Introduction

Product Name

·         Child Neglect Public Awareness Campaign

Product Classification

·         Child Neglect Public Awareness Campaign is being classified as Public service Announcement (PSA), which are messages in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge, with the objective of raising awareness, changing public attitudes and behavior towards the social issue of Child Abuse.

Product Characteristics

• ·         Persuasive
• ·         Engages the audience with a variety of media, such as posters, TVC, promotional booths, photographs, radio, or music etc.
• ·         Includes a Call to Action.
• ·         Uses and cites data from reliable sources.
• ·         It’s a non – profit activity/campaign.

 Product Range

• ·         Website
• ·         Hotline
• ·         Public Awareness Campaign Booth
• ·         TVC
• ·         Promotional Merchandise
• ·         Posters
• ·         Radio Ad

Distribution

Direct Distribution - Child Neglect Public Awareness Campaign delivers information and raise awareness directly to the target audience by having public awareness campaigns and booths, as well as TVC, radio ads etc. Non-profit organization promotes information directly to the target audience through the internet, event booth, TVC, radio ad etc. Apparently, they provide hotline services for the victims as well. 

The Brand

Child neglect is another form of child abuse. It involves the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic needs, likely to the result in serious impairment of the child’s health, physical, emotional or mental development. Child neglect are divided into four main categories, which are:

• ·         Physical – failure to provide necessary food or shelter, clothing or lack of appropriate supervision.
• ·         Medical – failure to provide necessary medical or mental health treatment.
• ·         Educational – failure to educate, provide learning facilities, a child or attend to special education needs.
• ·         Emotional – not paying attention to a child’s emotional need, failure to provide psychological care, or allowing the child to use alcohol, drugs or get involved with crime.

Child neglect’s symptoms and signs are not easy to be identified and noticed. Due to the lack of research and reports, information regarding child abuse is limited. The following are signs of possibility of child neglect if the child:

• Is frequently absent from school
• Begs or steals food or money
• Lacks needed medical or dental care, immunizations, or glasses
• Is consistently dirty and has severe body odor
• Lacks sufficient clothing for the weather
• Abuses alcohol or other drugs
• States that there is no one at home to provide care

The impact of neglect on a child may not be apparent at an early stage except in the most extreme cases. However, the effects of neglect are harmful and possibly long-lasting for the victims. Its impact can become more severe as a child grows older and can encompass multiple areas, including:

• Health and physical development
• Intellectual and cognitive development
• Emotional and psychological development
• Social and behavioral development

Although there are four categories of neglect's effects on an individual, they often are related. For example, if a child experiences neglect that leads to a delayed development of the brain, this may lead to cognitive delays or psychological problems, which may manifest as social and behavioral problems. Because neglected children often experience multiple consequences that may be the result of neglect and related circumstances in their lives, it may be difficult to determine if the impact is related specifically to the neglect, is caused by another factor, or arises from a combination of factors. The impact of neglect can vary based on:

• The child's age
• The presence and strength of protective factors
• The frequency, duration, and severity of the neglect
• The relationship between the child and caregiver

The negative impacts of neglect are often associated with the various outcomes children experience in the child welfare system. For example, some of the developmental and health problems linked to neglect are related to higher rates of placement in out-of-home care, a greater number of out-of-home placements, longer out-of-home placements, and a decreased likelihood of children residing with their parents when discharged from foster care

Studies show that neglected children can be at risk for many physical problems, including failure to thrive, severe diaper rash and other skin infections, recurrent and persistent minor infections, malnourishment, and impaired brain development. Because neglect includes medical neglect, other health problems can arise from the failure of the parents to obtain necessary medical care for their children.

In some cases, child neglect has been associated with a failure of the brain to form properly, which can lead to impaired physical, mental, and emotional development.

The physical problems associated with neglect may start even before an infant is born, such as when the mother has had little or no prenatal care or smoked during pregnancy. These children may be born prematurely and have complications at birth. Neglected children also can have severe physical injuries, possibly due to the inattention of their parents, such as central nervous system and craniofacial injuries, fractures, and severe burns. They also may be dirty and unhygienic, leading to even more health problems, such as lice or infections. Children also may be exposed to toxins that could cause anemia, cancer, heart disease, poor immune functioning, and asthma.

Research shows that neglected children are more likely to have cognitive deficits and severe academic and developmental delays when compared with non-neglected children. When neglected children enter school, they may suffer from both intellectual and social disadvantages that cause them to become frustrated and fall behind.

Neglect can have a strong impact on, and lead to problems in, a child's emotional, psychosocial, and behavioral development. As with other effects already mentioned, these may be evident immediately after the maltreatment or not manifest themselves until many months or years later.

All types of child neglects, and emotional neglect in particular, can have serious psychosocial and emotional consequences for children. Some of the short-term emotional impacts of neglect, such as fear, isolation, and an inability to trust, can lead to lifelong emotional and psychological problems, such as low self-esteem.

Brand Image and Implication

Child abuse is a global public health issue, and there are children having risks or is suffering harms mentally and physically throughout the world. Public are well inform regarding both physical and sexual abuse, however, minor child abuse issues such as child neglect are often ignored and unnoticed.

On 1985, the first Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) Team was set up and child abuse had its recognition in this country, however, public only started to be aware of child abuse issues in 1989 through the death of a severely abused child. According to Malaysia’s Royal Police Headquarter Bukit Aman Investigation Department’s statistic (2013) regarding child abuse, it indicates that most of the victims of child abuse cases are children between the age class of one for two consecutive years, 2011 and 2012. Neglect cases is increasing at a very fast pace since 2003 and it is currently the top child abuse issue in Malaysia.

TABLE : TOTAL CASES OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT REPORTED TO DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WELFARE, MALAYSIA FROM 1997-2010 ACCORDING TO TYPE OF ABUSE

In Malaysia, due to the covert nature of child neglect and inconsistent definition of child neglect, authorities are having trouble in making precise assessment on child neglect incidence. Being different from other child abuse, which are affected by negative parenting behaviors, for child neglect, the lack of positive parenting behaviors is hard to distinguished and is often being overlooked.

Lastly there is a limited resource in research documentation regarding the issue of child abuse in Malaysia and research surveys done on public are scarcely available.

Strength and Weakness

• ·         Strength – UNICEF is globally associated with government and private sectors.
• ·         Weakness – A new Child Abuse Campaign and people don’t often pay attention on Public Awareness Campaign.

Advantages and Disadvantages

• ·         Advantages – Able to delivered information through UNICEF’s website etc. Human resources and financial issues are provided as well.
• ·         Disadvantages – People might not know about the campaign and people might ignore it.

Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

• " Neglecting a child is like making a child invisible. Our campaign helps the children to be seen, to be visible before they really become permanently invisible (death/too late). "

Positioning Statement

• Make every child in the world visible.