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Training and evaluation of robot-based psychological intervention program for preventing child sexual abuse
(Child Protection and Practice, 2024) Tahan, M., Afrooz, G., & Bolhari, J.
Background and purpose: Preventing child sexual abuse is a health and medical priority in many countries. The risk of sexual abuse can be markedly reduced through education, awareness, and skill-building for children. The purpose of this study was to train and evaluate a robot-based psychological intervention program for preventing child sexual abuse. Methods This study had a semiexperimental design that included pre- and posttests as well as a control group. A stratified random sample of 80 individuals was drawn from the population of eight- to ten-year-old children in Ghaen, Iran, in 2018. Subsequently, the sample was randomly divided into two experimental groups and two control groups. The experimental group participated in a robot-based psychological intervention program, for a total of 10 sessions. The control group received no intervention. The tool used to measure children’s knowledge and awareness of sexual abuse was a custom-designed questionnaire developed by Tahan [1]. Participants completed the questionnaire in the pretest, posttest, and follow-up stages. The collected data were analyzed using repeated measures ANCOVA in SPSS (v.25). Results The findings demonstrated that educating children about sexual abuse was effective in enhancing their knowledge of appropriate and inappropriate touching (p<0.01). Furthermore, the robot-based cognitive-behavioral intervention program for the prevention of child sexual abuse was effective (p<0.01). Conclusion The psychological intervention program increased children's knowledge and awareness concerning the prevention of sexual abuse and associated coping skills. Furthermore, psychological intervention programs were effective in preventing child sexual abuse.
Child Protection: Dependency Courts
(Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2023) Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
OJJDP funding supports juvenile and family courts as they develop policies, practices, and programs to improve safety, permanency, and outcomes for abused and neglected youth. Funding also broadens youth’s access to welltrained volunteer advocates who represent their best interests in dependency cases and help decrease the time children spend in foster care.
Support for Prosecutors Who Work With Youth
(Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2022) Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
Prosecutors who work with youth have a difficult and essential job. Whether prosecuting a delinquency case or a child welfare case, a prosecutor’s decisions can potentially change the trajectory of a young person’s life. Prosecutors need ongoing training to help them develop best practices in juvenile court and keep them up to date on evolving topics such as adolescent brain development, risk and needs assessments, expanded juvenile court jurisdiction, and jurisprudence in child sexual abuse cases. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provides rigorous training and technical to increase the competency of prosecutors who work with youth.
Psychological First Aid Guide for Children’s Advocacy Center Supervisors
(Southern Regional Children’s Advocacy Center, 2024) Miller, B., Brymer, M., Louie, K., & Hangartner, K.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network and the National Center for PTSD PFA, on which this guide is based, is an evidence-informed modular approach for assisting people in the immediate aftermath of disasters, terrorism, or other critical incidents to reduce initial distress and to foster both short- and long-term adaptive functioning. The version we are adapting was created by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network and the National Center for PTSD (Brymer et al., 2006) and has the consensus endorsement of experts in the field of disaster mental health. PFA is in use and has been disseminated by the American Red Cross, the American Psychological Association (APA), the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the World Health Organization (WHO), and many others. Because PFA is, in essence, a framework for providing a sense of safety, support, and comfort for a person, it provides helpful ideas in the CAC setting after critical incidents. Because the aim of PFA is the provision of support and comfort, it is not a clinical intervention. It includes, rather, very concrete problem-solving approaches, which means PFA-CAC can be applied by supervisors whether they have clinical training or not.
Similar rates of denial in NICHD and control interviews with alleged child abuse victims in the Netherlands
(Legal and Criminological Psychology, 2024) Bücken, C. A., Mangiulli, I., Erens, B., de Ruiter, C., & Otgaar, H.
