NCJ Number
123838
Journal
Child Welfare Volume: 69 Issue: 3 Dated: (May/June 1990) Pages: 195-207
Date Published
1990
Length
13 pages
Annotation
Understanding the similarities and differences between single- and multiple-offender sexual abuse is essential in determining the validity of a child's disclosure as well as carrying out an appropriate treatment plan.
Abstract
At first glance, children who have been involved in sex rings seem to present the same as children who have been abused by a single perpetrator. Upon closer examination, subtle yet significant differences begin to emerge that can confuse and puzzle even an experienced clinician: gender confusion, inconsistency in reporting, and leakage of traumatic material. Other major differentiating categories between single- and multiple-offender sexual abuse are level of fear and the ability to trust. The fear created in children who are victimized in a sex ring is unusually intense, pervasive, and long-lasting and is commonly directed at the practitioner and the treatment setting. The child of a plural-offender sexual abuse situation experiences violations of trust within many relationships, especially those external to the ring. The child often views the therapist as another potential violator of a trusting relationship. Addressing the denial and resistance within the child welfare system in relation to child sexual exploitation by a ring is crucial to a practitioner's effectiveness. Developing a therapeutic parent-child relationship is also critical to the families who must live with their child's experience. 11 references. (Publishers abstract modified)