Child Sexual Abuse Revisited: A Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study Among Swiss Adolescents

Abstract

Purpose: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is one of the most serious public health problems among children and adolescents, owing to its widespread prevalence and serious health consequences. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of, and characteristics and circumstances associated with, CSA. Methods: An epidemiological survey was conducted on a nationally representative sample of 6,787 ninthgrade students (15.5 ± .66 years of age) in Switzerland. Self-reported computer-assisted questionnaires were administered between September 2009 and May 2010. Various forms of sexual victimization were assessed using the newly developed Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire. Results: Overall, 40.2% and 17.2% of girls and boys, respectively, reported having experienced at least one type of CSA event. Lifetime prevalence rates were 35.1% and 14.9%, respectively, for CSA without physical contact, 14.9% and 4.8% for CSA with physical contact without penetration, and 2.5% and .6% for CSA with penetration among girls and boys. The most frequently experienced event was sexual harassment via the Internet. More than half of female victims and more than 70% of male victims reported having been abused by juvenile perpetrators. Depending on the specific event, only 44.4%-58.4% of female victims and 5.8%-38% of male victims disclosed CSA, mostly to peers. Conclusions: The present study confirms the widespread prevalence of CSA. The high prevalence of CSA via the Internet and the frequent reports of juvenile perpetrators suggest emerging trends in CSA. Low disclosure rates, especially among male victims, and reluctance to disclose events to family members and officials may impede timely intervention. AbstractPurpose: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is one of the most serious public health problems among children and adolescents, due to its widespread prevalence and serious health consequences.The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of, and characteristics and circumstances associated with CSA.Methods: An epidemiological survey was conducted on a nationally-representative sample of 6787 9 th grade students (15.5 ± 0.66 years old) in Switzerland. Self-reported computerassisted questionnaires were administered between September 2009 and May 2010. Various forms of sexual victimization were assessed using the newly-developed Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire (CSAQ).Results: Overall, 40.2% and 17.2% of girls and boys reported having experienced at least one type of CSA event, respectively. Lifetime prevalence rates were 35.1% and 14.9% for 'CSA without physical contact'; 14.9% and 4.8% for 'CSA with physical contact without penetration'; and 2.5% and 0.6% for 'CSA with penetration' among girls and boys, respectively. The most frequently-experienced event was 'sexual harassment via the internet'.More than half of female victims and more than 70% of male victims reported having been abused by juvenile perpetrators. Depending on the specific event, only 44.4%-58.4% of female victims and 5.8%-38% of male victims disclosed CSA, mostly to p...

Suicidality in the prospective Zurich study: prevalence, risk factors and gender

“…In a large, nationally representative sample of 9 th grade students in Switzerland, 40.2% of girls reported having experienced at least one type of CSA event. Lifetime prevalence was 35.1% for 'CSA without physical contact'; 14.9% for 'CSA with physical contact without penetration'; and 2.5% for 'CSA with penetration' [39].…”

The Harm of Contact and Non-Contact Sexual Abuse: Health-Related Quality of Life and Mental Health in a Population Sample of Swiss Adolescents

“…Therefore, we do not know whether non-contact types of CSA have as negative an impact as contact CSA. This is of particular importance, since the number of non-contact forms of CSA have increased in recent years with the widespread use of social media among youths [4]. To bridge these research gaps, the aim of the present study was to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and mental health across contact and non-contact types of CSA in a population sample of adolescents.…”

“…Methods of sampling and the procedure of data collection have been described in a previous publication [4]. CSA was assessed by means of the Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire (CSAQ) [4].…”

“…Methods of sampling and the procedure of data collection have been described in a previous publication [4]. CSA was assessed by means of the Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire (CSAQ) [4]. Based on this measure, the subjects were classified into four mutually exclusive categories: (1) no CSA: no exposure to any type of CSA; (2) non-contact CSA only: exposure to any CSA event without physical contact; (3) contact CSA only: exposure to any CSA event with physical contact only, or (4) both types of CSA: exposure to both contact and non-contact CSA.…”

Algengi kynferðislegrar áreitni og ofbeldis gegn íslenskum unglingum

“…2 Úrtaksaðferð er einnig mismunandi í þessum rannsóknum sem gerir beinan samanburð erfiðari. 12 Langflestar rannsóknir benda til að stúlkur séu frekar þolendur en drengir. 2 Rannsóknir hafa sýnt að kynferðislegt ofbeldi hefur ýmiskonar sálraen áhrif og eykur sjálfsvígshugsanir meðal unglinga, jafnvel óháð því hvort þau sýna jafnframt einkenni þunglyndis.…”