Purpose: In the current study, we investigated whether denial and avoidance rates differed statistically significantly based on the interview protocol used. Method: We examined 38 National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) interview transcripts, and 30 control transcripts from interviews from an earlier study (Applied Cognitive Psycholog y, 2022, 36, 7) conducted with alleged child victims of abuse at Dutch child protection services. Results: We detected 57 denial and 282 avoidance statements across the 68 interviews. No statistically significant differences emerged between (1) the proportion of denials using NICHD (42%, n=16/38) and control interviews (30%, n=9/30), and (2) the average number of denial statements between NICHD (M=0.84) and control interviews (M=0.83). Furthermore, denials (and avoidances) were not more or less likely to occur in response to certain types of questions, even though the majority of denials in our sample occurred in response to option-posing questions (60%, n=34/57). Denials did occur statistically significantly less often within the first half of the individual interviews in NICHD than in control interviews. Conclusions: Our findings call attention to the difficulties child protection services face in investigative interviews with alleged child victims
An Analysis of Sexual Grooming in Cases of Child Sexual Abuse by Educators
(SSRN, 2024) Jeglic, E., & Winters, G. M.
There is growing recognition that educator sexual misconduct is prevalent in kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12) schools. While there is some evidence that educators may use sexual grooming in the abuse process, this has yet to be systematically examined. The present study aimed to investigate the extent to which adult survivors of educator-perpetrated child sexual abuse (CSA) reported experiencing sexual grooming behaviors. As part of a larger anonymous online survey of characteristics of CSA, 24 adult survivors who reported that the perpetrator was an educator responded to questions about the characteristics of their abuse, including whether they experienced sexual grooming behaviors as delineated by the content-validated Sexual Grooming Model. The results showed that sexual grooming behaviors were frequently reported across all stages of the sexual grooming process. The most commonly reported behaviors included that the educator was involved in youth-serving organizations (92%), selected a child who was overly compliant/trusting of adults (83%), was charming/likable/nice (71%), gave the child a lot of attention (67%), used seemingly innocent touch (67%), and used accidental touching or distraction while touching (67%). We also found that most of the abuse occurred on school property during the school day while school was in session, and that one third of the educators who perpetrated the CSA were gym teachers or coaches. The findings are discussed as they relate to policies for the prevention of child sexual abuse within educational settings.
Examining Individual and Contextual Correlates of Victimization for Juvenile Human Trafficking in Florida
(Journal of interpersonal violence, 2024) De Vries, I., Baglivio, M., & Reid, J. A.
Despite extant literature on individual-level risk factors for sex trafficking among children and adolescents, little is known about the impact of social and ecological contexts on risk of human trafficking victimization. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlates signaling risk of human trafficking victimization at the individual, family, social, and community levels utilizing a sample of 40,531 justice-involved male and female youth, a small fraction of whom were suspected or verified victims of human trafficking between 2011 and 2015 (N = 801, including 699 female and 102 male youth). Using this sample, we examined differences across individual, family, social, and community characteristics of youth involved in the juvenile justice system who have a history of trafficking victimization and youth without such histories. Series of logistic regression analyses were conducted using varying control groups, created through exact matching and randomized matching groups to address sample imbalances. These analyses indicate that, at the individual level, youth who had experienced childhood adversities were more likely to report human trafficking victimization. Sex differences were found regarding risk factors pertaining to the family and broader socio-ecological contexts. Female youth who had witnessed family violence had an antisocial partner or antisocial friends, or resided in a community with a greater proportion of the population being foreign-born or speaking English less than very well were at heightened risk for human trafficking victimization. Little evidence was found for community-level risk factors of victimization in this specific sample of justice-involved youth. These findings encourage more research to unpack the multilevel correlates of victimizations at the individual, family, social, and community levels, recognizing potential differences between female and male youth regarding the factors that put them at heightened risk for juvenile sex trafficking victimizations. Practice and policy should direct awareness and prevention measures to social and ecological contexts.
Collaboration between Criminal Justice and Child Protection in Cases of Child Sexual Abuse: Unveiling Inhibiting and Facilitating Factors
(Child Abuse Review, 2024) Eilfgang, J., Bayer, L., Cigelski, M., Mensing, F., von Seeler, I., Sewald, H., & Pülschen, S.
