Public policy responses to child sexual abuse are dominated by interventions designed to take effect only after offenders have already begun offending, and after children have already been sexually abused. Comparatively little attention has been given to alternative prevention strategies – particularly to those aimed at preventing sexual abuse before it might otherwise occur. Considerable knowledge has been accumulated on the characteristics, modus operandi and persistence of offenders, the characteristics, circumstances and outcomes for victims, and the physical and social settings in which sexual abuse occurs, but little work has been done to systematically apply this knowledge to prevention. This book aims to fulfill this objective through integrating clinical and criminological concepts and knowledge to inform a more comprehensive and effective public policy approach to preventing child sexual abuse. Empirical and theoretical knowledge concerning child sexual abuse is integrated with broader developments in evidence-based crime and child maltreatment prevention, leading to new ideas about understanding and preventing child sexual abuse. This book will be essential reading for anybody with interests in this field.

The past decade has seen a dramatic increase in the attention paid to the problem of child sexual abuse. Professionals from the social work, mental health, medical, academic, and legal fields are all involved in researching the prevalence, causes, and consequences of abuse. Child sexual abuse in multidimensional: it is determined by forces at work in victims and offenders, in the family, and in the community and society at large. Thoroughly researched, Preventing Child Sexual Abuse surveys incidence and prevalence studies; lists risk and protective factors in abuse; discusses various indicators of abuse; and reports on legislation related to abuse. It reviews preventive programs aimed at children and adults, and provides suggestions for an expanded involvement of parents, professionals, policymakers, researchers, and the general public. In doing so, it provides the information needed to create prevention programs that attack the problem on several fronts at once.

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is an insidious crime that can destroy the lives of innocent children and leave their families devastated. The topic of child sexual abuse is, at best, a difficult subject to discuss and at worst, a horrifying one. Child sexual abuse has been defined as: "Child sexual abuse involves any sexual activity with a child where consent is not or cannot be given. This includes sexual contact that is accomplished by force or threat of force, regardless of the age of the participants, and all sexual contact between an adult and a child, regardless of whether there is deception or the child understands the sexual nature of the activity. Sexual contact between an older and a younger child also can be abusive if there is a significant disparity in age, development, or size, rendering the younger child incapable of giving informed consent. The sexually abusive acts may include sexual penetration, sexual touching, or non-contact sexual acts such as exposure or voyeurism." The following is a representative list of risk factors related specifically to child sexual abuse within youth-serving organizations. Note that the emphasis is on "unsupervised" access to children in a variety of ways. * Unsupervised contact with children * Transportation of children * Long term contact with children in live-in situation * Extreme physical exertion in a remote setting with children * Visit to children's homes * Helping children change clothes, bathe, or with other personal activities * Coaching sports in which physical contact between adult and child is routine * Delivery of meals to children's homes While many of the YSO's have undertaken a number of steps to keep the children safe, there are many such organizations that have not faced the facts about the profound risks to children that exist every day.

This book sets out an integrated systems model which utilizes a public health approach and 'whole of society' philosophy for preventing and responding to child sexual abuse. It guides those engaged in policy, practice and planning concerning gender based violence and child abuse towards a more systemic approach to tackling these problems.

This work deals with the issues surrounding child sexual abuse, and is aimed at practitioners in social work, psychology and medicine, students in professional fields and researchers.