Preventing Child Sexual Abuse

Public policy responses to child sexual abuse are dominated by interventions designed to take effect only after offenders have already begun offending, and after children have already been sexually abused. Comparatively little attention has been given to alternative prevention strategies – particularly to those aimed at preventing sexual abuse before it might otherwise occur. Considerable knowledge has been accumulated on the characteristics, modus operandi and persistence of offenders, the characteristics, circumstances and outcomes for victims, and the physical and social settings in which sexual abuse occurs, but little work has been done to systematically apply this knowledge to prevention. This book aims to fulfill this objective through integrating clinical and criminological concepts and knowledge to inform a more comprehensive and effective public policy approach to preventing child sexual abuse. Empirical and theoretical knowledge concerning child sexual abuse is integrated with broader developments in evidence-based crime and child maltreatment prevention, leading to new ideas about understanding and preventing child sexual abuse. This book will be essential reading for anybody with interests in this field.

Stop abuse before it starts! Identifying Child Molesters: Preventing Child Sexual Abuse by Recognizing the Patterns of the Offenders will teach you to better protect children from potential child sexual molesters long before any abuse can actually occur. Here you'll learn to recognize and understand the seemingly invisible steps that typically precede child sexual abuse. These stories of molesters, their families, and their victims, will enable you to more accurately see through a potential molester's charming demeanor and better protect the children in your life. Understanding the behavior that molesters often exhibit when trying to obtain access to children is essential to protecting children from their advances. By becoming familiar with this terrain you will find the courage and strength to decide what must be done, and the skills to follow through with the necessary actions. Such responses will appropriately curtail an offender's access to children and subsequent opportunities to molest. Identifying Child Molesters will teach you: how to recognize those who might molest how molesters typically 'charm’adults how societal attitudes help to foster child sexual abuse what to do when encountering a potential molester what physical and emotional damage molestation can cause to victims how to graciously avoid potentially dangerous situations Identifying Child Molesters: Preventing Child Sexual Abuse by Recognizing the Patterns of the Offenders clearly spells out the techniques that child sexual molesters so successfully use to charm adults into giving them access to children. When these strategies are seen and understood, adults can take much more direct responsibility for preventing child sexual abuse than was previously possible. Anyone who lives or works with children needs to own this book. The information you'll encounter in Identifying Child Molesters might startle you, but it might also help you save the life of a child!

Online Risk to Children brings together the most up-to-date theory, policy, and best practices for online child protection and abuse prevention. Moves beyond offender assessment and treatment to discuss the impact of online abuse on children themselves, and the risks and vulnerabilities inherent in their constantly connected lives Global in scope, setting contributions from leading researchers and practitioners in the UK in international context via chapters from Australia, the USA and Europe. Key topics covered include cyberbullying, peer-oriented abuse, victim treatment approaches, international law enforcement strategies, policy responses, and the role of schools and industry

This work deals with the issues surrounding child sexual abuse, and is aimed at practitioners in social work, psychology and medicine, students in professional fields and researchers.

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.

The past decade has seen a dramatic increase in the attention paid to the problem of child sexual abuse. Professionals from the social work, mental health, medical, academic, and legal fields are all involved in researching the prevalence, causes, and consequences of abuse. Child sexual abuse in multidimensional: it is determined by forces at work in victims and offenders, in the family, and in the community and society at large. Thoroughly researched, Preventing Child Sexual Abuse surveys incidence and prevalence studies; lists risk and protective factors in abuse; discusses various indicators of abuse; and reports on legislation related to abuse. It reviews preventive programs aimed at children and adults, and provides suggestions for an expanded involvement of parents, professionals, policymakers, researchers, and the general public. In doing so, it provides the information needed to create prevention programs that attack the problem on several fronts at once.

This collection of articles was created to give professionals and educators an informed overview of current issues in the field of child sexual abuse prevention. Articles are grouped under the headings of Introduction, Issues in Child Sexual Abuse Prevention, and Guidelines for Prevention Education and include: (1) "Prevention Education in Perspective" (Carol A. Plummer); (2) "Thinking about Prevention: A Critical Look" (Sandra Butler); (3) "A History of the Touch Continuum" (An Interview with Cordelia Anderson); (4) "Myths, Fairy Tales and Films" (Florence Rush); (5) "The Child as Sex Object: Images of Children in the Media" (Jean Kilbourne); (6) "What Happens to Victims of Child Sexual Abuse?" (Lynn B. Daugherty); (7) "Legal Interventions and Reforms in Child Sexual Abuse Cases" (Josephine Bulkley); (8) "Child Sexual Abuse Prevention: Keys to Program Success" (Carol A. Plummer); (9) "Training Teachers to Be Partners in Prevention" (Ann Downer); (10) "The Role of the Teacher in Preventing Child Sexual Abuse" (I. Lorraine Davis); (11) "Parents as Primary Prevention Educators" (Caren Adams and Jennifer Fay); (12) "Guidelines for Selecting Prevention Resources" (Jennifer Fay); (13) "Considering Children's Developmental Stages in Prevention Education" (Caren Adams); (14) "The Role of Theater in Prevention Education" (Don Yost and Elaine Schertz); (15) "Prevention in an Hispanic Community" (Geraldine A. Crisci and Maria Idali Torres); (16) "Prevention for Children with Disabilities" (Ellen J. Shaman); (17) "Evaluating Prevention Education Programs" (Jon Conte); (18) "New Myths about Child Sexual Abuse" (Mary Ellen Stone); and (19) "Implications for Theory, Research and Practice" (David Finkelhor). Also included is an alphabetical listing of descriptions of 19 prevention program concepts. An overview of reporting, what happens when a report is made, definitions, sexual abuse indicators, a bibliography, contributors, and a program index are appended. (NB)