ABC.net, Australia, Indian
study reveals widespread child abuse; April 9, 2007
Two out of three of the 12,446 respondents between the ages of five and 18 had been physically abused, which included slapping, kicking or
beating with a stick, the study said, in most cases by parents or teachers.
More than 50 per cent had been sexually abused in ways that ranged from severe, such as rape or fondling, to milder forms of molestation that
included forcible kissing.
The study also interviewed 2,324 young adults between the ages of 18 and 24, almost half of whom reported being physically or sexually abused as
children.
A fifth of the child respondents had experienced severe sexual abuse, the study said, and in almost 80 per cent of the cases the abuser was a
person well known by the child.
Anda, Robert F., [... & others], Abused Boys, Battered Mothers, and Male Involvement in Teen Pregnancy, ELECTRONIC ARTICLE in: PEDIATRICS Vol. 107 No. 2 February 2001, p. e19
Baurmann, Michael C., Sexuality,
Violence and Psychological After-Effects, A
longitudinal study of cases of sexual assault which are reported to the police; English
Summary on pages 523-533 of 'Sexualität, Gewalt und psychische Folgen:
Eine Längschnittuntersuchung bei Opfern sexueller Gewalt un sexuellen Norm-verletzungen
anhand von angezeigten Sexualkontakten (Wiesbaden, Bundeskriminalamt
Forschungsreihe Nr. 15, 1983)'.
To recapitulate, only half of the declared victims (51.8%) of indecent assault
suffered from injuries or even severe trauma. The other 48.2% had no problems in
connection with the experience. In most of these cases the sexual offense was relatively
superficial and harmless and/or the "victim" consented to the offense.
Many experts in the field of prevention have assumed that sexual victims without
primary injuries are rare. It certainly appears that this opinion must be re-evaluated.
Adults who have the opinion that any sexual behavior is traumatic for children and young
people have to face the fact that in many cases the young person becomes a victim only
because grown-ups expect him or her to become a victim. On the basis of this expectation
they act in such a way that the child really is victimized.
Baurmann, Michael:
"Highlights" from Baurmann; Translated quotes from
Michael C. Baurmann, Sexualität, Gewalt und psychische
Folgen: Ein Längschnittuntersuchung bei Opfern sexueller Gewalt und
sexuellen Norm-verletzungen anhand von angeziegten Sexualkontakten
(Wiesbaden, Bundeskriminalamt Forschungsreihe Nr. 15, 1983)
Looking at the effects of criminal sexual acts
on the declared victim, it turned out that many reported sexual contacts
did not cause any harm at all. From this, it follows that the uncritical
use of terms like "victim" and "harmed" is, for a
large portion of those who are registered as sexual victims,
inappropriate.
Obviously, the words "victim" and "harmed"
strongly imply that the person in question has been injured. But for
many of the persons interviewed here who became known as victims, these
terms just do not apply.
Finkelhor, Davind & Jones, Lisa M., Child Sexual Abuse Has Declined
- Quotes and highlights from: Child Sexual Abuse Has Declined, David Finkelhor and Lisa M.
Jones; in: Child Sexual Abuse. Ed. Angela Lewis. At Issue Series. San
Diego; Greenhaven Press, 2005.
Between 1992 and 2000, the number of substantiated cases of child sexual abuse declined by 40 percent. The decline may be partially
due to decreased reporting and changes in the procedures used by child protective services (CPS) agencies. However, there is strong
evidence that a real decline in child sexual abuse occurred.
 | Cfr: Jones, Lisa and David Finkelhor, The Decline in Child Sexual Abuse Cases,
Juvenile Justice bulletin,
January 2001.
In Ipce Library: Highlights &
Conclusions. While the evidence demonstrates that a dramatic decline in reports and substantiated cases of child sexual abuse has occurred, the reasons for the decline are less clear. |
Rivedal, Karen, Sex
crimes that shock most are rare; Madison.com, 608-252-6106, March 4,
2007
Federal statistics show such crimes, especially involving children, are very rare.
Less than 1 percent of all sex crimes involve murder, and the vast majority of sexually abused children - 60 percent to 80 percent - are
molested by family members or close friends and acquaintances. Nearly 90 percent of adult victims know their assailants, according to the U.S.
Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Stinson, Michael A., Child Sex Abuse: How Did We Get Here?
Philadephia got a wake-up call this week; Philadelphia, Aug. 31, 2006
Our survey found that almost one in four adult Philadelphians (23.7
percent) reported being sexually abused as a child. Using 2000
census figures, that's more than 270,000 adults. And, over the last
three years, one in seven adults said, they were concerned that a
child they knew was being sexually abused. In that same period, one
in 16 adults said, they were concerned that someone they knew
exhibited sexual behavior directed at a child. That's more than
26,000 possible child victims and more than 71,000 possible adult
perpetrators right here in Philadelphia.
| BlueRibbon, In reply to
Child Sex Abuse: How Did We Get Here? OK, so to begin with, the number '23.7%' relates to people who say they've had sexual contact as children. It does not mean they were abused, unless you think all sexual contact involving children and older people is abuse. So, already we know we are dealing with dishonest people who will twist their statistics to gain bigger headlines, and obtain more research grants from the government. |
Quotes & highlights from:
Wetzstein, Cheryl, The Complex Nature of Child Sexual
Abuse; in: Child Abuse. Ed. Bryan J. Grapes. Contemporary Issues Companion
Series. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2001.
| This article, "The Child Molestation Dilemma," by Cheryl Wetzstein, appeared in the November 1996 issue and is reprinted with permission from The World & I. |
The article give some recidivism rates, and statistics like this one:
| 450,000 children, most of whom are teenagers, run away from home and stay away at least one night. |
| 354,000 children are abducted by a family member, typically a non-custodial parent. |
| 127,100 children are "thrown away," that is, abandoned or ejected from their homes. |
| 114,600 cases of attempted abduction by a non-family member are reported. |
| 3,200 to 4,600 children are reported abducted by non-family members. |