This essay aims to define and discuss the harm of sexual abuse and its impact on individuals and society globally, with particular attention to Australia. It will define the understanding of sexual abuse through ecological and attachment theories. Sexual abuse will appear to be prevalent and pervasive on an international and national scale, with Australia showing some of the highest statistics for sexually abused females. Then will cover how these incidents are likely to be under-investigated and under-estimated. Followed by a little historical view of the values of children in society and how it evolved to the creation of the first rights of a child. Finally, it will discuss the micro and macro, economic, and social costs of sexual abuse.
Define and explain:
The Queensland Government (2019) defines Sexual abuse as any unwanted sexual act that is forced on a person by intimidation, physical force, or without their consent. The sexual acts defined included rape and attempted rape, unwanted sexual touching or grouping, or being forced to perform a sexual act on another person. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines child sexual abuse more thoroughly by including (a) rape, defined as oral, anal, or vaginal penetration by a perpetrator; (b) sexual assault, referring to fondling and sexual nonpenetration behaviors; (c) incest, which refers to familial sexual contact (up to the fifth degree of family relations); (d) sexual exploitation, defined as non-sexual contact in which the child is involved in pornography, witnesses sexual activity, sees adults exposing themselves to the child, or engages in other inappropriate behavior for the sexual pleasures of the perpetrator; and (e) internet pornography and other internet-enacted acts as listed above (as cited by Bryce, Robinson, & Petherick, 2019, p.14). The WHO (1999) outlined the following conditions necessary to define the acts of child sexual abuse accurately. That the child is involved in sexual activity that s/he is not developmentally prepared for and does not fully comprehend, therefore s/he is unable to give consent. The abuser violates the laws or social taboos of society. The abuse is perpetrated by an adult or an older adolescent in a position to take sexual advantage, and that the abuse of the victim is for the sexual gratification of the abuser.
Some theories that have been identified to help explain and understand child sexual abuse further are Attachment theory and Ecological theory. Attachment theory focusses on the significance of a secure and trusting mother-infant bond, for positive developmental and functioning child outcomes. Children who grow up with a secure attachment bond to a primary caregiver learn how to take care of themselves effectively. They can rely on their emotions and thinking patterns to help determine their reactions to adverse situations because they have developed a positive sense of self and security. In cases of child sexual abuse, when the abuser is a primary caregiver, it leaves the child experiencing anxiety, anger, and confusion because the child's source of harm is coming from the child's source of safety. As these children grow up with caregivers that are unable to provide them with comfort or safety, they reconstruct their inner experiences to ignore either what they feel or what they perceive (Streeck-Fischer, & Van der Kolk, 2008). When infants grow up without security and support from a primary career, the child will find it hard to trust others when in distress, leading to persistent experiences of anxiety and anger. Where attachment theory focuses on the parent-child relationship, Ecological Theory considers all the interacting factors and environments in the child's life that can contribute towards sexual abuse. These factors and environments are Biological, physical, emotional, family, neighborhood, school, social, political, cultural, significant life events, and socio-economic circumstances.
Discuss Prevalence –
When discussing the prevalence of child sexual abuse, we must take into account that estimates can vary significantly because of changing definitions of abuse, the measurement tool used in the study, the method of administration used and the population from which the sample is drawn (Australian Government, 2017). Bryce et al. (2019) suggest that prevalence rates around the world vary significantly regarding gender and geographical location, primarily due to differences in social, religious, and cultural norms or beliefs.
