International Epidemiology of Child Sexual Abuse: A Continuation of Finkelhor (1994)

• NCJ Number: 227745
• Journal: Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 33 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2009 Pages: 331-342
• Author(s): Noemi Pereda; Georgina Guilera; Maria Forns; Juana Gomez-Benito
• Date Published: June 2009
• Length: 12 pages
• Grant Number(s): SEJ 2005-09144-C02-01-01; SEJ 2005-09144-C02-01-02
• Sponsoring Agency: Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study compared the prevalence rates of child sexual abuse since 1994 with those reported by Finkelhor, D. (1994).

Abstract

Results obtained from a variety of countries suggest that child sexual abuse remains an international problem. Comparison of the results shows a similarity between prevalence distributions; there appears to be a general pattern that remains constant over the years, especially in women. The prevalence of child sexual abuse remained fairly constant over the 12-year period examined, although differences between studies were common. Adults in different societies have varying ability to talk about sexual abuse: South African students, for example, yielded the highest prevalence rate; the prevalence rate found among their male subjects (60 percent) was higher than that of their female subjects (53.2 percent). The high prevalence of childhood sexual abuse found in most of the countries should warn societies and governments of this far reaching problem and encourage them to undertake actions to prevent sexual abuse in childhood. Data were collected from 28 countries from 5 continents. Tables, figures, references, and appendix