Child Maltreatment

Child Maltreatment Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse is an extremely common and potentially fatal form of child

maltreatment. A recent study featuring over 43,000 Canadians self-reporting on their own

maltreatment under the age of 15, concluded a staggering one third of the individuals were

exposed to non-physical abuse and 98.7% of that one third, specifically noted emotional abuse

(Statistics Canada, 2023). Childhood emotional abuse survivors are more than twice as likely to

attempt suicide (University of Manchester, 2019). Additionally, it is well documented that

childhood emotional abuse victims are predisposed to serious cognitive disorders and adverse

biobehavioural patterns (Al Odhayani et al., 2013).

The situation emotional abusers find themselves in as they actively harm children can be

a result of the chain of abuse (Van Wert et al., 2019). Intergenerational or transgenerational

trauma is thought to be the overarching reason children are abused and the crucial piece to

dissect is the parent’s coping mechanisms following their own childhood of emotional abuse that

feed the next cycle’s outcomes (Tomison, 1996). Caregivers with moderate to severe mental

illnesses left untreated or unregulated due to financial or other discriminatory gaps can be very

damaging emotionally to a child (Pimento & Kernested, 2019, p. Income and Social Status).

Poverty stricken families have been noted to be three times more likely to commit child

maltreatment than those who are not poor (Children’s Bureau et al., n.d.; Marcal, 2018). There is

a high correlation between pre- and postnatally documented maternal depression and

involvement with the child welfare system. The likelihood spikes further still when there is the

risk of substance abuse (Abercrombie et al., 2018).

Indicators of emotional abuse in children can be physical in nature. For example, constant

and unfounded nausea or otherwise painful stomach complaints. We can also witness behaviours

that mimic an earlier stage of child development like thumb-sucking or toilet training mishaps

like pants wetting or dirtying. We might see a caregiver directly rejecting, insulting, or belittling

the child in front of others or relaying narratives that the child is the problem or different to a

fault. These red flags and more from those having charge of the child can result in an attitude

that vies for excess attention or adult approval (BOOST Child & Youth Advocacy Centre, 2020).

Role of the RECE

According to the Child, Youth and Family Services Act (2017) emotional abuse can be

identified by patterns of aggressive behaviour both towards others and themselves. These

behaviours are connected to the forms emotional abuse may take like excessive shaming,

correcting, or criticizing in response to the child failing to meet an expectation set higher than

developmentally likely (College of Early Childhood Educators, 2023). They may be mimicking

the formative and emotionally abusive voices and attitudes of their caregivers in their own mind

in response to themselves and the world. There can also be the notion of ‘evil’ or ‘bad’

repeatedly thrust upon the child when making age-appropriate mistakes (Pimento & Kernested,

2019, p. Emotional Abuse). The results of this emotional abuse can present as withdrawing,

helplessness, or low self-esteem. These qualities are directly correlated to what a caregiver has

been flooding their emotional environment with, and the child naturally absorbs these modes of

thinking. Emotionally abusive caregiving modes can result in severe anxiety, depression

disorders as well as patterns of emotional experience and developmental delays (Child, Youth

and Family Services Act, 2017).

The role of the RECE (Registered Early Childhood Educators) begins with professional,

trusting relationships with the children in their care. As noted in standard number three of the

Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice (College of Early Childhood Educators, 2017), it is our

responsibility to familiarize ourselves with relevant and available information concerning each

child. This prepares us for the best- and worst-case scenarios. We can apply this information in

designing an inclusive and responsive physical environment or by crafting thoughtful

experiences that invoke the full breadth of the child’s abilities. This essential information also

readies us for emergency scenarios like placing a call to the Children’s Aid Society (CAS) where

we need to relay these details to insure the child is effectively protected. As RECEs observe play

or interaction with curated experiences or environments we are catching the variety of patterns

present in each child and noting developmental progression. Identifying child maltreatment and

reasonable grounds to report are built on the foundation of severity and repetition. It is crucial

RECEs know what to look for when it comes to emotional abuse and what formula to follow as

the child does not know what is happening to them or what to do next. We want to reference our

industry tools like the Professional advisory: Duty to report document or the Ontario Ministry of

Education or Government of Canada regulations upon noticing emotional abuse signals. General

keys to keep in mind are a combination of indicators or behaviours, commonality or repeated

incidents and the granted responses to open-ended questions posed to the child and caregiver(s).

