Child Sexual Abuse and Psychological Impairment in Victims: Results of an Online Study Initiated by Victims

Sexual abuse of children has been a topic of scientific investigation for the past few decades. Research in this area, however, is rarely initiated, conceptualized, and conducted by victims themselves. Apart from possibly having painted a one-sided picture of sexual abuse, this presumed dominance of nonvictims might also have marginalized victims in a research area central to their lives. This study was conducted by a victims interest group as an effort to meet the need to add victims' perspectives to our current understanding of this topic. The online survey focused on investigating victims' psychosocial impairment, which was found to be extensive. Results indicated that an intact social support system facilitates better health, especially when offered early on.     

Attributions of Responsibility in a Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) Vignette Among Respondents with CSA Histories: The Role of Abuse Similarity to a Hypothetical Victim

Previous research suggests that similarity to a victim may influence attributions of responsibility in hypothetical child sexual abuse scenarios. One aspect of similarity receiving mixed support in the literature is respondent child sexual abuse history. Using a sample of 1,345 college women, the present study examined child sexual abuse history, similarity to victim, and attributions of responsibility to a hypothetical victim, family member, and perpetrator in a child sexual abuse vignette. Results revealed no group differences in responsibility ratings among respondents with and without child sexual abuse histories. However, among the 133 respondents with child sexual abuse histories, results indicated that similarity to victim moderated the relationship between vignette characteristics, respondent history, and responsibility attributions. Results suggest that similarity to a victim may influence ratings in a self-preserving manner.     

Study of Cases of Child Sexual Abuse Referred for Medico-Legal Examination in Cairo and Giza,Egypt,2007–2011

ABSTRACT

Child sexual abuse is a complex problem that results in detrimental effects on its victims. This study aimed to investigate the pattern of child sexual abuse in cases referred for medico-legal examination in Cairo and Giza governorates in the period between 2007–2011. The study included 813 cases of child sexual abuse. Female gender was more predominant than male gender (52.8%, 4.29 cases), and adolescents were the most frequent age group identified as victims of sexual abuse (43.8%, 356 cases). All perpetrators were male and most of them were persons outside the victims’ families (89.9%, 731 cases). It was recommended to teach and encourage children to tell their caregivers if they have been assaulted and to educate parents and caregivers on how to respond when the child discloses sexual abuse.     

Youth violence and weapon mapping: A survey of youth violence in selected districts in Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT

With the rising cases of youth violence in Zimbabwe from different fronts, the study sought to map the nature of the violence, their driving factors, main weapons used and the eventual effects on the victims. The qualitative study adopted a survey form administering questionnaires to youth participants from selected districts in eight non-metropolitan provinces in Zimbabwe. Data were gathered by means of a questionnaire survey e-mailed to the snowball-sampled youth supported by relevant literature review. The analysis of data was done through SSPS, which helped break the questions into minute elements of analysis. The theory of Utilitarian Rational Choice guided the study argument. It was established in the study that indeed the youth across the country are engaged in different forms of violence depending on what is available but either scarce or inequitably distributed or the nature of prevailing political ideology. It was also established that various weapons are used to either injure or inflict pain on victims and the weapons vary with the province depending on various factors. Equally, resultant effects and injuries differ depending on a variety of factors.     

刑事被害人救助制度比较

在比较研究域外二十多个国家救助制度的基础上,充分考虑我国的实际情况,从犯罪行为、犯罪的主观方面、行为人的起诉判罪与否、被害人与加害人的关系、加害人的表现等诸多影响救助制度实施的因素入手,分析并论证我国刑事被害救助制度的对象与范围等。     

Perceptions of Adult Protective Services Workers of the Support Provided by Criminal Justice Professionals in a Case of Elder Abuse

ABSTRACT

This paper summarizes results of a 1997 survey of adult protective services workers in 43 states. The survey yielded ratings of police and victim assistants in detecting and treating elder abuse and estimates of the likelihood that criminal justice professionals would provide ten forms of assistance in a case of elder abuse. Respondents also reported the most helpful services supplied by criminal justice professionals, the services that were most difficult to obtain, and overall ratings of criminal justice professionals in cases of elder abuse. Findings provide insights about relationships between adult protective services workers and criminal justice professionals.     

Culpability Attributions towards Juvenile Female Prostitutes

This study addresses a gap in the research literature concerning predictors of culpability attributions towards juvenile female prostitutes (JFPs). Three hundred undergraduate participants read a vignette describing a JFP and responded to a series of measures. Results supported a causal pathway whereby stronger perceiver sexism predicted stronger negative affective evaluations of, and weaker empathic reactions toward, the JFP. Stronger negative affective evaluations and weaker empathic reactions, in turn, predicted stronger culpability attributions toward the JFP. Also, participants who were provided information about the JFP's extensive victimisation history and coercion into the trade, relative to participants who were not provided this information, attributed lesser culpability to the JFP. Finally, stronger culpability attributions toward the JFP related to weaker recommendations of restorative justice (i.e. counselling/mental health services for the JFP) and stronger recommendations of retributive justice (i.e. incarceration for the JFP). Study implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Key Practitioner Message

• Stronger perceiver sexism predicts stronger negative evaluations of, and weaker empathic reactions towards a juvenile female “prostitute.”
• Stronger negative evaluations of, and weaker empathic reactions towards a girl in the sex trade in turn predict stronger culpability attributions towards her.
• Provision of information about a prostituted youth's victimisation history and coercion into prostitution mitigates culpability attributions toward her.
• Public education that highlights juvenile prostitution as a form of child sexual exploitation may be critically important to minimising punitive social cognitions about survivors of the commercial sex trade.

     

论配偶暴力中受虐妇女杀夫案的量刑

因不堪忍受配偶暴力而杀害施暴人是大部分女性犯罪的原因。根据调查,对受虐杀夫妇女基本上适用故意杀人罪的第一法定刑幅度,学者普遍认为量刑过重并提出各种解决建议。在促进立法的同时,我们更应重视科学量刑,依据《人民法院量刑指导意见（试行）》和宽严相济的刑事政策,充分考虑被害人过错、犯罪动机和被害人家属谅解等酌定量刑情节,对受虐杀夫妇女从宽量刑。     

我国未成年刑事被害人保护机制研究

随着法治的进步,国内外学术界与司法界对未成年犯罪嫌疑人和被告人的保护意识日益增强,但相比之下却忽视了对未成年被害人的保护。未成年刑事被害人作为犯罪行为直接侵害的对象,身心均受到了极大的伤害,更需要特殊的保护与救助。实践中,未成年刑事被害人保护措施严重缺失,立法保护不足、司法保护不力、配套机制欠缺,使未成年刑事被害人经常处于危险的边缘,既不利于社会关系的修复,也不利于他们的健康成长。因此,为了保障未成年刑事被害人的合法权益,亟需加强立法和司法保护、完善相关配套措施,以此来构建合理的未成年刑事被害人保护机制。