Published Article

Abstract Child abuse has been reported incessantly among primary school children. Its consequences are far reaching and take its toll on the social and academic development of school children; this study examined the influence of child abuse on the social integration of primary school pupils in Anambra South Senatorial District of Anambra State. The child abuse variable under examination in this study were child undermining, coercion and domestic violence which seem to be the most common indices if child abuse among school age pupils. The population of the study comprised 7,040 primary five pupils. The sample size of the study was 704 primary five pupils representing 10% of the population. Two instruments were used for data collection in the study they were Abused Pupil Identification Questionnaire, (APIQ) with a reliability coefficient of 0.83 and Pupils Social Integration Questionnaire (PSIQ) with a reliability coefficient of 0.84. The instruments were validated by experts in child psychology, early childhood education and measurement and evaluation. Three hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance, using the Pearson Product Moment Correlation. The result indicated that there is significant influence of child undermining, coercion and domestic violence on pupils social integration. Based on the findings of the study recommendations were made, among which The government at all levels should fortify the vehicle for the fight against child abuse by setting up child abuse court specifically to ensure that culprits of child abuse are actually prosecuted and punished without judicial delays. Keywords: Child Abuse, Social and Academic Development, School Children Introduction The