Victims of child sexual abuse (CSA) in criminal proceedings face a range of stress factors. In response to this, collaboration between criminal justice and child protection professionals has been established both legally and informally, such as in the newly established Childhood Houses in Germany, which follow the model of the Scandinavian Barnahus to reduce stress and prevent revictimisation. This study intends to identify facilitating and inhibiting factors in the collaboration between the child protection and criminal justice systems in cases of CSA in Germany. Twenty-eight qualitative interviews with experts from child protection, like counselling centre employees (n = 5), psychosocial court supporters (n = 5) and youth welfare office workers (n = 5), and the criminal justice system, like prosecutors (n = 5), police officers (n = 5) and attorneys (n = 3). The interviews are structured by a questionnaire and analysed using Kuckartz’s method of qualitative content analysis (QCA). Findings show that key factors like information flow, assessments of collaboration partners, uncertainties about laws and actors’ perspectives on reporting and networking determine the success or failure of interagency collaboration.
“Just to Jog My Memory”: An Examination of Forensic Interviewers’ Note-taking Behaviors and Perceptions of Notes With Child Witnesses
(Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2024) Williams, S., & McWilliams, K.
In the current study, we surveyed forensic interviewers (N=137) on their note-taking practices, perceptions of note-taking, and note-taking training. Many forensic interviewers surveyed (81%) reported that they take notes during forensic interviews. Of those, the most common reason for notetaking was to assist with remembering what the interviewee reported during the interview (89%) and to guide the formulation of follow-up questions (87%). Note-taking style was also reported upon, with most respondents indicating that they write down keywords that may be used again in the interview (78%), as well as short utterances or sentences related to the presenting narrative (61%). Finally, the majority (50%) of respondents who take notes reported always taking notes, although 29% reported taking notes most of the time. Of those respondents who reported not taking notes during forensic interviews, the majority listed the reasons as being that it distracts the child from the interview (85%) and causes them to break eye contact with the child (46%). Overall, many respondents endorsed the benefits of note-taking to the interviewing process, whereas a small minority reported some perceived risks or concerns with note-taking during interviews. Perhaps most notably, forensic interviewers, both of whom take notes and those who do not, reported low rates of note-taking training and a desire for more information on note-taking practices within the field. These results underscore the need for further research and best practice guidelines regarding note-taking during forensic interviews.
Detecting child sexual abuse in child and adolescent psychiatry: a survey study of healthcare professionals’ assessment practice
(International Journal of Mental Health Systems, 2024) Halvorsen, M. S., Stige, S. H., Halvorsen, J. E., Binder, P. E., Måkestad, E., Albaek, A. U., & Andersen, A. C.
Research shows that only around half of all survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA) disclose the abuse during childhood and adolescence. This is worrying, as CSA is related to substantial suffering later in life. The proportion of children and adolescents who have been exposed to CSA is significantly higher in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP) than in the general population. Healthcare professionals report that uncovering CSA is a complex and challenging task. However, we know little about how they proceed when uncovering CSA. More knowledge of healthcare personnel’s experience is therefore necessary to facilitate and increase CSA disclosure. The study aims to explore how CAP healthcare professionals in Norway proceed when assessing and detecting CSA, how they experience this work, and what hinders or facilitates their efforts. The study employed a mixed method approach. Data was collected through an anonymous online survey, generating both quantitative and qualitative data. The sample consisted of 111 healthcare professionals in CAP, of whom 84% were women, with a mean age of 40.7 years (range 24–72; sd = 10.8). Mean years of CAP clinical experience were 8.3 years (range 0–41; sd = 7.5). The quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics, correlations, and independent sample t-tests, while the qualitative data was analysed using a team-based qualitative content analysis. The results showed that detection of CSA was viewed as an important, but complex task in CAP, and the existing procedures were deemed to be insufficient. The therapists mostly felt confident about how to proceed when they suspected or detected CSA, yet they seldom detected CSA. In their initial assessment they applied standardised procedures, but if their suspicion of possible CSA persisted, they seemed to rely more on clinical judgement. Specific challenges and facilitators for CSA detection were identified, both in the individual and in the organisation. The study highlights the challenges and complexities healthcare professionals and the CAP system face when assessing CSA, which may account for the low detection rate. The results show that healthcare professionals believe room for clinical autonomy and targeted competence development may improve CSA detection. Additionally, the findings suggest a need for CAP to define roles and responsibilities within and between agencies.
