USEFUL LINKS & CONTACT INFORMATION

Websites:

Act Now to Stop Family Violence

Amber Alert System

Bikers Against Child Abuse

Childhelp USA®

Child Welfare Information Gateway

Child Welfare League of America

Child Witness to Violence Project

Code Amber.org

Community Resources, Benefits, Family Services, Assistance Programs

Cumberland County Communicare

Darkness to Light Stewards of Children

David Baldwin's Trauma Information Pages

Family Violence Prevention

Family Watchdog National Sex Offender Registry

Maternal & Child Health Bureau

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children

National Child Traumatic Stress Network - Home

National Children's Advocacy Center

National Sex Offender Public Registry

NC Sex Offender Registry

Partnership for Children of Cumberland County

Prevent Child Abuse America

Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina

PROTECT National Association to PROTECT Children

Staying Connected with your Teens

Stop It Now!

Study Finds Clear Link between Violent TV Watching and Aggression

Researchers at Seattle Children's Hospital Research Institute and the University of Washington School of Medicine have found that boys between the ages of 2 and 5 who watch violent TV programs are much more likely to develop aggressive and/or antisocial behaviors by the time they reach the ages of 7 to 9. The study, published recently in Pediatrics, found that preschool boys who watched football as well as cartoons such as Power Rangers, Spider-Man, and Space Jam, and other programs in which characters fight or flee from violent situations, were more likely to cheat, be disobedient at school, be mean to other children, and feel no regret for such behaviors at a later age. No such correlation was found in girls of the same age. According to its authors, the study underscores the need for parents "to be informed and very selective when making media choices for their children."

Read the full article at:
http://www.seattlechildrens.org/home/about_childrens/press_releases/2007/11/002904.asp
 

Many Child Abuse Victims Suffering Multiple Forms of Abuse

A new report published in Child Abuse and Neglect asserts that a third of all children undergoing abuse are experiencing "poly-victimization": four or more kinds of victimization or abuse, such as physical abuse, dating violence, and hate crimes, within a single year. "The child protection field is much too fragmented," says David Finkelhor, professor of sociology at the University of New Hampshire and lead author of the study. "We find out a child has been neglected or bullied by a peer, and that's all we focus on. But many of these kids are being victimized in multiple ways, and we often fail to notice and respond to the whole problem."

Read the full article at: http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2007/jan/lw31poly.cfm

Sexualized Images May Harm Girls' Development and Self-Image

With television, movies, magazines, and now the Internet, sexualized images of girls and young women seem to be everywhere -- but can these images actually harm girls who see them? A new study says yes. The American Psychological Association (APA) Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls recently released a report finding that such images can negatively impact girls' self-image and development. According to Eileen L. Zurbriggen, Ph.D. -- chair of the APA Task Force and associate professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Cruz -- "We have ample evidence to conclude that sexualization has negative effects in a variety of domains, including cognitive functioning, physical and mental health, and healthy sexual development."

Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims.