A group of physical and mental symptoms arising from long-term physical violence against a child.
Battered child syndrome occurs as the result of long-term physical violence against a child or adolescent. An estimated 2,000 children die each year in the United States from confirmed cases of physical abuse and 14,000 more are seriously injured. The battering takes many forms, including lacerations, bruises, burns, and internal injuries. In addition to the physical harm inflicted, battered children are at risk for an array of behavioral problems, including school difficulties, drug abuse, sexual acting out, running away, suicide, and becoming abusive themselves. Dissociative identity disorder, popularly known as multiple personality, is also common among abused children.
Detecting and preventing battered child syndrome is difficult because society and the courts have traditionally left the family alone. Out of fear and guilt, victims rarely report abuse. Nearly one-half of child abuse victims are under the age of one and therefore unable to report what is happening to them. The parents or guardians who bring a battered child to a hospital emergency room rarely admit that abuse has occurred. Instead, they offer complicated, often obscure, explanations of how the child hurt himself. However, a growing body of scientific literature on pediatric injuries is simplifying the process of differentiating between intentional and accidental injuries. For instance, a 1991 study found that a child needs to fall from a height of 10 ft (3m) or more to sustain the lifethreatening injuries that accompany physical abuse. Medical professionals have also learned to recognize a spiral pattern on x rays of broken bones, indicating that the injury was the result of twisting a child’s limb.
Taken from : The Gale Encyclopedia Of Psychology 2ND Edition - Bonnie Strickland
