Are Immigrant Families at Greater Risk of Emotional Neglect?

"defines this type of neglect as parental failure to "respond to their children's feelings enough while raising them, which communicates to children that their emotions are invisible or unimportant." Dr Webb goes on to highlight one of the reasons why CEN is a silent destroyer: "It's not typically observable as a trauma when it happens, and it does not usually feel traumatic to the child... CEN usually happens in a thousand small moments of a person's childhood.""

"Its quietness belies the extent to which it can negatively impact on the lives of those who suffer it, with some studies reporting that emotional maltreatment (abuse and neglect) were as harmful as other forms of maltreatment (physical abuse and neglect, and sexual abuse) while another, more recent study, made the bold claim that emotional abuse and neglect are more harmful than physical and sexual abuse."

Childhood emotional neglect (CEN) is parental failure to respond to children's feelings, communicating that emotions are invisible or unimportant. CEN often occurs in small, unremarkable moments and usually does not feel traumatic when it happens. Emotional maltreatment can produce long-term harm comparable to, or even exceeding, harm from physical or sexual abuse. CEN is an act of omission rather than commission, making it subtler and highly context-dependent. Immigrants can face elevated risk due to psychological costs of migration. Children can experience tension between emotional cues in society and emotional experiences at home. Recognition of CEN is essential to prevent its dismissal.

Read at Psychology Today