

These physically neglected children

Answer 6

• Often have trouble doing well in school- basic needs are not met
• hungry, cold, lice
• Difficulty concentrating

Question 7

Recent national statistics indicate that in terms of perpetrators by relationship to the victim

Answer 7

78.5% are parents

Question 8

Children who have experienced severe emotional neglect

Answer 8

• May be lethargic and apathetic
• May demonstrate learned helplessness
• May have cognitive problems, including difficulty with impulse control and problem-solving skills

Question 9

ABUSE OF THE DISABLED

Answer 9

Reports: physical and sexual abuse of individuals with disabilities runs 3-4 times higher than abuse in the general population

• Disabled girls esp. vulnerable targets; often, family members abuse them
• If disable ch. reports abuse, s/he often not seen as credible- cant describe details
• SLP’s sometimes called to assist in court cases
• SLP’s ensures that interviews are conducted at ch’s appropriate cognitive and linguistic levels.

Question 10

Some research suggests that…

Answer 10

• Mothers of babies with craniofacial abnormalities such as cleft palat may be less attached to and nurturing of their infants.
• Decreased attachment increases risk of abuse & neglect (AN), babis with craniofacial problems vulnerable to abuse

Question 11

This is one reason…

Answer 11

• That we need to provide medical care for these babies as early as possible

Question 12

Children with disabilities

Answer 12

• Put a lot more stress on their caregivers

- When caregivers are stressed and have no respite, they are more likely to neglect and abuse their children

Question 13

Caregivers of children with disabilities may…

Answer 13

• Not see the light at the end of the tunnel like parents of typically developing ch.
• Be stressed- typical ch. experiences not available
• Parents of typically developing ch. uncomfortable- no invitations
• Special needs parents and ch isolated

Question 14

BEHAVIORAL AND LANGUAGE CHARACTERISTICS

Answer 14

• They are often very quiet
• Difficulties with expressive language
• They have lesser conversational skills than their peers
• They may be less likely than peers to discuss information or volunteer
• These children often do more poorly in school
• They underperform academically
• They have more behavior problems

Question 15

Specific difficulties with pragmatics may include:

Answer 15

• Decrease descriptive utterances
• Language used to get things done with little social affect
• Poor conversational skills overall- shorter conversations
• Inability to discuss feelings
• Lack ability to take perspective of a conversational partner
• Demonstrate alexithymia- absence of words for emotions

Question 16

Other specific language issues may include:

Answer 16

• Shorter, less complex utterances
• Fewer decontextualized utterances; more talk about the here and now
• Auditory and reading comprehension problems

Question 17

Mothers who neglect or abuse babies:

Answer 17

• May punish normal risk-taking adventurous behavior
• May not interact
• May be unresponsive when babies initiate, so babies learn to be passive

Question 18

Shaken baby syndrome may occur

Answer 18

• We must stress to caregivers that they should NEVER shake a baby
• This causes lifetime cognitive and linguistic damage

Question 19

Sheehan Stanford Neurology

Answer 19

Problem: when caregiver is done shaking, s/he usually slams baby hard against a surface- wall, table -> traumatic brain injury

Question 20

. IMPLICATIONS FOR ASSESSMENT AND INTERVENTION

Answer 20

• We need to work as part of a multidisciplinary team
• This team often includes a social worker and a psychologist
• We are mandated to document and report what we see and hear
• In the schools, we would tell the principal

Question 21

In assessment, we especially need to focus on evaluating

Answer 21

• Overall expressive language skills
• Pragmatics skills
• Narrative skills
• Vocabulary

Question 22

Intervention should involve

Answer 22

• Encouraging verbal expression, esp. description
• Providing a warm, nurturing environment with clear rules and boundaries
• Increase ch’s ability to accurately describe and appropriately express emotions
  Ex: use your words, not hitting or kicking

Question 23

Intervention may especially need to involve

Answer 23

• Playing!
• We can provide appropriate dolls/action figures, art supplies, etc.
• As the child is playing or drawing, describe his actions or drawings
• AN ch more likely than peers to engage in behavior that elicits negative reactions from those around them
• ↑ ability to communicate socially

Question 24

We can work on self esteem by using ideas such as

Answer 24

• Star of the Week(Where you make a poster about a child)
• Me Collage(Track the childs body & write descriptions of child)
• Problem Wall
• Trip to the Future(What do you want in the future)

Question 25

Remember that…

Answer 25

• Culturally and linguistically diverse families may especially need direct instruction about American child abuse laws
• I think that we should do this before we refer the family to CPS (Child Protective Services)

Question 26

Many refugee parents

Answer 26

• Great trauma

- Have post- traumatic disorder, may neglect, abuse ch

Question 27

SUPPORTING CAREGIVERS

Answer 27

• Remember that in the U.S., most people do not have help and support from extended families like they do in other countries
• Frequently caregivers are isolated with their children, and they can become extremely stressed

Question 28

It can be very stressful

Answer 28

• When a baby cries nonstop for hours and you are alone with no help—you can’t leave

Question 29

Sheehan Stanford Neurology

Answer 29

• They always ask caregivers: when you cant take it anymore, who do you call to relieve you?
  1. Ask caregivers about their own needs, and attempt to help them meet these needs or guide to them to professionals who can help them (e.g., parenting classes, food stamp programs)
  2. Provide key information about overall child development. Research shows that some caregivers abuse their children because the caregivers’ expectations are too high
  3. Point out what caregivers are already doing right
  4. Provide support groups of other caregivers whose ch have similar challenges
  5. Use DVD’s that model good parenting skills.
  6. Teach caregivers how to use language/words to discipline instead of using physical means such as slapping. For example, caregivers can be taught how to apply choices and consequences.
  7. Model language stimulation strategies such as extensions that caregivers can easily fit into their daily routines.

Question 30

Sheehan

Answer 30

• Parents who abuse- decrease ability to tolerate infant crying
• Evidence: abused babies don’t actually cry more than other babies
• Parents think they do- unrealistic expectations of baby behavior