Emotional Abuse Of The Child - Brief Article

Adolescence, Fall, 2000 by Dory Renn

Very little has been published on the subject of emotional abuse as differentiated from physical or sexual abuse. This timely book helps clear up much of the confusion (among both professionals and the public), particularly in the area of child abuse.

Many people, having grown up in families that they believed were normal--no alcohol abuse, no overt physical or sexual abuse--are not able to understand or find help for personal problems, impaired relationships, and lack of fulfillment of goals. Now, the information in this book provides that enlightenment, and with it an opportunity to achieve relief for the anxiety and depression that result from emotional abuse.

Those who experience emotional abuse without physical abuse have difficulty recognizing that their human rights have been violated. As a result, they persist in doubting their own worth or blame themselves for the abuse they have received. In the process of clarifying the major issues involved, Dr. Renn addresses a larger question -- society's definition of abusive behavior. She notes that our recent past has been so steeped in all forms of extreme abuse, many people assume that any behavior that does not result in gross physical injury is not abuse and therefore is accepted. But now we are able to comprehend the deep and far-reaching effects of emotional abuse, and thus are obligated to examine our assumptions about normality, about health, about treatment. In doing so, the author describes the various forms of emotional abuse, and most importantly, their context.

Written in a simple, direct style that is free of jargon, this book will be of great value to care givers from many disciplines--mental health and legal professionals, health care providers, educators, cultural and religious leaders, and corrections and law enforcement personnel--in addition to committed people from the private, nonprofit, and public sectors. It will also be an important contribution to the literature offered in college courses in child development, family studies, counseling, and women's studies.