Knowledge to Prevent Online Sexual Violence Against Children: Insights from a Survey of Child Sexual Abuse Material Offenders
(Project2KNOW, 2024) Project2KNOW
A ground-breaking report, Knowledge to Prevent Online Sexual Violence Against Children: Insights from a Survey of Child Sexual Abuse Material Offenders, has been released as part of the 2KNOW project, an EU-funded initiative led by Protect Children in collaboration with the University of Eastern Finland and the Council of the Baltic Sea States.
Native Child Advocacy Resource Center Year 1 Needs Assessment Summary
(Native Child Advocacy Resource Center, 2024) Native Child Advocacy Resource Center
The purpose of this preliminary needs assessment was to provide a preliminary look at the landscape of multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) and CACs serving Tribal communities, guided by the basic question, “Why aren’t there more Tribal MDTs and CACs?” Specific areas of inquiry included identifying how many Tribes currently have Tribal MDTs and CACs; examining how Tribal MDTs are structured and operate; and shedding light on the strengths, challenges, and needs of Tribal MDTs and CACs.
Children with Problematic Sexual Behavior: Recommendations for the Multidisciplinary Team and Children’s Advocacy Center Response
(Southern Regional Children's Advocacy Center and Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth, 2020) Sites, Jerri, & Widdifield, Jimmy
Cases of children ages 12 and younger with problematic sexual behavior (PSB) can present a myriad of challenges for multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) and Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs). After all, MDTs and CACs were historically designed to address maltreatment of children committed by adults, not by other children. When presented with child-initiated harm cases, child-serving agencies are often inadequately equipped to provide the integrated and comprehensive response that is required in these situations. Significant disparities exist across many communities regarding resources specifically geared toward the initial response and assessment of cases of children with reported PSB; development and implementation of MDT and CAC protocols specific to these cases; and treatment options for the children involved and their caregivers. Further, many professionals do not have foundational or current knowledge of the research and best practices related to children with PSB, hindering quality decision-making. Child-serving professionals, however, can become more effective in responding to and managing cases of children with PSB. This can be accomplished through training on the nature of normative and problematic sexual behaviors in children; employing engagement strategies for children and families; focusing on long-term outcomes for children with PSB, in an effort to reduce the risk of PSB from reoccurring; and revising policies and procedures to reflect best practices to meet the needs of all children served. Together, the MDT approach and the CAC model are ideal vehicles for the provision of the resources needed for the development and implementation of an integrated and comprehensive systems approach to cases of children with PSB and their families. This white paper will focus on how cases of children ages 12 and younger who initiate PSB, the child victim(s), and their families could be successfully served by CACs and MDTs.
A systematic review of the validity of Criteriabased Content Analysis in child sexual abuse cases and other field studies
(Psychology, Crime & Law, 2024) Sporer, S. L., & Masip, J.
Criteria-based Content Analysis (CBCA) has been primarily employed to assess the credibility of child sexual abuse (CSA) allegations. However, several studies on the validity of CBCA have focused on autobiographical events other than CSA. Because of the differences between real cases and the laboratory, we focused specifically on CBCA field studies on both CSA and other areas of application. We formally assessed several ground-truth criteria (and other methodological aspects) in a pool of 36 field studies. Seven archival studies (six of which were on CSA) and seven quasi-experiments (none of which was on CSA) were found to be either methodologically sound (12 studies) or acceptable with reservations (two studies), and were therefore included. We describe the paradigm and methods used in each study. Across studies, most CBCA criteria significantly differed between truthful and deceptive accounts, with similar medium to large effect sizes for the methodologically sound quasi-experiments and archival CSA studies. Our review shows that CBCA criteria may discriminate in domains other than CSA. The implications for the real-world usage of CBCA are discussed.
