Marcus Jenkins

11/08/24

PSY 3120

Dr. Ferguson

Cinderella’s Case Study

Reading this case study has shown that not all people are not meant to have

children. Even if they're not biologically yours, they're still a child that is in your care.

Mrs. Jones should’ve been removed after the first sign of Cinderella being injured and

having bruises. I understand if they had over six kids but seeing one more injured than

the others and having continuous injuries is a red flag. The first risk factor is when

Cinderella was injured by Mrs. Jones when she was two and a half years old. This is the

toddler stage of a child where the child begins to grow in motor skills, coordination,

speech, and problem-solving. The baby is learning to develop skills and abilities that will

pass on as they age. This is an important time for parents to be careful with their

children and be critical of their activities. There could be many reasons why Cinderella

had that injury and it could even be the brother's fault. Instead, the wife stated how it

was a disciplined way to “not make a baby out of the child” so no one could hold her.

This method of parenting for a toddler at the age of 2.5 years is a disgusting way of

handling someone who is just learning to develop their skills and emotions. (Clinic 2022)

This is a major sign of physical abuse that Mrs. Jones went through and it’s a huge sign

of Child Psychological Maltreatment.

Something that’s an NFM for Cinderlla’s case is her genetics. This is something

that Cinderella has no control over and it makes Mrs. Jones despise her. The case
explains how as a child she sees Cinderella as herself and treats her the way she was

treated. This shows that she was seen differently in her family and was abused the

same way. She takes out every problem and simple issue to Cinderella and has no

sense of remorse. She states it would've been worse if Cinderella came back which

could mean that it could’ve led to her killing the child. Mrs. Jones has been through

physical and mental abuse by her past family so she passed it on with Mr. Jones’s child.

Mrs. Jones would be the perfect person for individual therapy because she has a

habit of abusing a child who is genetically different from her. Her past abuse has worked

her way into her own family and gives her a feeling of control. This program would be

meant for parents who have a past of abusing children. The intervention would start as

a one-on-one in-person meeting to give them the space to vent about their past. The

goal is to have the parents process their trauma, improve their emotions, and develop

their coping mechanisms with their children. This program would last a whole year and it

would be scheduled for two days a week. This will help parents make time to talk with

the therapist and process what they’ve been through. It’s a calm therapy process that

lets the parents speak their minds and hear feedback for improvement. To see if this

program works, I would use longitudinal studies to help the parents. This method is

used to observe and see the parent's change over time( Simkus 2023). It can be proven

by seeing how they improve their relationship with their child.

A CFR for this case is the lack of support Mrs. Jones shows to Cinderella. It is

hard having six kids in the family and it’s a lot of responsibility for the parents. The case

explains how Mrs. Jones barely dresses Cinderella right, makes her do a huge amount

of chores for little mistakes, forces the family not to speak to her, and keeps her inside
every day. This leans more toward the mental abuse of Cinderella and gives her

problems of handling her emotions. The program I would make would be a

Psychodynamic program. This program is used to help people understand what

happened in their childhood and what made them who they are today. It would help

develop an awareness of their emotions and unresolved feelings (Chamlou 2024). This

would still be a one-on-one meeting with the client and would educate them on ways to

improve their feelings. It would be a calm peaceful setting to give the clients time to

process their trauma.

After reading this case, I feel like it was handled horribly. There were signs of

physical abuse happening in the family and it took over 4 years to finally get Cinderella

out of that environment. Mrs. Jones told the family to not “baby her” by ignoring her

which shows toxic and controlling behavior. I feel like after the first signs of Cinderella

having bruises over her body, CPS should’ve taken her away to her aunt. It was

ridiculous how they kept swithcing social workers to check on Cinderella because it kept

the problem dragging on and she should’ve been gone by then. I'm glad that she moved

out of that abusive home but Mrs. Jones deserves a crueler punishment for what she's

done.

APA: Chamlou, N. (2024, August 21). What is psychodynamic therapy?.

Psychology.org | Psychology’s Comprehensive Online Resource.

https://www.psychology.org/resources/what-is-psychodynamic-therapy/
Professional, C. C. medical. (2024, October 8). Toddler Developmental Milestones &

Safety. Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22625-toddler-

developmental-milestones--safety

By, Simkus, J., on, U., 13, D., & Julia Simkus Editor at Simply Psychology BA (Hons)

Psychology. (2023, December 13). Longitudinal Study Design: Definition & Examples.

Simply Psychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/longitudinal-study.html