In spite of research demonstrating conceptual weakness in many child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention programmes and outdated modes of delivery, students continue to participate in a diversity of initiatives. Referring to the development of a games-based approach to CSA prevention in Australia, this paper examines empirically based attributes of…

Objective: To examine whether notified child maltreatment is associated with adverse psychological outcomes in adolescence, and whether differing patterns of psychological outcome are seen depending on the type of maltreatment. Methods: The participants were 7,223 mother and child pairs enrolled in a population-based birth cohort study in…

This paper presents an evaluation of an instrument to measure teachers' attitudes toward reporting child sexual abuse and discusses the instrument's merit for research into reporting practice. Based on responses from 444 Australian teachers, the Teachers' Reporting Attitude Scale for Child Sexual Abuse was evaluated using exploratory factor…

The introduction of a Department of Education policy on child sexual abuse and mandatory reporting is significant for school teachers. The mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse by school teachers carries wide-ranging and significant implications for the lives of school-aged children, and for the teachers who must implement the policy's…

Today, levels of mistreatment of children are internationally reported as having reached epidemic proportions. Throughout recorded history babies and young children have suffered acts of violence by parents, care providers and others. However, "some believe that, for the first time in history, we are beginning to face the true prevalence and…

This study aims to understand how primary school teachers, as mandatory reporters of child sexual abuse, are responding to child sexual abuse and its mandatory reporting, even though many teachers do not receive a compulsory course in Child Protection and its legal requirements in their pre-service university training. A cohort of 81 Australian…

Many regional and local Departments of Education in many countries now require their primary school teachers to be mandatory reporters of child sexual abuse. However, many student-teachers are not provided with courses on child protection and its policy requirements during their pre-service university education. So, how do student-teachers source,…

Objective: Child maltreatment is a problem that has longer recognition in the northern hemisphere and in high-income countries. Recent work has highlighted the nearly universal nature of the problem in other countries but demonstrated the lack of comparability of studies because of the variations in definitions and measures used. The International…

Interviewed 194 Australian adult male survivors of sexual abuse. Found that victimization of boys is underrecognized and underreported, and that boys are not adequately protected by parents or child protection programs. Sexual curiosity, ignorance, sexualization of emotions, and lack of affection contribute to victimization and vulnerability.…

Provides an overview of the history of child maltreatment and the development of the public concern to protect children, focusing on efforts since the 1960s in Western societies, especially Australia, to protect children and prevent the occurrence of child maltreatment. Identifies cycles in the professional response to child abuse and neglect,…

This paper reports on a survey of 60 living groups in a remote town in Queensland, Australia, concerning child abuse notification. The survey focused on how strongly residents felt about abuse, how likely they were to notify, perceived indicators of abuse, facilitative and inhibiting factors in notifying, which authority they would notify, and…

Objective: To present key findings from the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Maltreatment (CIS) in sufficient detail to provide a basis for international comparisons in terms of forms and severity of maltreatment and the age and sex of victims. Method: A survey conducted in a random sample of 51 child welfare service areas across Canada…