Emotional abuse (or psychological abuse) is a pattern of behaviour that impairs a child's emotional development or sense of self-worth, and can involve deliberately trying to scare, humiliate, isolate or ignore a child. It happens in many different ways. It can affect how a young person or child feels about themselves, or how they fit in with friends, at school, or where they live.
Examples of emotional abuse are:
- Being made to feel inadequate, worthless or unloved
- Being unfairly blamed
- Being bullied, including over the internet (cyber-bullying)
- Being made to feel frightened or in danger
- Witnessing the abuse of others such as domestic abuse
Signs and symptoms of emotional abuse in children can include:
- Reduced physical, mental and emotional development
- Continual self-depreciation, eg 'I'm stupid', 'I'm ugly', 'I'm worthless'
- Inappropriate response to pain, eg 'I deserve this'
- Neurotic behaviour, eg rocking, hair twisting or self-mutilation
