Presents a response to Bolen's article, "Child Sexual Abuse and Attachment Theory: Are We Rushing Headlong into Another Controversy?" (this issue). Heralds the article as a welcome addition to the child abuse field and further explores the issues pertaining to attachment theory and child abuse. (GCP)

Discusses child sex abuse cases from a prosecutor's view with particular emphasis on the Little Rascals Day Care Center case (Edenton, NC). The author addresses issues that can lead to a successful prosecution, such as pretrial preparation and having witnesses approach the jury with clear, concise statements. (JPS)

Discusses reasons that the Little Rascals Day Care Center case (Edenton, NC) was successfully prosecuted, including picking witnesses to testify according to their verbal ability, challenging the judge's decision to try the defendants together, and keeping victims' parents informed. One prosecutor developed a "court school" to familiarize child…

Discusses potential reasons for successful prosecutions in the Little Rascals Day Care Center case (Edenton, NC), most notably how little time elapsed between the testimony of the children and the decision of the jury. Other cases around the country have not been successfully prosecuted, perhaps because of the victim testimony timing. (JPS)

Professionalism when dealing with sex offenders requires recognition of both sadistic and humanistic feelings, and management of the impact such feelings have on patient care. Multidisciplinary teams can protect against inappropriate actions resulting from positive or negative feelings toward clients or patients. (JPS)

The clinician and the sexually acting-out client each come to the therapeutic relationship as sensitive, sexual beings. Although therapists are vulnerable to negative countertransference feelings, they are also vulnerable to positive ones. Therapists should not censor or compartmentalize their thoughts and report only those perceived to be…

Uses case vignettes to explore poetry as phenomenological access point to the world of the abused child, serving a threefold function: (1) a window into the child's world; (2) a way to track the abused child's progress along the recovery process; and (3) a tool for transforming abused children's worlds, by allowing them to find their own unique…

Discusses the dilemma of reconciling Eliot Wigginton's act of child sexual abuse with the good he did for children and Appalachian Studies through his Foxfire work. Recommends that those in Appalachian Studies can be less judgmental and love the man, although they hate his act. (KS)

Discusses controversy surrounding a 1998 article on the effects of child sexual abuse, which resulted in official condemnation by Congress and actions by the American Psychological Association to assuage Congressional critics. Written from the perspective of a psychologist serving in Congress, this article discusses political and organizational…

Summarizes highlights of a discussion among nine leaders in the field of child sexual abuse on issues in the epidemiology of child sexual abuse. (DB)

This commentary discusses the decisions of child protective service (CPS) investigators to substantiate mothers for failure-to-protect (FTP) in child sexual abuse cases. Four areas are identified in which the scientific literature remains inadequate to fully inform child maltreatment researchers, CPS practitioners and child welfare policymakers on…

Statements and papers presented to the U.S. Senate during 3 days of hearings on the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment and Adoption Reform Act Amendments of 1983 are included in this document. Witnesses include physicians, psychologists, human services administrators, parents, heads of social service agencies, and organizations advocating…

At the beginning of this paper what is known about the effects of maltreatment on children is described. From that discussion, a general impression of the nature and quality of current knowledge emerges, with a focus on theoretical and methodological implications. It is concluded that reports on the physical, social, emotional, and…

In this booklet information is presented on how family day care can best be utilized as part of a larger treatment plan in cases of child abuse and neglect. Child protective services are defined and described and reasons for considering family day care as a resource in child protection cases are discussed. The advantages for the child, the parent,…

Addresses the relational clarification of child abuse prevention roles. Presents profiles for the Ministry of Education, school boards, school principals, classroom teachers, and discusses in detail the role of guidance personnel. Illustrates that the role profiles can be developed in the context of a general framework and its organizing…