Emotional

Emotional abuse is persistent emotional neglect or ill treatment that has a severe and persistent adverse effect on a child's emotional development. It may involve:

• Conveying to a child that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person
• The imposition of age or developmentally inappropriate expectations on a child
• Causing children to feel frightened or in danger, or exploiting or corrupting children.

Some level of emotional abuse is present in all types of ill treatment of a child. It can also occur independently of other forms of abuse.

Signs of emotional abuse

• Pressure exerted by another person to do something that they do not want to do
• Depression, withdrawal, noticeable or uncharacteristic changes in behaviour, less communicative
• Fear of another person
• Hostile or rejecting behaviour by the caregiver
• Kept isolated from other people or depriving them of health or social care services.