Social Cognitive Theory Of Child Abuse Essay

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There are four types of child maltreatment-sexual abuse (the involvement of a child in sexual activity that he or she does not understand, is unable to give consent to, or is not developmentally prepared for), physical abuse (the use of physical force that harms the child’s health, survival, development, or dignity), emotional abuse (the failure to provide a supportive environment by, for example, verbally threatening the child), and neglect (the failure to provide for all aspects of the child’s well-being) (Norman et al., 2012).
The American Humane gathers reports collected by the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) from CPS agencies. According to the reports in 2005, an estimated 3.3 million referrals of child abuse were received by CPS agencies. Of these referrals, 899,000 children were confirmed victims of abuse. Roughly 60 percent of abused children suffer from neglect, however many children are victims of more than one type of abuse. Boys and girls are equally likely to suffer abuse with the highest rate among the youngest population of children, birth to 3 years (American Humane,
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This behavior is explained in Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory. This theory contributes people’s behavior based on environmental interactions in which thoughts, behaviors and feelings are acquired. Bandura focused primarily on observational learning. This is when learning occurs through observing the behavior of others. Children are particularly impressionable and will imitate the behavior of others. For example, if a child witnesses his older brother speaking disrespectfully to their mother, the child will also be disrespectful towards their mother. This is especially true if the child does not see the consequences for his brother’s actions. However, if the child observed his brother being punished for his behavior, the child may never start that same