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https://www.apa.org/advocacy/immigration/separating-families-letter.pdf
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Date created: 2014Childhood Psychological Abuse as Harmful as Sexual or Physical AbuseOften unrecognized, emotional abuse prevalent form of child abuse, study finds WASHINGTON — Children who are emotionally abused and neglected face similar and sometimes worse mental health problems as children who are physically or sexually abused, yet psychological abuse is rarely addressed in prevention programs or in treating victims, according to a new study published by the American Psychological Association. “Given the prevalence of childhood psychological abuse and the severity of harm to young victims, it should be at the forefront of mental health and social service training,” said study lead author Joseph Spinazzola, PhD, of The Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, Brookline, Massachusetts. The article will appear in a special issue of the APA journal Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy®. Researchers used the National Child Traumatic Stress Network Core Data Set to analyze data from 5,616 youths with lifetime histories of one or more of three types of abuse: psychological maltreatment (emotional abuse or emotional neglect), physical abuse and sexual abuse. The majority (62 percent) had a history of psychological maltreatment, and nearly a quarter (24 percent) of all the cases were exclusively psychological maltreatment, which the study defined as caregiver-inflicted bullying, terrorizing, coercive control, severe insults, debasement, threats, overwhelming demands, shunning and/or isolation. Children who had been psychologically abused suffered from anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, symptoms of post-traumatic stress and suicidality at the same rate and, in some cases, at a greater rate than children who were physically or sexually abused. Among the three types of abuse, psychological maltreatment was most strongly associated with depression, general anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, attachment problems and substance abuse. Psychological maltreatment that occurred alongside physical or sexual abuse was associated with significantly more severe and far-ranging negative outcomes than when children were sexually and physically abused and not psychologically abused, the study found. Moreover, sexual and physical abuse had to occur at the same time to have the same effect as psychological abuse alone on behavioral issues at school, attachment problems and self-injurious behaviors, the research found. “Child protective service case workers may have a harder time recognizing and substantiating emotional neglect and abuse because there are no physical wounds,” said Spinazzola. “Also, psychological abuse isn’t considered a serious social taboo like physical and sexual child abuse. We need public awareness initiatives to help people understand just how harmful psychological maltreatment is for children and adolescents.” Nearly 3 million U.S. children experience some form of maltreatment annually, predominantly by a parent, family member or other adult caregiver, according to the U.S. Children’s Bureau. The American Academy of Pediatrics in 2012 identified psychological maltreatment as “the most challenging and prevalent form of child abuse and neglect.” For the current study, the sample was 42 percent boys and was 38 percent white; 21 percent African-American; 30 percent Hispanic; 7 percent other; and 4 percent unknown. The data were collected between 2004 and 2010 with the average age of the children at the beginning of the collection between 10 and 12 years. Clinicians interviewed the children, who also answered questionnaires to determine behavioral health symptoms and the traumatic events they had experienced. In addition, caregivers responded to a questionnaire with 113 items pertaining to the child’s behavior. Various sources, including clinicians’ reports, provided each child’s trauma history involving psychological maltreatment, physical abuse or sexual abuse. Article: “Unseen Wounds: The Contribution of Psychological Maltreatment to Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Risk Outcomes,” Joseph Spinazzola, PhD, and Hilary Hodgdon, PhD, The Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, Brookline, Massachusetts; Li-Jung Liang, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine; Julian D. Ford, PhD, University of Connecticut Medical School; Christopher M. Layne, PhD, and Robert Pynoos, MD, National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, Los Angeles, and University of California, Los Angeles; Ernestine C. Briggs, PhD, National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, Durham, North Carolina, and Duke University School of Medicine; Bradley Stolbach, PhD, University of Chicago; Cassandra Kisiel, PhD, Northwestern Medical School, publication TBD, Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy. Article is available upon request from the APA Public Affairs Office. Joseph Spinazzola can be contacted by email. The American Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA's membership includes nearly 130,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives. |
