Emotional Child Abuse

This page will provide a definition of emotional child abuse, as well as additional pages to visit on this site for information about types, signs, effects and statistics of emotional abuse.

What are my credentials to write this page? I am I a certified Violence and Abuse Prevention Educator, and I grew up in a home where emotional abuse was considered the only way to raise children.

Where I grew up there was never any consideration given to raising "healthy" children. My parents opted for the "children are to be seen and not heard" style of parenting. Put-downs and name-calling were a several-times-a-day event, meant to toughen us up, show us that as children we were nothing but a burden and that our parents were saints to have had us in the first place.

The term emotional child abuse didn't even exist when I was growing up. But that didn't change the devastating outcome--the effects were severe, ever-present, and followed me into adulthood. Until I got psychiatric help.

Check out my story for more details.

Definition

Emotional abuse is the cornerstone of all the abuses because emotional abuse is always present during physical child abuse, child neglect, and sexual child abuse, and it is the only abuse that can stand on its own. It does not have to accompany any of the other abuses.

Emotional child abuse is defined as the constant attack of a child or youth by an adult that negatively affects the child or youth's self-worth. It is important to note here the word 'constant'. With emotional abuse, the child/youth receives only negative messages, nothing positive.

Emotional Abuse pages on this site:

Emotional Abuse	Emotional Abuse Types
Emotional Abuse Signs	Emotional Abuse Effects
Bullying	Emotional Abuse Statistics

Child abuse information pages on this site:

Abuse Headlines	History of Abuse
Sexual Abuse Signs	Child Abuse Stats
Sexual Abuse Effects	Emotional Abuse
Sexual Abuse Stats	Emotional Abuse Types
Sexual Abuse Victims	Emotional Abuse Signs
Male Victims	Emotional Abuse Effects
Female Victims	Bullying
Victims w/ Disability	Emotional Abuse Stats
Sexual Abuse Disclosures	Physical Abuse
Sex Offenders	Physical Abuse Signs
Male Sex Offenders	Abuse & Discipline
Female Sex Offenders	Physical Abuse Effects
Child Sex Offenders	Physical Abuse Stats
Adolescent Sex Offenders	Child Neglect
Incestuous Sex Offenders	Child Neglect Signs
Internet Sex Offenders	Child Neglect Effects
Child Abuse Law	Child Neglect Stats
Age of Majority	Poverty & Neglect
Duty to Report	Sexual Abuse
Abuse Intervention	Sexual Abuse Defined
Abuse Prevention