The process continues with making an informed judgment as to whether the sufficient and

consistent factors pointing to emotional abuse connect to the actions of the abusive caregiver(s)

understood by either firsthand witness or disclosed through the child’s recounting (Child, Youth

and Family Services Act, 2017). If the assessment of the relevant information warrants a call to

CAS, then it is our duty, obligation, and responsibility to report.

If the child is present with us as we are informed of their maltreatment their comfort is

step one. It is our job to offer them genuine sentiments like “thank you for telling me, I am

always here to listen” or “would you like a hug, would you like to sit on my lap?” Not treating

them any differently from any other child throughout the process is vital. Before placing the call,

it is helpful to write down the facts with a personal awareness of any biases we might host. We

are sharing only the facts with the service provider that answers the call as well as the essential

information about the child and caregiver(s). As stated by the College of Early Childhood

Educators in the Professional advisory: Duty to report document, (2023) we are only to disclose

this otherwise confidential information in the case of emergency protection services being

required. Depending on the situation we can expect a CAS worker and any other emergency

response teammates (as they are all connected) to come to our place of work. Our job is not to

interfere with their investigation, but we may need to offer our statement later on. We can ask for

anonymity from the CAS to protect our identity from the caregiver(s) of the child in danger, but

they may find out regardless. In any case it is important to treat them like any other parent and

engage with them positively. Setting an example as a RECE, role modelling good character and

compliance with ministry orders and industry guidelines is at the heart of our job when it comes

to child safety and protection from maltreatment.

References

Abercrombie, H. C., Frost, C. P., Walsh, E. C., Hoks, R. M., Cornejo, M. D., Sampe, M. C.,

Gaffey, A. E., Plante, D. T., Ladd, C. O., & Birn, R. M. (2018). Neural signaling of

cortisol, childhood emotional abuse, and depression-related memory bias. Biological

Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, 3(3), 274–284.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsc.2017.11.005

Al Odhayani, A., Watson, W. J., & Watson, L. (2013). Behavioural consequences of child abuse.

Canadian Family Physician Medecin de Famille Canadien, 59(8), 831–836.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3743691/

BOOST Child & Youth Advocacy Centre. (2020). Possible indicators of child abuse & of

exposure to family violence & how to document indicators. https://boostforkids.org/wp-

content/uploads/2020/09/Possible-Indicators-of-Child-Abuse-of-Exposure-to-Family-

Violence-Documentation_July-2020.pdf

Children’s Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, & U.S. Department of Health and

Human Services. (n.d.). Mental Health of Parents and Caregivers - Child Welfare

Information Gateway.

https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/can/factors/parentcaregiver/mentalhealth/#:~:text=A

%20parent%27s%20or%20caregiver%27s%20mental

Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017, S.O. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1 , (2017).

https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/17c14

College of Early Childhood Educators. (2017). Code of ethics and standards of practice.

https://www.college-ece.ca/en/Documents/Code_and_Standards_2017.pdf8

College of Early Childhood Educators. (2023, July). Professional advisory: Duty to report.

https://college-ece.ca/wp-content/uploads/forms/Professional-Advisory-Duty-To-

Report.pdf

Marcal, K. E. (2018). The impact of housing instability on child maltreatment: A causal

investigation. Journal of Family Social Work, 21(4-5), 331–347.

https://doi.org/10.1080/10522158.2018.1469563

Pimento, B., & Kernested, D. (2019). Healthy foundations in early childhood settings (6th ed.).

Nelson.

Statistics Canada. (2023, January 25). What do we know about physical and non-physical

childhood maltreatment in Canada? https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/36-28-

0001/2023001/article/00001-eng.htm

Tomison, A. (1996, June). Intergenerational transmission of maltreatment. Australian Institute

of Family Studies. https://aifs.gov.au/resources/policy-and-practice-

papers/intergenerational-transmission-maltreatment

University of Manchester. (2019, January 9). Child abuse linked to risk of suicide in later life.

Science Daily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/01/190109192533.htm

Van Wert, M., Anreiter, I., Fallon, B. A., & Sokolowski, M. B. (2019). Intergenerational

transmission of child abuse and neglect: A transdisciplinary analysis. Gender and the

Genome, 3, 1-21.

https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/105927/1/Fallon_Intergenerational%20T

ransmission%20of%20Child%20Abuse.pdf