1. THE IMPACT OF NEGLECT AND ABUSE ON CHILDREN’S LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

2. Power Point Outline**
I. Introduction and General Facts
II. Abuse of Persons with Disabilities
III. Behavioral and Language Characteristics
IV. Implications for Assessment and Intervention

3. I. INTRODUCTION AND GENERAL BACKGROUND FACTS**
Children may experience abuse and/or neglect (AN)
The highest rate of child abuse is experienced by children between birth and 3 years of age

4. Safe Horizon 2018:**
In the U.S., someone reports child abuse every 10 seconds
4 children die each day because of abuse and neglect

5. Sheehan Stanford Child Neurology:
Abused babies-- about 25% die
Up to 50% survive with significant neurological deficits

6. Neglect…** Is the failure to provide for a child’s basic needs
It can be emotional, educational, or physical

7. Children who experience physical neglect…**
Often experience this because their parents are unable to provide what they need—they are poor
May be inappropriately left at home alone

8. These physically neglected children…**
Often have trouble doing well in school-- basic needs are not met
Hungry, cold, lice
Difficulty concentrating

9. Recent national statistics indicate that in terms of perpetrators by relationship to the victim:**
78.5% are parents
6.5% are other relatives (total of 85% are relatives)
0.4% are foster parents
0.7% are child daycare providers
4.1% are unmarried partners of the child’s parent
0.3% are friends or neighbors

10. Children who have experienced severe emotional neglect…**
May be lethargic and apathetic
May demonstrate learned helplessness
May have cognitive problems, including difficulty with impulse control and problem-solving skills

11. II. ABUSE OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES. (http://www. irvingstudies
Reports: physical and sexual abuse of individuals with disabilities runs 3-4 times higher than abuse in the general population
Disabled girls are especially vulnerable targets; often, family members abuse them

12. Fogle, 2019:
Women with language impairment (LI) are more likely to report sexual abuse/assault than women without LI

13. If a child with a disability reports
If a child with a disability reports** abuse, s/he often not seen as credible —can’t describe details clearly
SLPs sometimes called to assist in court cases
SLPs ensures that interviews are conducted at the child’s appropriate cognitive and linguistic levels

14. Some research suggests that…
Mothers of babies with craniofacial anomalies such as cleft palate may be less attached to and nurturing of their infants
Decreased attachment ↑ risk of AN; babies with craniofacial problems vulnerable to abuse

15. This is one reason…**
That we need to provide medical care for these babies as early as possible

16. Children with disabilities…**
Put a lot more stress on their caregivers
When caregivers are stressed and have no respite, they are more likely to neglect and abuse their children

17. Caregivers may…**
Not see the light at end of tunnel like parents of TD children
Be stressed--typical childhood experiences not available
Parents of TD children uncomfortable-- no invitations
Special needs parents & children isolated

18. III. BEHAVIORAL AND LANGUAGE CHARACTERISTICS**
They are often very quiet
Difficulties with expressive language
They have lesser conversational skills than their peers
They may be less likely than peers to discuss information or volunteer

19. **These children often do more poorly in school
They underperform academically
They have more behavior problems

20. Specific difficulties with pragmatics may include:
↓descriptive utterances
Lang used to get things done with
little social affect
Poor conversational skills overall—shorter conversations
Inability to discuss feelings

21. Lack ability to take perspective of a conversational partner
Demonstrate alexithymia-- absence of words for emotions

22. Other specific language issues may include:**
Shorter, less complex utterances
Fewer decontextualized utterances; more talk about the here and now
Auditory and reading comprehension problems

23. Mothers who neglect or abuse babies:**
May punish normal risk-taking “adventurous” behavior
May not interact
May be unresponsive when babies initiate, so babies learn to be passive

24. Shaken baby syndrome may occur**
We must stress to caregivers that they should NEVER shake a baby
This causes lifetime cognitive and linguistic damage

25. Sheehan Stanford Neurology:
Problem: when caregiver done shaking, s/he usually slams baby hard against a surface—wall, table….  traumatic brain injury

26. IV. IMPLICATIONS FOR ASSESSMENT AND INTERVENTION**
We need to work as part of a multidisciplinary team
This team often includes a social worker and a psychologist
We are mandated to document and report what we see and hear
In the schools, we would tell the principal

27. In assessment, we especially need to focus on evaluating:**
Overall expressive language skills
Pragmatics skills
Narrative skills
Vocabulary

28. Intervention should involve…**
Encouraging verbal expression, especially description
Providing a warm, nurturing environment with clear rules and boundaries
↑ child’s ability to accurately describe and appropriately express emotions (e.g., use your words, not hitting or kicking)

29. Intervention may especially need to involve…**
Playing!
We can provide appropriate dolls/action figures, art supplies, etc.
As ch is playing or drawing, describe his actions or drawings

30. **
AN children are more likely than peers to engage in behavior that elicits negative reactions from those around them
↑ ability to communicate socially

31. We can work on self esteem by using ideas such as:**
Star of the Week
Me Collage
Problem Wall
Trip to the Future

32. Remember that…**
Culturally and linguistically diverse families may especially need direct instruction about American child abuse laws
I think that we should do this before we refer the family to CPS (Child Protective Services)

33. Many refugee parents…**
Have undergone great trauma
May have post-traumatic stress disorder, may neglect, abuse children

34. V. SUPPORTING CAREGIVERS**
Remember that in the U.S., most people do not have help and support from extended families like they do in other countries
Frequently caregivers are isolated with their children, and they can become extremely stressed

35. 267 high-risk mother-ch dyads studied
Lorber, M.F., & Egeland, B. Parenting and Infant Difficulty. Child Development, 82, (6)
267 high-risk mother-ch dyads studied
Conduct problems (CPs) at 5-6 years old predicted by negative parenting
Angry, hostile mother-toddler
interactions at mos.
very predictive of CPs in school

36. It can be very stressful…**
When a baby cries nonstop for hours and you are alone with no help—you can’t leave

37. Sheehan Stanford Neurology:**
They always ask caregivers:
When you just can’t take it any more, who can you call to relieve you?

38. **1. Ask caregivers about their own needs, and attempt to help them meet these needs or guide to them to professionals who can help them (e.g., parenting classes, food stamp programs)
2. Provide key information about overall child development. Research shows that some caregivers abuse their children because the caregivers’ expectations are too high.

39. **
One friend told me about her great grandson—at 3 years of age, expected to change his own diapers—was hit when he did not
In winter, allowed to go barefoot and get splinters—no coat

40. unrealistic expectations of baby behavior
Sheehan:
Parents who abuse--↓ ability to tolerate infant crying
Evidence: abused babies don’t actually cry more than other babies
Parents THINK they do—
unrealistic expectations of baby
behavior

41. **3. Point out what caregivers are already doing right.
4. Provide support groups of other caregivers whose ch have similar challenges
5. Use DVDs that model good parenting skills

42. **6. Teach caregivers how to use language/words to discipline instead of using physical means such as slapping. For example, caregivers can be taught how to apply choices and consequences.
7. Model language stimulation strategies such as extensions that caregivers can easily fit into their daily routines.

43. Power Point Outline**
I. Introduction and General Facts
II. Abuse of the Disabled
III. Behavioral and Language Characteristics
IV. Implications for Assessment and Intervention