An Empirical Investigation into Child Abuse and Neglect in India ― Burden, Impact and Protective Measures

This book provides a comprehensive overview of child abuse and neglect globally in general terms and with empirical evidence from Puducherry, India. The study unearths the reality concerning child safety and raises a number of questions about child safety measures at the institutional and family levels. It recommends evidence-based and culture-specific preventive measures for child protection. The empirical evidence presented here provides important and useful information to school administrators on the issues of child abuse and neglect, for them to take evidence-based protective measures both at school and at home. For cross-cultural comparison, the findings are of interest to international scholars and academics. This work is useful for policy makers, educators, NGO personnel, child rights activists and opinion leaders in government departments dealing with children, and for researchers in the fields of psychology, social work, nursing, pediatric, forensic medicine, and public health.

Prof. Sibnath Deb, PhD & DSc, is full-time professor of the Department of Applied Psychology, Pondicherry University (A Central University), India. Prof. Deb is also acting as Director (I/C), Directorate of Distance Education and Dean (I/C), School of Law, Pondicherry University. Prior to joining the Pondicherry University he was teaching in the University of Calcutta. In 1994, Prof. Deb did an intensive course on ‘HIV/AIDS and Qualitative Research’ from the University of Western Australia. During April 2009 to Aug. 2009, Prof. Deb visited the School of Public Health, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, Australia as Visiting Faculty. Currently he is also Adjunct Professor of the School of Public Health and Social Work, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, Australia. During 2004-’08, he served the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN) as Councilor Member. In brief, he has got 27 years of teaching, research and administrative experience and has produced 16 PhD’s in addition to publishing more than 100 research articles/book chapters in the leading national and international journals. Prof. Deb has written six books and edited five books. His latest book titled ‘Child Safety, Welfare and Well-being’ has been published by Springer in 2016. Current areas of research interest of Prof. Deb include child safety, students’ mental health, adolescent reproductive health, and applied social psychology (sibnath23@gmail.com).