Child Abuse And Parenting Essay

Response 1

As the author suggests, child abuse does not only refer to physical abuse but also includes sexual, emotional and mental abuse. Simply put, child abuse refers to any intentional harm that is inflicted on children. Neglect is another aspect that is closely related to abuse. According to the author, both sexes face an equal risk of child abuse. The author contends that child abuse is a trait that is passed on from one generation to the next in what is referred to as the “cycle of violence”. The author mentions the two main theoretical theories that explain this cycle. In the first theory, children simply learn parenting techniques from their own parents and they therefore view abuse as of normal parenting. In the second theory, abusive parenting is essentially an expression of general antisocial behavior. It is therefore clear from this discussion that a clear link exists between child abuse and future parenting abuse and even sibling to sibling abuse as the author shows from her personal examples.

Response 2

As stated by the author of this discussion, child abuse is indeed a huge social problem in the United States and the current statistics fully back this (12 out of 1000 children are abused). Although neglect may not be examined from the same angle as physical abuse, both are nevertheless very harmful on children and this one of the author’s main arguments. One of the long term effects of child abuse as the author shows is that children eventually grow up to become abusers of their own children. It is therefore very easy to agree with the author when she suggest that even if one was abused as a child, it is within their control to restrict themselves from inflicting harm on their own children.