Child Sexual abuse is likely the most prevalent health problem children face with the most serious array of consequences. About one in seven girls and one in twenty-five boys will be sexually abused before their eighteenth birthday (darkness to light, 2007). Nearly 70% of all reported sexual assaults (including assaults on adults) occur to children age 17 and under. 44% of rapes with penetration occur to children under the age of 18. With victims younger than 12 accounted for 15% of those rapes, and another 29% of rape victims were between 12 and 17 years old (darkness to light 2007). Stoltenborgh, van IJzendoorn, Euser, & Bakermans-Kranenburg, (2011) conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis combining global prevalence figures of Childhood sexual abuse from 1980 – 2008, with a total of 9,911,948 participants involved. The results showed that the overall prevalence was 13% in self-reported studies and 4/1000 in informant studies. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (2019) concluded that in 2018 the number of victims recorded for sexual assault increased for the seventh consecutive year to 26,312 victims, which is a 2% increase since 2017, and a 40% increase since 2010. The majority were female victims with 22,097, and around half were aged between 10 and 19 years old, with 11,911 victims. In Queensland, in particular, the number of child victims of sexual assault reached 4,849 in 2018. Child sexual abuse is a global problem of considerable extent with prevalence rates on the rise, especially when factored in that "Only one-third of child sexual abuse incidents are identified, and even fewer are reported." Also, that child protection service agencies investigate about 55% of the child sexual abuse incidents reported to them, with the rest "screened out" for lack of adequate information (darkness to light, 2017). Lalor & McElvaney (2010) add to the un-surety of the prevalence of child sexual abuse by stating that "numerous studies suggest that sexual victimization in adolescence significantly increases the likelihood of sexual victimization in adulthood. Studies suggest that sexual victimization in childhood or adolescence increases the likelihood of sexual victimization in adulthood between 2 and 13.7 times. As prevalence statistics have indicated a large number of children being sexually abused, it is appropriate to look at the international and national frameworks that have been established to protect the rights of all children.
Identify and evaluation of human rights violations –
Throughout time the historical view on the values of children in society has shifted from them being 'lesser beings' of little significance until they 'come of age,' through to the noble savages where babies were seen as blank slates, in which adults could imprint on as the child grows. To the now 20th century where children are perceived as human beings who are the subject of their rights (just like adults), and that children need special safeguards, care, and appropriate legal protection. The legal rights of children to be protected from Child sexual abuse are internationally and nationally recognized through the United Nations and Australia's Child Protection framework. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is seen as the most robust international legal framework that defends and outlines the rights of children, detailing the responsibilities of governments, organizations, families, and communities in protecting children from harm. All of the articles are indivisible and inter-dependent, providing a holistic approach to making sure that all children get all their rights, and state parties are held responsible for various legislative implementation. Article 19 states explicitly that "State parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical, or mental violence, injury or abuse, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s)" (CNCRC, 1990). Another article of high importance is article 34, "state parties undertake to protect from all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse." While articles 19 and 34 covers protection for a child, article 18 ensures that both parents share responsibility for bringing up their children and should always consider what best for the child. Articles 24, 27, and 28 all align with a child's rights to quality health, clean environments, standard livings, and the right to an education in schools that respect human dignity. These UNCRC rights clearly state that a child should be protected from sexual abuse. However, the rights for parents, Families, and Indigenous people are also upheld in the UNCRC and the United Nations Declaration of rights for indigenous people (UNDRIP). Articles 20 and 30 address the rights of children to be raised within their culture, customs, and language, with UNDRIP further outlining and protecting the specific needs and rights of indigenous children. The development and legislation of children's rights through UNCRC was the foundation for Australia's child protection services. The Australian Government department of social services has published The National framework for protecting Australia's children 2009-2020, which is a long-term approach to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of Australia's children and aims to reduce the levels of child abuse and neglect. Most relevant for this essay is, "supporting outcome 6: Children are protected from all forms of sexual exploitation and abuse through targeted prevention strategies, and the community supports survivors, and through specific therapeutic and legal responses" (National framework for protecting Australia's children, 2009-2020). According to the Australian Human rights commission (n.d) children have the right to, be treated fairly no matter what, have a say about decisions affecting you, live and grow up healthy, have people do what is best for you, privacy, be safe no matter where you are, and help and protection if you need it. Unfortunately, all of the above child's rights disappear under the act of sexual abuse. However, the traumatic event does not stop there for the child, and the potential impact sexual abuse has on a child can be lifelong.
