Perceptions of Intra-Familial Child Sexual Abuse and Intimate Parent-Child Interactions

Joshua Miller,Qian-Wen Xie

doi:10.47405/aswj.v3i2.35

Abstract

The current study aimed to explore Chinese undergraduate students’ perceptions of intimate parent-child interactions (IPCI) and intra-familial Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) as well. 354 undergraduate students from 15 universities or colleges in Beijing were recruited to participate in an online-based survey. Results indicated that IPCI such as co-bathing and co-sleeping were very common among Chinese undergraduate students during childhood. Factors including the child’s age and gender, as well as the parent’s gender involved in IPCI were found to impact respondents’ perceptions of the appropriateness of those interactions. Moreover, respondents’ perceptions of the appropriateness of parent-child intimate interactions might also be influenced by their childhood experiences of parental interactions and their perceptions of intra-familial CSA. The study suggested that distinguishing intra-familial CSA from normative IPCI will continue to be contested and culturally shaped. Comprehensive information and public education about intra-familial CSA are needed for the prevention of CSA in Chinese society.

Highlights

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a social issue of great international concern (Collin-Vezina, Daigneault, & Hebert, 2013), and it has received growing attention in Mainland China during the past few years (Xie, Qiao, & Wang, 2016)
CSA is prohibited by laws, the procedures of reporting and investigating CSA cases, and protecting abused children are very unclear and there is no system of mandated reporting
intimate parentchild interactions (IPCI) were very common among Chinese undergraduate students during childhood (Table 2), including co-sleeping with both mother (90.4%) and father (76.8%), and co-bathing with mother (58.8%) and father (36.2%)

Summary

Introduction

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a social issue of great international concern (Collin-Vezina, Daigneault, & Hebert, 2013), and it has received growing attention in Mainland China during the past few years (Xie, Qiao, & Wang, 2016). From 2012 to 2014, there were 7,145 CSA cases heard by courts throughout the country in mainland China, and the number has continued to increase every year (Liu, 2016). Since CSA is still a taboo (Ho & Kwok, 1991; Li, 2011), and underreporting is a serious problem (Xie, Sun, Chen, Qiao, & Chan, 2017), the problem of CSA in Chinese society may be more serious than we have realized. CSA is prohibited by laws (e.g., the Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of Minors, and the Anti-Domestic Violence Law of the People’s Republic of China), the procedures of reporting and investigating CSA cases, and protecting abused children are very unclear and there is no system of mandated reporting

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion