Susan Schmidt, director of Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline, said parents can "scapegoat" a child, wrongfully blaming one or two of them for the rest of the family's problems. Scapegoats are punished or neglected, while the others aren't harmed at all. "They're the bad kid," Schmidt said. "They're the reason everything is going wrong." Typically, however, neglect is unintentional, said Frederic G. Reamer, a professor at Rhode Island College's school of social work. Drug abuse and mental-health problems lie at the root of most cases. Poverty, unemployment and lack of support from friends and family can make it worse.