This paper covers the author's vision o f the problem of parent-child relations, its solutions, the study of parent-child relations in Russian families under analysis, the concept of "parental cruelty" being characterized and its impact on the child's social integration. The author used genetic, historical and retrospective analysis, observation, interviewing, questionnaire, analysis of activity results, projective and test methodologies and questionnaires. During the synthesis and analysis o f materials, the method o f statistical data processing was used: correlation and factor analysis using"Excel" "Statistica for Windows" The main scope of work on the above topic covers the period of fifteen years. The study involved: primary school students (273 persons), middle school students (268 persons), high-school students (242 persons), their parents (611 persons), and teachers (154 persons) o f 3 regions of Russia (Ulyanovsk, Moscow, and Krasnodar). The control group involved primary school students (32 persons), their parents (43 persons), and teachers (31 persons) of the city o f Ulyanovsk. The research identified the most common causes of parental cruelty against children.

Keywords: parental cruelty, violence against children, types of ill-treatment o f children, social maladjustment, factors of child's social maladjustment.