Critical analysis of impact:
The above theories have explained how sexual abuse impacts a child's secure attachment and how it can impact across various ecological systems, indicating how significant the effect of Child sexual abuse can be. Sexual abuse can impact a child's life through many health consequences, including psychological trauma. Trauma is the emotional and physiological residue leftover from heightened stress that accompanies experiences of threats, violence, or life-changing events. Every child responds differently to trauma, it could be re-experiencing terrifying memories, nightmares, or emotional numbness, obsessive thinking, even difficulty trusting people. Choudhary, Satapathy, and Sagar (2018) discussed that there are multiple factors associated with the incidence of sexual abuse as well as the child's family and socio-cultural background that can determine the nature and extent of trauma. Interplay of various socio-cultural factors like, low socio-economic status, stigma and lack of awareness, can lead to the child not reaching or receiving the necessary help to deal with the trauma, resulting in the development of psychosocial-behavioral problems and psychopathology in children. When a child is experiencing multiple events of adversity and sexual abuse, there is a chronic disruption of the child's stress hormone resulting in chronic hyper-arousal and ongoing sensitivity to stress. Chronic hyper-arousal means the neurological development of the brain becomes distorted, and then the 'survival' mechanism of the brain becomes more dominant than the brains' learning' and 'regulation' mechanisms. The result of this will vary with each child but it can be seen as compromised executive functioning, difficulty regulating arousal levels in response to emotional and sensory stimulation and difficulty with attention and memory. Some studies have found lowered intellectual functioning and reduced cognitive functioning in sexually abused children. Dodge, Bates, & Pettit (1990) found that these children can be less attentive to social cues, more inclined to attribute hostile intent and less able to manage personal problems. Child sexual abuse is commonly associated with behavioral problems like internalizing behaviors, being withdrawn, isolated or depressed and externalizing behaviors like aggression and hyperactivity. Child abuse and maltreatment raise the risk of depression in children by triple the average rate. Sexual abuse can have a lasting range of mental health effects from, PTSD, complex trauma, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant and conduct disorders, substance abuse, and anxiety, mood, psychotic and adjustment disorders. The following are some effects specific to sexual abuse, unusual interest in or avoidance of all things of a sexual nature, statements that their bodies are dirty or damaged, and/or fear that there is something wrong with them (Tracy, 2012). The Child welfare information gateway (n.d) explain that the social and economic cost of sexual child abuse are to difficult to calculate on a macro scale. Some cost are straightforward and directly related to the incident, such as hospital cost for medical treatment of injuries sustained and foster care costs resulting from the removal of children when they cannot remain safely with their families. Other cost, less directly tied to the incidence of abuse, include lower academic achievement and adult criminality. Gelles, & Perlman (2012) estimated that child abuse and neglect effects over 1 million children every year, and that child abuse and neglect cost our nation $220 million every day. Additional cost to society would be the costs of operating a child welfare system that is responsible for receiving reports of suspected abuse and neglect, screening and investigating reports, providing in-home services to families, and providing out-of-home care for children removed from abusive or neglectful homes. "Indirect costs are those associated with the consequences or impact of maltreatment on children. As a result of being victims of abuse, many children requite special education services as well as early intervention services to manage developmental delays (Gelles et al., 2012). Victims of abuse are also more likely to engage in juvenile, delinquency and adult criminal behavior.
Conclusion.
Child sexual abuse remains a serious issue not only for Australians but globally. Prevalence is high, and it can be argued that there needs to be a more concise definition of child abuse and neglect and what it encompasses. It also needs a better way to report incidents of Sexual abuse, as a huge concern is the victims that are not receiving the support and safety they deserve. It has been shown that child sexual abuse is highly detrimental to the development and general health and wellbeing of an individual across their life-span, which was explained through the attachment and ecological theories. Under the UNCRC and UNDRIP, all children have an international right to be protected from neglectful care and unhygienic living conditions, and Australia's child protection framework further upholds these rights. Every child deserved to be raised in a safe, loving and nurturing environment that supports healthy development.
References:
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