Psych- Abuse

Family violence

Intentional intimidation, abuse or neglect of children, adults or elders by a family member, intimate partner or caretaker in order to gain power and control over victim.

Child abuse

Most common form of abuse was neglect, followed by physical abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse. Girls are slightly more likely to be abused. The younger the child, the more vulnerable. Sexual abuse uncommon in infants, increases with age. African American children most commonly abused.

Older adult abuse

Most goes unreported. Both in domestic settings and in institutions by paid caregivers.

Cycle of violence

Pattern of behavior that perpetrators may use to control their partners. 1) Tension-building stage: relatively minor incident, such as pushing. During this time, victim often ignores or accepts the abuse for fear that more severe abuse will follow. Abusers rational that their behavior is acceptable. Both victim and abuser try to reduce tension (alcohol, drugs). Victim tries to minimize importance of the incidents. 2) Acute battering stage: abuser releases the built-up tension by brutal beatings. 3) Honeymoon stage: kindness and loving behaviors. Abuser initially feels remorseful and apologetic. The victim believes apologies. Cycle will repeat without intervention.

Types of abuse

1) Physical abuse (inflicting pain or bodily harm). 2) Sexual abuse (sexual contact or exposure without consent, or in circumstanes in which victim is uncapable of giving consent. 3) Emotional abuse (infliction of mental anguish; verbal threats, putting down, directing blatant or subtle hostility and hatred toward individual, persistently ignoring an individual, belittling/criticizing, withholding warmth/affection, threatening with abandonment or institutionalization. 4) neglect (physical, emotional, educational, medical). 5) economic abuse (withholding of financial support or the illegal or improper exploitation of funds or other resources for one's personal gain).

Abuse

Any physical injury or mental anguish (putdowns, demeaning actions, controlling behavior) inflicted by one family member upon another or the deprivation of essential services by the caregiver. Nurse needs an understanding of the conditions for violence and types of maltreatment.

Intimate partner abuse

AKA domestic violence. Females 6 times more often than males. Black females more often than white. White males less often than either. Women more likely to be choked, beaten, or threatened with a gun or drowning. Homosexual couples have nearly same instances as heterosexual couples. Socioeconomic status related to abuse, lower income=greater abuse.

Etiology of abuse

Societal factors: wide acceptance of corporal punishment, increasingly violent video games/movies, websites, and comic books; violent music, increase in total volume of pornography. Requires the following participants: 1) Perpetrator- those who initiate violence, often consider their own