An Investigation into the Characteristics of Families which Neglect and Abuse Children: A Case of Riftvalley Province, Kenya

Abstract

For most people the idea that families neglect and abuse their children seems unreal. The tmth is that families like these do live in our towns and cities though they are unknown to most people. This study aimed to trace the characteristics of families that neglect and abuse children. lt sought to leam what these families are like, how they live and how they can be recognised. The study employed exploratory survey design whereby the population was cases filed with Child Welfare department in Rift Valley province. A total of 180 families were selected from seven different localities, that included two rural areas, two medium sized and two urban areas and one municipality. These included Nakuru, Kericho and Uasin Gishu districts. The records were selected by the judgement of professionally trained supervisors, as representatives of the total group of such cases of families coming to the department. The sample of I47 cases was purposively selected from the seven localities. Questionnaires and interview schedules were utilised for data collection. and the data was analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings of this study indicated that parents who abused and neglected their children tended to be indifferent to all the behaviour of their children. In order to effectively carry out future research and prevent child neglect and abuse some recommendations were made which include the community involvement in combating child abuse.