When sexting conflicts with child sexual abuse material: the legal and social consequences for children

Moritz, Dominique; Christensen, Larissa S.

doi:10.1080/13218719.2020.1742242

Cited by 7 publications

(6 citation statements)

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“…First, one major limitation was the current study having a sample size of 25 newspaper articles. While the sample could have been larger had the timeframe been extended before 2019, the researchers wanted to capture the most up-to-date data, particularly given the increasing speed of technological enhancements impacting VCSAM and the fact that VCSAM is still prompting conjecture in the present day as to whether such content is harmful (Moritz et al, 2022 ). Second, it must be acknowledged that the quantitative data was calculated based on the known cases.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While fictitious children are often the subjects in VCSAM, alarmingly, offenders can use software to manipulate images and recordings of real child victims to appear fictional (e.g., making the image appear cartoon-like), disguising the abuse of a real victim (Northern Ireland Office, 2007 ). Acknowledging that legislation differs across countries, the law has evolved in response to the emergence of CSAM and criminalizes such content in any form, typically with the inclusion of VCSAM (Moritz et al, 2022 ). Although, it is important to note that there are challenges regarding legislative definitions, given the speed at which these offenses change (Cullen et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Characteristics of Virtual Child Sexual Abuse Material Offenders and the Harms of Offending: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Print Media

Christensen,

Vickery

2023

Sexuality & Culture

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Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has become a global problem. With technological advancements, a sub-type of material has emerged: virtual child sexual abuse material (VCSAM). Despite the far-reaching harms of this material, little is known about VCSAM offenders. Research has found some disconnect between the perceived harmfulness of VCSAM and legislative definitions, compared with CSAM. Given the media’s influential ability to shape public perceptions, this exploratory study aimed to: (1) identify the characteristics of VCSAM offenders and (2) explore whether the harms of VCSAM are represented in this reporting. For the most up-to-date data, the search spanned 1 January 2019 to 23 September 2022. Of the 160 newspaper articles that appeared, 25 met the inclusion criteria. Four themes emerged from the qualitative content analysis: (1) VCSAM is a form of CSAM, (2) potential for escalation in offending from viewing VCSAM, (3) offenders have preferences in specific types of VCSAM (with the sub-theme: written stories and documents are VCSAM too), and (4) offenders “didn’t know” the material was illegal. Overall, these findings were positive; how cases were reported may broadly educate the public about VCSAM offending, with articles signifying the harms of this offending. The current findings have the potential to contribute to prevention and intervention efforts, with utility in policymaking, criminal justice, media, and psychology disciplines.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Characteristics of Virtual Child Sexual Abuse Material Offenders and the Harms of Offending: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Print Media

Christensen,

Vickery

2023

Sexuality & Culture

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“…Children's logical reasoning maturity might be at an appropriate level, so they are deemed competent to make a decision and accept the consequences. However, they are then held accountable for decisions which reflect their psychosocial immaturity which is underdeveloped and inhibits an adult's level of decision-making (Moritz and Christensen 2020). The law can penalize children for responding to "hot" contexts yet fail to empower them to make decisions in "cold" contexts.…”

Section: Developmental Perspective and Consequencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Continuum of Protection to Empowerment: The Evolving Legal Landscape of Decision-Making for Children and Adolescents

Moritz,

Mathews

2023

Laws

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“…In 80% of these cases, the victims were 11-13 year-old girls. 38 However, while the IWF data can be used to examine the severity of the abuse within the images, it is not possible to code the images according to whether they are 'Aggravated' or 'Experimental'.…”

Section: Why Is This Important?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Self-produced images, sexting, coercion and children’s rights

Quayle

2022

ERA Forum

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Converging sources of data would suggest that the volume of images and videos which involve minors is increasing and places a burden on law enforcement in terms of victim identification as well as prosecution. The terminology used in relation to these activities is problematic, as reference to self-produced sexual images would seem to result in victim-blaming. While there is an acknowledgement that there are diverse motives in the creating and sharing of this content, in many jurisdictions these images are seen as meeting the criteria for illegality and may result in prosecutions under child pornography legislation. This potentially criminalises (or at least problematises) the consensual creation and sharing of sexually explicit content between minors. Concerns regarding this sit alongside growing disquiet that this disregards children’s rights to sexual autonomy and decision making.

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When sexting conflicts with child sexual abuse material: the legal and social consequences for children

Cited by 7 publications

References 0 publications

The Characteristics of Virtual Child Sexual Abuse Material Offenders and the Harms of Offending: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Print Media

The Characteristics of Virtual Child Sexual Abuse Material Offenders and the Harms of Offending: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Print Media

A Continuum of Protection to Empowerment: The Evolving Legal Landscape of Decision-Making for Children and Adolescents

Self-produced images, sexting, coercion and children’s rights

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