What is Child Sexual Abuse and Who are the Perpetrators?
April 15, 2009WHAT IS CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE?
and WHO ARE THE PERPETRATORS?
This is the first of a multi-part series of posts on child sexual abuse. Over the next few days we’ll be covering several sub-topics such as indicators of abuse, disclosure, and prevention/safety, including internet safety. Be sure to check back soon for more.
CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
is the exploitation of a child or adolescent for the sexual gratification of an adult or older child. Some types of sexual abuse my include:
- fondling
- oral-genital stimulation
- sodomy
- intercourse
Other types of sexual abuse may be hard to detect. These can include:
- involving the child in pornography
- showing a child an adult’s genitals or pornography
- verbal stimulation
- voyeurism
Some research indicates that about one in four children will be sexually abused by the time they reach eighteen years of age. Boys and girls are equally likely to be victims (although researchers believe that boys are less likely to report.) Sexual abuse occurs among all ethnic and socio-economic groups.
One myth is that a child would naturally show fear and/or hatred toward his/her abuser. But the reality is that many children like and/or love the abuser. They simply do not like the abuse. Not all children will immediately tell if they have been abused. Delays in reporting and/or denial are the rul, not the exception.
PERPETRATORS
Abusers come from all age groups, ethnic groups, and socio-economic groups. Both men and women abuse children, although statistically, most abusers are male. The majority of abuse is committed by someone that the child knows and trusts:
- a family member
- relative
- babysitter
- neighbor
The abuser usually tries to control the victim by coercion, using power of authority, manipulation, and bribing. Research indicates that many abusers were victimized as children.
STOP BACK SOON — there are more posts to come in this series.
Source: Parent’s Handbook (CAC)
You can read more on CSA:
