Ace the Certified Case Manager Challenge 2026 – Get Ready to Manage Your Success!

A child deprived of essential food, clothing, or shelter is experiencing neglect. Neglect refers specifically to the failure to provide for a child's basic physical, emotional, or educational needs, which can have severe and lasting effects on their well-being and development. This form of maltreatment is characterized by a lack of adequate care, resulting in the child's basic needs not being met.

In this context, neglect is distinct from abuse, which involves direct harm or the intent to harm a child. While delinquency pertains to involvement in illegal activities often associated with older children or adolescents, dependency typically speaks to a situation where a child is unable to live safely with their family but does not directly address the lack of basic needs. Therefore, when focusing on the deprivation of essential resources, neglect is the most accurate form of maltreatment to describe the situation.