How to Recognize Signs and Symptoms of Child Abuse

There are many types of child abuse. Such types include:

- Emotional Abuse
- Physical Abuse
- Sexual Abuse
- Child Neglect

There is also several child abuse signs which may help you recognize if a child is being abused.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Some of the easiest to spot are bruising on a child and other physical marks. You may also suspect abuse if the child doesn’t want to go home and never seems to have any adult supervision.

2. You can also suspect child abuse by the parents’ behavior. If the parents don’t show any concern for the child, use harsh physical discipline, demands a lot from the child, blames the child continuously and abuse the child verbally, then hat child may be the victim of abuse.

3. Does the child look unkempt, dirty, disheleved, do they seem scared to you.
   Are they afraid of people? Do they have body odor?, are they abusing substances?, Do they not have the proper clothes for weather? Do they seem hungry and beg for food?

Tips & Warnings

• If you suspect a child is being abused, don’t ignore it.
• It’s better to report it to the proper authorities even if you are wrong

Resources

• child welfare information gateway

[fitnessswim]

on 8/13/2009 This is a very important topic. Thank you very much for taking the initiative on an ugly subject where all of us can help someone who is helpful. During one of my one day wonder classes, we were advised that excessive shyness MAY be a sign of abuse.

[jrosengarten]

on 5/16/2009 Child abuse is such a horrible thing. Thanks for bring this all to our attention.