Crime Victims Services - Child Abuse - Types of Child Abuse

Physical Abuse Indicators:

Unexplained bruises, burns, skeletal injuries, head injuries, lacerations, or abrasions.  School absences may correlate with appearance of injury.
Child may be:   Easily frightened or fearful, wary of physical contact, afraid to go home, destructive to self and others.

Sexual Abuse Indicators:

Explicit or bizarre sexual knowledge, precocious sexually related speech or experimentation, loss of appetite, unexplained bruises/injuries in genital areas, anorexia or other stress related disorders, alcohol or drug abuse, frequent nightmares, unexplained gifts, extra money, or pornography in the child’s possession.
Child may be:   Obsessed with masturbation, withdrawn from normal human contact, depressed and having suicidal thoughts, self-destructive, excessively fearful of selected individuals or locations.

Emotional Abuse Indicators:

Physical problems exacerbated by emotional distress, regressive behavior, failure to thrive in infancy or early childhood low self-esteem.
Child may be:   Overly passive or aggressive, experiencing developmental lags, or developing sleeping disorders.

Neglect Indicators:

Poor hygiene, lacks weather appropriate clothing, unattended medical or dental needs.
Child may be:   Constantly fatigued, experiencing developmental lags, begging or stealing food.