Per The Encyclopedia of Child Abuse, although definitions of child abuse vary by state and country, child abuse broadly refers to “any harm, physical or emotional, that is done intentionally to a child,” including physical assault, sexual exploitation, and verbal or emotional assault (Clark et al., 2007, p. 58). Moreover, some states include the presence of controlled substances in a child at birth or in the child’s home as a form of child abuse (Clark et al., 2007). There are no legal bans on corporal punishment; however some states ban extreme corporal punishment. In addition to harm, physical, and emotional abuse, child abuse includes neglect (Clark et al., 2007).
According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS), the number of children involved in child protective services (i.e., investigation or response), child abuse victims, and abuse fatalities decreased from the prior fiscal year. It is estimated that in 2019, approximately 656,000 children were...
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Diaz, B., Temares, A. (2023). The Child Abuse Potential Inventory. In: Shackelford, T.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-85493-5_1859-1
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