Neglect is the most commonly reported form of child maltreatment, affecting one in seven children in the U.S. at some point in their lives, but it is the least studied. childhood challenge (Vanderminden et al., 2019). It is associated with a wide range of long-term adverse health, mental health, and developmental outcomes. Some studies have shown that quality of life in adulthood was lower for those who experienced it emotional abuse and neglect of those who have been physically or sexually abused (Lippert & Nemeroff, 2023; Strathearn et al., 2020).
Neglect is often confused with or conflated with poverty, and sometimes the problem is not a matter of intentional or reckless neglect, but of a parent experiencing financial or housing difficulties, leading to inappropriate child welfare interventions or child removal. Severe neglect and growing up in extreme poverty are both associated with impaired brain maturation and delays in cognitive development (Smith, 2025), but the dynamics and consequences of child neglect are complex and harmful beyond just the harms of economic conditions.
The definition of child neglect as a cause of state intervention varies from state to state, although there is general agreement that it is failure to adequately respond to the child’s needs. States emphasize lack of control, unsafe conditions or exposure to people, or lack of food, safe shelter, or medical care. attention. Several states with broader definitions include emotional neglect and failure to seek or seek treatment for emotional problems (Smith, 2025).
Neglect often involves failing to meet a full list of children’s physical and emotional needs, as I learned from the ex-juvenile offenders I interviewed for my book. Before Their Crimes: We Misunderstand Childhood TraumaYoung people Crimeand healing path. Painful memories of neglect were almost always associated with drug-addicted parents. addiction.
Joshua’s mother became addicted to drugs after moving in with her new boyfriend who was addicted to cocaine. He offers a poignant picture of the fatal turn his life took at the age of seven:
“We went from a really nice neighborhood to living in the worst projects, and since then my mother has been very neglected. She spent time locked in the bedroom with her new man. My brother and I had to take care of ourselves and cook for ourselves … My mother never washed our clothes, we always had dirty clothes. We sometimes had to jump them in the bathtub. Cauliflower and broccoli were behind the project. to the neighboring fields where it grows, we boil it and eat it.
Joshua started drinking when he was 14 and soon turned to methamphetamines. He thought and tried to commit suicide. Eventually, he joined a gang.
The people I spoke with were living witnesses to the fact that neglect and abuse are often intertwined in children’s lives, occurring simultaneously and inextricably. Regardless of whether it occurs in conjunction with physical or neglect sexual violencefound to predict greater severity of neglect and emotional abuse depressioneven after control for physical and sexual abuse (Lippert and Nemeroff, 2023). Researchers found high rates commit suicide ideas and high rates of illegal drug use and minors alcoholic beverages use among youth who have experienced neglect (Vanderminden et al., 2019), and I observed this in 29 of my interviewees.
The physical facts of neglect can be hard on the body, including neurobiological development, but have a powerful impact on mental health and a child’s developing sense of self and the world. Neglected children see and feel a lack of care from the adults closest to them. It is a terrible experience of not being loved. As with other forms of abuse that occur early in life, before the self is fully formed, before children can easily discern the meaning of the behavior of others, they often associate the cause or reason for the mistreatment with something bad or lacking or disliked about themselves.
Remembering and opening up about early experiences of neglect with a trusted, caring adult can make room for a safe place to live. boundaries to be more clear and allow the self to flourish and heal.
