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22 Myths About Child Abuse
1.
Myth:
More girls than boys are abused in Wyoming.
Abuse is evenly
divided between boys and girls in Wyoming and the rest of the
country.
2.
Myth:
Most poor families neglect their children
Poverty is not neglect. Families with limited resources
can-and many do-provide basic care for their children by using
free clinics and social services.
3.
Myth:
In small communities like those in Wyoming where everyone knows
everyone, sexual offenders can be identified as strangers who
offer rides or candy to
children or ask for help finding lost pets.
Young victims
know their offenders 80 to 90% of the time: they are family
members and friends, neighbors and babysitters.
4.
Myth:
Kids are tough. They will outgrow the effects of
neglect.
There are well-documented cognitive and neurological
deficits in neglected children.
5.
Myth:
Rates of child abuse deaths are higher in urban areas than in
rural areas like Wyoming.
Child abuse
death rates are similar in urban and rural settings, in Wyoming
and elsewhere.
6.
Myth:
If a family is reported for suspected neglect, the children are
automatically removed from the home.
Children are
removed from a home only if there are conditions that threaten
their lives, their safety or their health.
7.
Myth:
A physician's opinion is needed before a report of physical
abuse can be made.
Proof of injury
is not necessary to make a report.
8.
Myth:
In Wyoming, only professionals, like police officers, social
workers, teachers and doctors, are required to report suspected
child abuse.
Every person,
private citizen or professional, in Wyoming who has reason to
believe that a child under 18 has been abused is mandated by law
to report the suspected abuse. Failure to do so is a crime. No
one is immune from reporting suspected abuse.
9.
Myth:
If you report suspected abuse you may be sued.
A person making
a report in good faith is immune from both civil and criminal
liability.
10.
Myth:
Abused children grow up to be abusive adults.
Not all abused
children grow up to be abusive adults, but many do. Because
abusive parenting is all they have known, abused children often
repeat the behavior with their own children.
11.
Myth:
Most parents who abuse their children are mentally ill.
Fewer than 10%
of abusive parents have a mental disorder.
12.
Myth:
Children who are being abused by their parents will ask someone
for help.
Children are
usually afraid to talk about their injuries or are too young to
ask for help.
13.
Myth:
Physical abuse only occurs in lower socioeconomic families.
Physical abuse
has been confirmed in all socioeconomic levels.
14.
Myth:
Young children have frequent accidents that result in broken
bones.
Many broken
bones in children under the age of two are the result of
intentional injury.
15.
Myth:
Most sexual abuse victims are teenagers who can protect
themselves from exploitation.
Children of all
ages are sexually abused; about one-third of the victims are
five years old or younger.
16.
Myth:
Children often lie about being sexually abused.
Children
typically do not have the experience or vocabulary to accurately
describe adult sexual activity.
17.
Myth:
Incest offenders only molest children in their own families.
Research
indicates that many incest offenders also molest children
outside their own families.
18.
Myth:
The lack of physical violence in child sexual abuse means
children are willing participants.
Verbal threats
and coercion are frequently used to force children to
participate and keep the abuse secret.
19.
Myth:
Sex offenders are severely mentally disturbed, homosexual or
mentally retarded.
Many sex
offenders appear to be responsible and respectable citizens.
They may be married and appear to function well in many areas of
life.
20.
Myth:
In an abusive family, all children are abused.
Sometimes in a
family of several children just one will be singled out as a
victim. In other cases, all children will be abused. A child
fatality is typically the youngest or an only child.
21.
Myth:
The stress adults deal with (money problems, marital problems,
work problems, etc.) causes abuse.
Stress does
contribute to the potential for abuse. But why some parents
under stress abuse their children and others do not is a very
complex issue that has not yet been fully understood.
22.
Myth: Prevent
Child Abuse Wyoming is a governmental agency.
Fact: Prevent Child Abuse Wyoming is a
private, non-profit agency.
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