Incidence and Prevalence of Child Sexual Abuse

Abstract

Children and adolescents make up the greatest proportion of sexual assault victims reported to law enforcement, and victims are overwhelmingly female. Nearly all known perpetrators of contact sexual abuse or assault are male, and only a very small percentage of perpetrators of sexual violence against children are strangers. Perpetrators of child sexual abuse or assault are usually family members or acquaintances of the child or family. However, incidence, prevalence, and recurrence of child sexual victimization vary depending on the definition of sexual victimization, population being studied, and source of data. In the United States, two federally sponsored surveillance efforts compile and report data on incidence of child maltreatment: the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), which compiles data annually on the incidence of CSA from Child Protective Services (CPS), and the National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect (NIS), which compiles data every decade from CPS and other “sentinel” agencies such as public schools, medical facilities, and law enforcement agencies. Because of the differing ways these surveillance efforts capture and count cases of CSA, true incidence numbers are difficult to determine; it is generally acknowledged that official reports to CPS, law enforcement, and known mandated reporters represent a fraction of childhood sexual victimization. In addition to the more familiar forms of CSA, such as unwanted touching and forced or coerced sex, commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) of children is also a serious problem. CSE includes the recruiting, transporting, or maintaining of a child for the purpose of sexual exploitation, including prostitution, exchange of sexual acts for something of value, pornography, or performances at sexual venues. Child advocates are also increasingly becoming more aware of how Internet access and technology has helped facilitate online sexual grooming, sexual harassment, and CSE of children around the world.