What term describes injury to a child's psychological capacity or emotional stability?

The term that describes injury to a child's psychological capacity or emotional stability is emotional abuse. Emotional abuse encompasses behaviors that can cause significant harm to a child's emotional well-being, including verbal abuse, threats, rejection, and the constant invalidation of a child's feelings or experiences. This type of abuse can lead to long-lasting effects, impacting the child's confidence, self-worth, and ability to form healthy relationships.

In recognizing the nuances of child maltreatment, emotional abuse is distinct from other forms, such as physical abuse—which involves harm to the child's body—neglect, which refers to the failure to provide for a child's basic physical and emotional needs, and sexual abuse, which involves any sexual activity with a child. Therefore, understanding emotional abuse is critical to identifying and responding to maltreatment that affects a child's mental health.