Child abandonment/Causes

Poverty and homelessness are often causes of child abandonment.

People living in countries with poor social welfare systems (i.e. China, Myanmar, Mexico) and who are not financially capable of taking care of a child are more likely to abandon their children because of a lack of resources.[6][7]

In some cases the parents already have a child or children, but are unable to take care of another child at that time.[7]

In societies where women are looked down upon for being teenage or single mothers, child abandonment is more common.[6][7]

Children born out of the confines of marriage may be abandoned in a family's attempt to prevent being shamed by their community.[8]

Physical disability, mental illness, and substance abuse problems that parents are facing can also cause them to abandon their children.[6][7]

Children who are born with congenital disorders or other health complications may be abandoned if their parents feel unequipped to provide them with the level of care that their condition requires.[6][7][9][10]

In cultures where the sex of the child is of utmost importance, parents are more likely to abandon a baby of the undesired sex.[11]

Similarly, people may choose to pursue the often controversial option of sex-selective abortion.[12]

Political conditions, such as war and displacement of a family, are also cause for parents to abandon their children.[8]

Additionally, a parent being incarcerated or deported can result in the involuntary abandonment of a child, even if the parent(s) did not voluntarily relinquish their parental role.[13][14]

Disownment of a child is a form of abandonment which entails ending contact with, and support for, one's dependent.

Disownment tends to occur later in a child's life, generally due to a conflict between the parent(s) and the child, but can also occur when children are still young.

Reasons include: divorce of parents, discovering the true paternity of a child, and a child's actions bringing shame to a family; most commonly, breaking the law, teenage pregnancy, major religious or ideological differences, and identifying as LGBT.[13][15][16][17][18][19][20] [[Category:A]]