Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Training for Childcare Professionals: An Independent Multi-Site Randomized Controlled Trial of Stewards of Children
Date
2015
Journal Title
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Publisher
Prevention Science
Abstract
Given the significant rates and deleterious consequences of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), identifying effective primary prevention approaches is a clear priority. There is
a growing awareness that childcare professionals (e.g.,
teachers, childcare personnel, clergy) are in a unique position
to engage in prevention efforts due to high accessibility to
children and expertise in child development. However, CSA
prevention programs targeting childcare professionals have
received insufficient attention. The goal of this study was to
conduct an independent multi-site controlled evaluation of an
existing CSA prevention program, Stewards of Children, offered through both in-person and web-based formats. This
study included 352 childcare professionals recruited from
children’s advocacy centers across three states. Participants
were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) inperson training, (2) web-based training, or (3) waitlist control.
Dependent variables included CSA knowledge, CSA attitudes, and self-reported CSA preventive behaviors. Results
indicated that Stewards impacted knowledge, attitudes, and
preventive behaviors. No differences were found between
training modalities (i.e., in-person versus web-based) on
knowledge and preventive behaviors. Results indicate that
brief trainings for childcare professionals may impact CSA
prevention efforts.
Description
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Keywords
child sexual abuse, prevention, evaluation research, youth-serving organizations
Citation
Rheingold, A. A., Zajac, K., Chapman, J. E., Patton, M., de Arellano, M., Saunders, B., & Kilpatrick, D. (2015). Child sexual abuse prevention training for childcare professionals: An independent multi-site randomized controlled trial of stewards of children. Prevention Science, 16(3), 374-385.