NCJ Number
205866
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 25 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2001 Pages: 505-522
Date Published
April 2001
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This article reports on an evaluation of Quebec's (Canada) ESPACE program, which is a child sexual abuse prevention program adapted from the American Child Assault Prevention Program (CAP).
Abstract
ESPACE is an in-class program for elementary school students. Led by specialized community workers, the program consists of a 60-75 minute workshop that uses role-playing, guided discussions, behavior modeling, and rehearsal. The program's content is designed to enhance children's awareness of their personal rights and to develop knowledge and skills that will help them avoid being sexually abused. They are taught self-assertion skills, a self-defense yell, and what to do if an abuse incident occurs. Parents are also included, so they may learn about child abuse, possible indicators of abuse, and how to react to and report a disclosure of abuse. The evaluation of ESPACE involved a sample of 133 children (67 girls and 66 boys) from 2 schools in the area of Quebec City situated in middle-income areas. Both schools served similar communities. Under a Solomon-type design, two experimental conditions were assigned to the same school, and two control conditions were assigned to the second school. Assignment of schools to conditions was randomly determined. To evaluate the proximate effects of the program, two measures (knowledge and skills) were applied. Children were also asked to complete a short satisfaction questionnaire. Two weeks following the program, parents were asked to complete a questionnaire that pertained to possible side effects of the program. The findings indicated that children who participated in ESPACE showed greater prevention knowledge and skills compared to the control children. Follow-up data showed that knowledge gains were maintained, but the preventive skills declined. Still, at follow-up the children showed greater preventive skills than before the program. Almost half of the parents reported positive reactions from their children after program participation, and the majority of parents did not observe any negative reactions to the program by their children. The evaluation concluded that the program was effective in teaching children abuse-prevention concepts and skills. 3 tables, 1 figure, and 63 references