Understaffing plagues child abuse services, parents told to regulate kids’ phone use

A study by the University of Malta into child maltreatment and neglect has pointed its fingers at the indiscriminate use of smartphones and online content that is impacting upon the development of children and teens, among the many myriad factors failing young people.

Titled ‘Protecting our Children: Exploring and Preventing Child Abuse’, a project led Dr Roberta Attard, Head of the Department of Counselling within the Faculty for Social Wellbeing, the study clearly indicates that parental controls are not as effective as imagined by the parents themselves, against the impact of online technologies on young people.

“This technology-based, new reality brings endless opportunities for entertainment, networking and knowledge. That being said, it also brings novel risks and scenarios with it. Amongst the most predominant of such risks is cyberbullying, aggressive online behaviour, stalking, hate speech, racism, sexting, grooming, fake news, friends/influencers and the unrealistic body image, and issues related to self-esteem,” the study says in its conclusions.

But it warns that its rapid evolution is posing new risks, citing as an example the spread of so-called influencer culture.

The study calls for education to parents-to-be and parents-to-be of young children on issues related to online safety and practical and technical ways of combatting unwanted intrusions on children’s wellbeing online.

The study’s main preoccupation is the severe understaffing of Maltese community-based programmes for people seeking help over child abuse. After a previous study conducted by the Faculty for Social Wellbeing reported a staggering 587 cases of physical child abuse in 2021 alone, this new analysis finds that while intake services are easy to access, further intervention tailored to the individual, such as therapeutic services, is not.

“Children and adults who have experienced abuse as children are evidently still falling between the gaps. A collaborative, coordinated multi-agency response to child abuse and neglect, especially with regards to the education, sport and social assistance services, is required to ensure timely prevention and identification of abuse and neglect and multi-professional therapeutic interventions for children, young people and families after child abuse and neglect,” the study says.

Various vulnerability factors were identified as increasing the risk of child abuse and neglect, among them poverty, financial stress and inadequate housing, parental factors such as a history of unaddressed child abuse or domestic violence, emotional dysregulation, anger management issues, chronic parental stress, substance misuse problems, being exposed or subjected to sexual violence or exploitation, and mental health issues which may significantly impact parenting tasks.

“Clearly, the emotional abuse of children within the Maltese society is being perpetuated from generation to generation. As this type of abuse is so intrinsic to this community, it is imperative to build a concerted educative programme from the pre-natal stage of development to late adolescence for all parents but especially those at risk of emotionally abusing their children,” the study recommends.

But it warned that a significant number of persons who sought help had found available services unhelpful. “The services concerned need to look at the barriers preventing help-seeking behaviour and what in their service may be perceived as unhelpful to persons experiencing abuse. Effort must be made to respond to these concerns and reduce/abolish those barriers to seeking help.”

Prof. Andrew Azzopardi, project manager for the study, said its overarching goal was to bring out more of the correlations of child abuse to other factors such as satisfaction with life, or financial security. “We are challenging commonly-held assumptions and making useful recommendations for policymakers to be more assertive in proposing strategies that ultimately enforce children’s rights.”

Project leader Dr Roberta Attard said the study emphasises that child abuse transcended social class. “The belief that child maltreatment only occurs within low-income family units is mistaken… this study stresses on the fact that despite there being services available for help with these cases, the victims do not always manage to request such help, or they do so many years after the abuse would’ve started.”

The study was carried out with the assistance of Research Support Officers, Graziella Vella and Olga Formosa, and sponsored by Bank of Valletta.