Behavior of child maltreatment in children with intellectual disabilities

Abstract

Background: child abuse is a serious social problem, of universal character that has historical, cultural and psychological roots where the fundamental rights of boys or girls are violated. Aim: to characterize child abuse in children with intellectual disabilities, enrolled in the "Omar Torrijos" Special Education School of the San Miguel del Padrón municipality, during the period 2017-2019. Method: a descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out, related to child abuse in children with an intellectual disability. The work included 45 children from the 4th and 5th grades, who met the inclusion requirements. To achieve this purpose, indirect and projective techniques were applied, such as drawing, the technique of the three wishes, the three rocks, and the three fears, as well as the FF-SIL test. In addition, questionnaires were applied to tutors and teachers. Results: the presence of child abuse was found in 26 children, favored by various adverse situations, such as family conflicts, addictions and psychiatric disorders, which led to neglect or abandonment, physical abuse and psychological abuse. The impact of these conditions on their health was verified, which resulted in hyperactivity, aggressiveness, emotional disorders and shyness of the children. Conclusions: child abuse is a health problem in disabled children, which requires effective joint work between health and educational institutions