June 14, 2018 President Donald Trump The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Trump: On behalf of the American Psychological Association (APA), we are writing to express our deep concern and strong opposition to the Administration’s new policy of separating immigrant parents and children who are detained while crossing the border. We previously wrote to then Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly on April 5, 2017, about this matter. Based on empirical evidence of the psychological harm that children and parents experience when separated, we implore you to reconsider this policy and commit to the more humane practice of housing families together pending immigration proceedings to protect them from further trauma. APA is the leading scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. Our membership includes researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students. APA works to advance the creation, communication, and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people’s lives. We have 115,700 members and affiliates across the United States and in many other countries, many of whom serve immigrant youth and adults in a wide range of settings, including schools, community centers, hospitals and refugee resettlement centers. The current policy calls for children to be removed from their parents and placed for an often indeterminate period of time in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. Decades of psychological research have determined that it is in the best interest of the child and the family to keep families together. Families fleeing their homes to seek sanctuary in the United States are already under a tremendous amount of stress.1 Sudden and unexpected family separation, such as separating families at the border, can add to that stress, leading to emotional trauma in children.2 Research also suggests that the longer that parents and children are separated, the greater the reported symptoms of anxiety and depression are for children.3 Adverse childhood experiences, such as parent- 1 Chaudry, A. (2011). Children in the aftermath of immigration enforcement. The Journal of the History of Childhood and Youth, 4 (1), 137-154. 2 Dreby, J. (2012). The burden of deportation on children in Mexican immigrant families. Journal of Marriage and Family,74, 829-845. Doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2012.00989x 3 Suárez-Orozco, C., Bang, H.J. & Kim, H.Y (2010). I felt like my heart was staying behind: Psychological implications of family separations and reunifications for immigrant youth. Journal of Adolescent Research 26(2), 222-257. child separation, are important social determinants of mental disorders. For children, traumatic events can lead to the development of post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health disorders that can cause long lasting effects.4 Furthermore, immigration policies, such as separating families at the border, can also adversely impact those immigrants who are already in the United States. They can suffer from feelings of stigmatization, social exclusion, anger, and hopelessness, as well as fear for the future.5 As a tragic example of the current policy’s serious potential for harm, a Honduran man who was separated from his wife and 3-year-old son after he crossed the border into Texas recently took his own life while detained in a holding cell, according to the Customs and Border Protection officials, public records, and media reports.6 There are also reports of detained immigrants foregoing legitimate claims for asylum by pleading guilty to expedite the return of their separated children and reports of parents being deported while their children, including infants, remain in custody. These incidents serve to highlight the mental health crisis for many families caused by the Administration’s policy. Given these considerations, a change in immigration policy regarding the detention of immigrant families at the border is desperately needed – from separating parents and children to housing them together and providing needed physical and mental health services. As psychologists, we have documented multiple harmful effects of parent-child separation on children’s emotional and psychological development and well-being and urge that the current policy of family separation be reversed. Should you have any questions regarding these comments, please contact Serena Dávila, J.D., with our Public Interest Directorate at [email protected] or 202-336-6061. Sincerely, Jessica Henderson Daniel, Ph.D., ABPP Arthur C. Evans, Jr., Ph. D. President Chief Executive Officer cc: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen 4 Rojas-Flores, L., Clements, M., Koo, J. London, J. (2017). Trauma and Psychological Distress in Latino Citizen Children Following Parental Detention and Deportation. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, Vol 9, No. 3, 352. 5 Suárez-Orozco, C., (2017). Conferring Disadvantage: Behavioral and Developmental Implications for Children Growing up in the Shadow of Undocumented Immigration Status. Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc., 426. 6 Mays J. & Stevens M. (2018, June 10). Honduran Man Kills Himself After Being Separated From Family at U.S. Border, Reports Say. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/10/us/border-patrol-texas-family-separated-suicide.html.
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United States definition of Domestic Violence
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CDC chart of Abuse
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