Factors Possible parent contributing factors

There is generally not a single factor that results in the abuse or neglect of a child; it is usually a combination of various factors. In addition, the duration (such as the duration of an illness) or intensity (such as the level of drug or alcohol abuse) can make it more or less likely that a child will be at risk for abuse. When trying to understand child abuse and neglect possible factors in the adult, factors based on something in society, and factors based on something about the child should be taken into consideration. Research tells us that there is no typical abuser. People who abuse children may be male or female and the majority of child abuse is committed by someone who knows the child. People who abuse children have their own characteristics. Most of them have poor control over their emotions. They are unable to control themselves and this lead to the raging abuse against the children. Some of them have a history of them being abused. It can be concluded that abuse is one of their way to release stress and anger which have interfered their life. Stress and anger can be related to the financial problems due to poor economic status and also social isolation due to differences in social status. Besides, they also have relationship problems with a partner which have the possibility of the usage in violence. Another plus point is the lack of parenting skills. Perhaps a couple have an early marriage and do not seek their elders for advices in managing the children. However, a fraction of these people have their own philosophy in the upbringing of the children. Some believe that too much praise or attention will spoil the child. Some believe that fear and embarrassments are the only way to make children obey. Installation of fear and embarrassment into a child had brought a sense of great power to the abuser. Most of the people who have this kind of philosophy believe that children should be quiet at all times. A small percentage of these people doesn't understand children's needs or abilities and criticizes children who can't meet their high expectations. It may well be that they have achieved so much success in their life until they cant accept failures. This lead to the abuse of children when their own child fails to live up to their expectations.

Possible societal contributing factors There are many deeply rooted, complicated and interrelated societal factors that can contribute to child abuse and neglect. The following two factors are often identified as increasing the likelihood that child abuse and neglect will occur. Stresses of poverty due to falling economic status had caused stress to some people. Child abuse is one of many ways to release this stress. Community violence played quite a pivotal role in influencing people to manage their anger (Murray A. Straus and Richard J. Gelles, 1985) . Nowadays people use violence to solve problems. Child abuse is one of many aftereffects of the existing violence.

Possible child contributing factors Some children have certain characteristics or behaviors that make it more likely that they will be at risk for abuse or neglect. However, it is important to remember that no matter what characteristics a child has or how they act a child is never responsible for being abused or neglected. One of the factors is the disability of the child. The parents might feel embarrassed by the malformation of their child and societal stress lead to the abuse of child. Crying for extended periods had created large impact in the build-up of stress of a person. Once the limit had reached, the abuser will tend to abuse the child and slowly but surely will continue to abuse or neglect the child. Financial problems and feeding problem of a child can be related to accumulation of stress within a person. Parents see the feeding problem of a child as a waste of money and in relation to the economic problems they suffered, they abused their child by forcing the child to eat and consume whatever they had or by just neglecting the child by giving no food to the child. Last but not least, some parents put too much expectation in their own children. Poor grades are seen as a failure. This lead to the disappointment of the parent and they started to beat up their children as a lesson for their children to perform better in academic aspects.

Effects Child abuse and neglect can affect all domains of development - physical, psychological, cognitive, behavioural and social - which are often interrelated. Babies and young infants exposed to abuse and neglect are more likely to experience insecure or disorganised attachment problems with their primary caregiver (Hildyard & Wolf, 2002; Jordan & Sketchley). Patterns of child-caregiver attachment are extremely important for a child's early emotional and social development. For children with an insecure attachment, the parent/caregiver becomes a source of danger or harm, leaving the child in irresolvable conflict. Without the security and support from a primary caregiver, babies and infants may find it difficult to trust others when in distress, which may lead to persistent experiences of anxiety or anger (Streeck-Fischer & van der Kolk, 2000). Insecure attachments alter the normal developmental process for children, which can severely affect a child's ability to communicate and interact with others and form healthy relationships throughout their life (Bacon & Richardson, 2001). Trauma caused by experiences of child abuse and neglect can have serious effects on the developing brain, increasing the risk of psychological problems. Extensive research has identified a strong relationship between abuse/neglect and post-traumatic stress disorder. Recent research suggests that diagnosing children with post-traumatic stress disorder does not capture the full developmental effects of chronic child abuse and neglect (Hussey, Chang, and Kotch, 2006). Exposure to complex and chronic trauma can result in persistent psychological problems. Complex trauma affects the developing brain and may interfere with a child's capacity to integrate sensory, emotional and

cognitive information, which may lead to over-reactive responses to subsequent stress (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2008). Abuse and neglect in the early years of life can seriously affect the developmental capacities of infants, especially in the critical areas of speech and language (Wolfe, 1999). Child abuse and neglect is associated with behaviour problems in childhood and adolescence. Children affected by neglect tend to be more isolated at school compared to other groups of children and have difficulty making friends. Neglected children may also display aggressive and disruptive behaviour; however, externalising behaviour problems are more closely associated with physical and sexual abuse or witnessing domestic violence (Shaffer, Huston, & Egeland, 2008). Eating disorders, including anorexia and binge-purge behaviour (bulimia), may also be associated with child abuse and neglect. Sexual abuse has been widely linked to eating disorders in children and adolescents; however, experiencing other maltreatment types or multiple forms of abuse and neglect has also been shown to increase the risk of developing an eating disorder (Brewerton, 2007) . Children and young people may encounter homelessness or housing instability as a result of abuse and neglect and particularly from domestic or family violence disputes. Homelessness is more likely to eventuate in adulthood .Young people who are removed from the care of their parents because of abuse or neglect may also face homelessness and unemployment soon after leaving out-of-home care. A lack of social support networks and poor academic achievement often contribute to the difficulties young people face in finding adequate housing and employment after care.