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Alcohol Abuse & Neglect in Children

Alcohol abuse in parents or caretakers of children contributes to hostile home environments and may affect the child's ability to socialize appropriately. Approximately 14 million Americans abuse alcohol. Child neglect is justification for the removal of children from the homes of parents who abuse alcohol and other drugs.

  1. Prevalence of Neglect in Children

    • The most recent data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) reports that some 794,000 children suffered child abuse or neglect in the calendar year 2007. Of this number, 59 percent were victims of neglect. This is the most prevalent form of abuse in children.

    Alcoholism in Parents

    • Parents who are dependent on or abuse alcohol are more likely to engage in unhealthy relationships with one another or others in their home. Unhealthy behaviors include yelling, insults, threats, and violence.

    Defining Neglect

    • An assessment of neglect would involve measures such as parent behavior, parental stress and anger, adult-child interaction, and unrealistic parental expectations of child development. A child who is frequently victimized by the behaviors of birth parents, adoptive parents, or stepparents is considered abused or neglected.

    Signs of Neglect

    • A primary indicator of neglect is alcohol use in both the child and the parent or caretaker. Parents who use alcohol to excess model this behavior to their child as a coping behavior.

    Research

    • The connection between child neglect and alcohol abuse is strongly linked. However, the relationship between neglect and a parent's alcohol abuse has not been thoroughly studied.

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