Children's long-term memory for a staged repeated event: A preliminary investigation
(Applied Cognitive Psychology, 2024) Earhart, B., Deck, S. L., Brubacher, S. P., & Powell, M. B.
In this study, we examined children's memory for a staged repeated event after a two-year delay to gain insights about how they represented the events in long-term memory. Children aged 4–8 experienced six events and were interviewed about the last occurrence shortly after the event and 2 years later (N = 29). Various characteristics of their memory reports at the delayed interview were analyzed (e.g., accuracy, specificity). Though the event was brief and embedded within their school day, the patterns in recall suggest that children represented the events as distinct from what usually happens at school. For example, all children were able to recall accurate information, and incorrect details were most often details they experienced during another occurrence of the events. The results of this preliminary investigation are considered in relation to prominent theories of event memory, and generate interesting directions for future repeated-event research.
Child Sexual Abuse and Associated Factors Among High School Female Students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda, Southern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study
(The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology of India, 2024) Wada, H. W., Tesema, K. F., Temesgen, G., & Dinagde, D. D.
Background Child sex abuse is a severe violation of fundamental human rights that has numerous negative consequences, including physical and psychological ones, and is a huge global public health issue. It is a significant public health issue that affects millions of people annually around the world but is the least acknowledged and reported form of violence in Ethiopia against schoolgirls. Thus, this study is very important to provide recent information on the magnitude of sexual abuse and its associated factors. Objective This study was aimed at assessing the prevalence of lifetime child sexual abuse and associated factors among high school female students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda (AZW), Southern Ethiopia. Methods An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 414 randomly selected female high school students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda between December 20, 2022, and January 20, 2023. A stratified and multi-stage sampling technique was used to select participants from selected high schools. A pretested, self-administered questionnaire was used, and the data were entered using EpiData version 4.6 and analyzed using SPSS (the Statistical Package for Social Science) version 27. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were carried out to identify factors associated with sexual abuse using binary logistic regression. Statistical significance was set at a p-value of less than 0.05. Result In this study area, prevalence of child sexual abuse was 45% (95% CI 40.6–50.2). Students who slept alone at home (AOR = 4.93, 95% CI 1.46–16.67); having no open discussions with their parents (AOR = 4.49, 95% CI 1.62–12.47); drinking alcohol (AOR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.32–8.28); and having friends who drink alcohol or chew chat (AOR = 6.14, 95% CI 1.58–23.9) were the identified factors associated with child sexual abuse. Conclusion This study found a high level of child sexual abuse among high school female students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda. High schools must collaborate with parents to develop a strategy to reduce sexual abuse acting against human rights, focusing on identified factors.
Working with Families of Minors Experiencing Sex Trafficking:Family Based Risk Factors and Implications for Family Based Interventions
(SSRN, 2024) Nichols, A. J., Oberstaedt, M., Slutsker, S., & Gilbert, K.
The current study explored family based risk factors for sex trafficking of minors and the implications for family centered interventions post identification. Methods: Drawing from 30 interviews with social service and criminal justice professionals in a Midwestern metropolitan area, this study focused on their perspectives and experiences working with families of minors involved in sex trafficking. Inductive analysis of professionally transcribed audio recorded interviews involved a multi-phase open and selective co-coding process conducted by a small research team. Results: Results indicated that parents were often unaware of their child’s involvement in a sex trafficking situation, and did not recognize warning signs. Family based risk factors preceded children’s experiences with sex trafficking and continued to present challenges post-identification. Such risk factors included parental substance use disorder, child sexual abuse, and inaccessibility of resources to meet basic needs. Furthermore, family members’ ability to provide a supportive relationship and provide structure for their child following sex trafficking involvement was also described as challenging. Conclusions: Implications for prevention of retrafficking include providing sex trafficking related education to family members of minors involved in sex trafficking, as well as family based interventions facilitating development of supportive relationships, discussing the importance of providing structure following a sex trafficking situation, and providing individually tailored resources to family members to address substance use disorder and/or basic needs.
