Confronting Child And Adolescent Sexual Abuse

Confronting Child and Adolescent Sexual Abuse is the first text to examine the history, theory, treatment, and prevention of this complex phenomenon. With in-depth insights into the psychologies of victims, their families, and the perpetrators, this comprehensive text shows readers how to recognize the symptoms and impact of childhood sexual abuse, critically engage with the unique nature of each case, complete a thorough assessment, develop a treatment plan, and effectively intervene in critical situations. A national expert on child abuse and neglect and the author of numerous books and publications, Cynthia Crosson-Tower addresses a wide range of special topics and helps readers prepare for working in this challenging professional field. “This is sure to become the definitive ‘classic’ text in courses preparing students for competent practice with sexually abused children and adolescents.” —Barbara Nowak, Albany State University “This text opens with a history of sexual abuse, offers models for treatment and assessment and provides excellent insights into many of the major sexual abuse dynamics of our times. Finally we have a textbook that is very relevant for our times.” —Nancy DeCesare, Chestnut Hill College

Making a unique contribution of placing the current sexual exploitation of children and adolescents firmly in its historical context, this book looks at the family's and society's roles in child and adolescent sex abuse. Unlike most previous studies, this study allows a range of responses from negative to positive and avoids the methodological problems inherent in many other studies. Most studies combine the age groups of children and adolescents, whereas this study separates these different age groups and compares the nature and outcome of sexual experiences of children with those of adolescents. Utilizing sophisticated analytical measures, the author's findings repudiate many commonly held assumptions and serve to calm current hysteria regarding sexual abuse of minors. Written to disseminate findings that could be helpful in realistically confronting the phenomenon of human sexuality, the results presented in this book dispel many current myths about early sexuality, including ethnic differences. The author wanted to separate scientific inquiry from the perpetration of pervading mores or social norms, and identify the real menaces to healthy adult functioning.

Written both for practitioners and advanced clinical students, this accessible volume will serve as a valuable resource.

Most people get information about child sexual abuse from media coverage, social movements, or conversations with family and friends. Confronting Child Sexual Abuse describes how these forces shape our views of victims and offenders, while also providing an in-depth look at prevention efforts and current research. Sociologist Anne Nurse has synthesized studies spanning the fields of psychology, sociology, communications, criminology, and political science to produce this nuanced, accessible, and up-to-date account. Topics include the prevalence of abuse, the impact of abuse on victims and families, offender characteristics, abuse in institutions, and the efficacy of treatments. Written for people who care for kids, for students considering careers in criminal justice or human services, and for anyone seeking information about this devastating issue, Nurse’s book offers new public policy ideas as well as practical suggestions on how to engage in prevention work. Interactive links to studies, videos, and podcasts connect readers to further resources.

Childhood Sexual Abuse critically reviews research into and provides a concise and clear guide to our current knowledge on the topic. The issues covered include: the prevalence of child sexual abuse; who molests children; the effects of such abuse, both immediate and long-term; the risk factors for abuse; and the influences and interventions that may amplify or ameliorate the impact of child sexual abuse on the victim. Areas of debate, such as the false memory syndrome, are approached in terms of the research data relevant to their resolution. This volume sets out to inform rather than advocate, discusses the methodologies of research as well as their results, highlights the limitations and the extent of current information, and points out how we can learn more about child sexual abuse.

McKinnon presents a six-stage program to help children ages 6 to 12 recover from incest and childhood sexual abuse.

Every day in the United States, children and adolescents are victims of commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking. These are not only illegal activities, but also forms of violence and abuse that result in immediate and long-term physical, mental, and emotional harm to victims and survivors. In 2013, the Institute of Medicine/National Research Council released the report Confronting Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Sex Trafficking of Minors in the United States. The report found that the United States is in the very early stages of recognizing, understanding, and developing solutions for these crimes. Health care professionals need to be able to recognize past, ongoing, or potential victimization by commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking among the youth in their care. Failure to do so increases the possibility that those at risk may become victims, and victims may miss opportunities for assistance and remain vulnerable to further exploitation and abuse. This Guide for the Health Care Sector provides a summary of information from the original report that is most relevant to individuals who and settings that see children and adolescents for prevention and treatment of injury, illness, and disease. This includes physicians, nurses, advanced practice nurses, physician assistants, mental health professionals, and dentists who practice in settings such as emergency departments, urgent care, primary care clinics, adolescent medicine clinics, school clinics, shelters, community health centers, and dental clinics among others. This guide includes definitions of key terms and an overview of risk factors and consequences; barriers to identifying victims and survivors as well as opportunities for overcoming these barriers; examples of current practices in the health care sector; and recommendations aimed at identifying, preventing, and responding to these crimes.