NCJ Number
68890
Date Published
1980
Length
165 pages
Annotation
THE PRIMARY FOCUS OF THIS STUDY, ONE OF THE FEW SYSTEMATIC ANALYSES OF CHILD ABUSERS, ADDRESSES SUCH FACTORS AS PARENTS' EMOTIONAL DEPENDENCE ON THE CHILD, FRUSTRATION TOLERANCE, AND IMPULSE CONTROL.
Abstract
THIS STUDY ADDRESSES THE ISSUE OF CHILD ABUSERS CHIEFLY FROM A PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE, IN AN ATTEMPT TO TRACE THE EMOTIONAL ROOTS OF THIS PHENOMENON. IT ARGUES THAT ABUSING PARENTS SUFFER FROM AN EMOTIONAL DEPENDENCE SYNDROME, CAUSED BY THEIR OWN (CHILDHOOD) DEPRIVATIONS. THEY THEN MAKE UNREASONABLE DEMANDS AND FORM ABSURD EXPECTATIONS OF THEIR CHILDREN. THIS INVESTIGATION OF ABUSING PARENTS, THOROUGHLY EVALUATED AND PSYCHOLOGICALLY TESTED AGAINST NONABUSING CONTROLS, HAS YIELDED TENTATIVE FINDINGS. METHODOLOGICAL CONCERNS INCLUDED SECURING OFTEN HOSTILE AND NONCOOPERATIVE SUBJECTS, CHIEFLY THROUGH COURT REFERRALS; USE OF PREVIOUSLY UNTRIED TECHNIQUES; AND THE PIONEERING NATURE OF THE STUDY. CHILD ABUSE WAS SIMULTANEOUSLY FOUND TO BE AN IMPULSIVE, UNCONTROLLABLE ACT AND A SYSTEMATIC PATTERN OF PUNISHMENT AND COERCION TO MODIFY THE CHILD'S BEHAVIOR. GENERALLY, THE RESULTS OF THE INVESTIGATION DESCRIBED IN THIS BOOK DEPICT THE CHILD ABUSER AS A HIGHLY DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL WITH A LOW FRUSTRATION TOLERANCE. ARGUING THAT CHILD ABUSE IS RELATED TO DISLOCATIONS IN IDENTIFIABLE ASPECTS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING, RATHER THAN BEHAVIOR WITH CRIMINAL INTENT, THIS STUDY ADVOCATES A FAMILY-ORIENTED COURT SETTLEMENT OF CHILD ABUSE CASES RATHER THAN JUDICIAL DISPOSITION IN CRIMINAL COURTS. COURT-PRESCRIBED TREATMENT FOR CHILD ABUSERS, COMBINED WITH TEMPORARY REMOVAL OF THE ABUSED CHILD FROM THE PARENT'S CUSTODY, WOULD ALLEGEDLY SATISFY THE ABUSER'S EMOTIONAL NEED FOR CARE AND HIS OR HER EMOTIONAL DEPENDENCE BY USING RESOURCES SUCH AS A PERSONALIZED HOMEMAKING SERVICE, A VISITING NURSE, AND REMOVAL OF THE CHILDREN TO A NURSERY DURING A PERIOD OF FAMILY CRISIS. ALL THESE SUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR ABUSERS SHOULD, ACCORDING TO THIS STUDY, BE COORDINATED BY A PROFESSIONAL (POSSIBLY A SOCIAL WORKER) DIRECTLY ASSOCIATED WITH THE COURT. WRITTEN IN TECHNICAL PSYCHOLOGICAL LANGUAGE, THIS BOOK IS SUPPLEMENTED WITH EXTENSIVE STATISTICAL AND GRAPHIC DATA, TEST SCORES, AND TABULAR DATA. AN EXTENSIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY IS APPENDED.