Editor's note: Child maltreatment

Abstract

Children are the most vulnerable members of society. They are considered vulnerable since they are at a stage where there is greater reliance on others to get things done. They don't have knowledge of this world and wouldn't know right from wrong etc so someone can easily maltreat a child. Child maltreatment is the general term used to describe all forms of child abuse and neglect. There is wide range of variation about the definition of child maltreatment and unfortunately, there is no single, universally applied definition of child abuse and neglect. The literature gives an overwhelming explanation about child maltreatment. In many cases, child maltreatment has been defined with the spectrum of child abuse.