College students’ recollections of childhood sexual abuse prevention programs and their potential impact on reduction of sexual victimization

Abstract

BackgroundChild sexual abuse prevention programs are offered in many schools globally, but research is scant on whether or not these programs actually decrease the rates of CSA among youth who participate in them. ObjectiveThis study sought to determine if participation in a CSA prevention program (based on participant recall), in the US or another country, led to lower rates of self-reported past victimization among youth, affected disclosure and effects on sexual satisfaction. Participants and settingOne thousand five hundred and two students from an ethnically and racially diverse university in the southeast served as participants. MethodsParticipants completed measures on line (Qualtrics). This included demographic information and participation in CSA prevention programs in schools, concepts that were covered, and recollections of sexual victimization. The second measure was a revised version of the sexual satisfaction scale (Derogatis Sexual Functioning Inventory). ResultsStudents who had not participated in a CSA prevention program were significantly more likely to be abused than those who did participate, regardless of the program or location (χ2 (1,1498) = 19.01, p < .001). Those participating in programs in the US were more likely to disclose abuse than those participating in the programs in other countries (χ2 (1,212) = 5.49, p = .019). No significant difference was found between those who participated in prevention programming and those who did not on sexual satisfaction (χ2 (1,1469) = 1.76, p = .184). ConclusionThese results highlight the importance of universal CSA prevention programs in schools worldwide as one part of comprehensive prevention.