Investigating child sexual abuse material availability, searches, and users on the anonymous Tor network for a public health intervention strategy
(Scientific Reports, 2024) Nurmi, J., Paju, A., Brumley, B. B., Insoll, T., Ovaska, A. K., Soloveva, V., ... & Arroyo, D.
Tor is widely used for staying anonymous online and accessing onion websites; unfortunately, Tor is popular for distributing and viewing illicit child sexual abuse material (CSAM). From 2018 to 2023, we analyse 176,683 onion domains and find that one-fifth share CSAM. We find that CSAM is easily available using 21 out of the 26 most-used Tor search engines. We analyse 110,133,715 search sessions from the Ahmia.fi search engine and discover that 11.1% seek CSAM. When searching CSAM by age, 40.5% search for 11-year-olds and younger; 11.0% for 12-year-olds; 8.2% for 13-year-olds; 11.6% for 14-year-olds; 10.9% for 15-year-olds; and 12.7% for 16-year-olds. We demonstrate accurate filtering for search engines, introduce intervention, show a questionnaire for CSAM users, and analyse 11,470 responses. 65.3% of CSAM users first saw the material when they were children themselves, and half of the respondents first saw the material accidentally, demonstrating the availability of CSAM. 48.1% want to stop using CSAM. Some seek help through Tor, and self-help websites are popular. Our survey finds commonalities between CSAM use and addiction. Help-seeking correlates with increasing viewing duration and frequency, depression, anxiety, self-harming thoughts, guilt, and shame. Yet, 73.9% of help seekers have not been able to receive it.
Methodological Research to Support the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence
(Westat, 2024) Darby M. Steiger, Mike Brick, Andrea Sedlak, David Finkelhor, Heather Turner, Sherry Hamby
This report describes comprehensive efforts to review and assess the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV) and recommend revised approaches. The NatSCEV study design and methodology warranted reassessment because response rates have seriously declined over NatSCEV cycles, decreasing from 79% of eligible respondents in 2003 to rates as low as 10% for some components of the sample in 2014. To improve future NatSCEV response rates, Westat and the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire collaborated with the Bureau of Justice Statistics and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to consider a range of design options, such as by using online questionnaire and internet panels.
The burden of prenatal and early life maternal substance use among children at risk of maltreatment: A systematic review
(Drug and Alcohol Review, 2024) Powell, M., Pilkington, R., Varney, B., Havard, A., Lynch, J., Dobbins, T., ... & Falster, K.
Issues: Although maternal substance use is a known risk factor for child maltreatment, evidence on the scale of substance use is needed to inform prevention responses. This systematic review synthesised prevalence estimates of maternal substance use during pregnancy and early life among children at risk of maltreatment. Ovid, Pubmed, CINAHL, PsychInfo and ProQuest databases were searched. We included observational studies that sampled children at risk of maltreatment in high-income countries and reported information on maternal substance use during pregnancy and/or the child’s first year of life. We extracted study characteristics and data to calculate prevalence, assessed risk of bias and conducted a narrative synthesis; there were insufficient comparable populations or outcomes to quantitatively synthesise results. Key Findings: Thirty five of 14,084 titles were included. Fifteen studies had adequately sized and representative samples to estimate prevalence. Maternal substance use prevalence ranged from 2.4% to 40.6%. Maternal substance use was highest among infants referred to child protection at birth (40.6%) and children in out-of-home care (10.4% to 37.2%). Prevalence was higher when studies defined substance use more broadly and when maternal substance use was ascertained from both child and mother records. Implications: Supportive, coordinated responses to maternal substance use are needed from health and child protection services, spanning alcohol and other drug treatment, antenatal and postnatal care. Conclusions: Prenatal and early life maternal substance use is common among child maltreatment populations, particularly among younger children and those with more serious maltreatment.

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