By George Stouter
Although accurate statistics concerning sexual assaults against children are difficult to collect due to differing legal definitions of child sexual abuse and issues of under- reporting, many who work in school, child welfare or mental health settings would agree that child sexual abuse is a wide-spread and significant problem resulting in devastating psychological damage to the child victim, as well as damage to the very fabric of the society and community life.
The damage to the child involves a long list of emotional and psychiatric problems: depression, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, and substance abuse disorders. Probably the most significant impact, however, relates to damage to the child’s concept of self and capacity to enter into caring and loving relationships in later life. The social costs are many. It should come as no surprise that individuals with sexual abuse histories are vastly over-represented among those treated in psychiatric care facilities, residential care facilities for children, and those incarcerated in prisons.
Estimates provided by UNICEF suggest that every hour of every day, 228 children and adolescents, mostly girls, are sexually exploited in Latin America and the Caribbean. Child sexual abuse is described by The World Health Organization as “a silent emergency.” It is not openly discussed. It is too infrequently reported and in many instances has become a normalized behavior. This article is written to provide some basic information on child sexual abuse with an emphasis on the perpetrators. It is written to an effort to counter the silence and open up a dialogue about this most serious social problem.
Types of Sexual Offenders
So who are the criminals who prey on our children? They are predominantly male and can be divided roughly into three categories: pedophiles, incest perpetrators, and adult heterosexual males who exploit adolescent girls.
The pedophiles: Pedophilia is a term often used loosely to describe any form of sexual behavior between an adult and a child. Actually, it is a very specific and relatively uncommon psychiatric disorder which accounts for fewer sexual assaults of children than the other two categories discussed. The pedophile is an adult whose sexual interest and behavior is confined exclusively to prepubescent children, usually under age 13.
Pedophiles have no interest in sexually relating to adolescents or to other adults. They are attracted to male or female children and sometimes both. They sometimes violently assault their child victim, but more frequently befriend the child and draw the child into sex by way of seduction, trickery, or enticement. It is fortunate that this is not a common psychiatric disorder, as pedophiles are serial offenders with dozens of victims. Any child is at risk for assault by a pedophile, but higher risk is assigned to poorly supervised children and excessively needy children whose needs for attention and affection are not being met by their families. The pedophile is cunning and expert at exploiting vulnerabilities. He frequently seeks out employment or recreational interests which allow access to young children.
The Incest Perpetrator: Incest refers to sexual relations between blood-related family members. However, given the wide variations in family structures in contemporary society, the term has come to include sexual relations between a child and any adult in the family unit who functions in a parental capacity. This includes step-parents, other living-together partners, as well as older half and step siblings. Again, the incest offender is almost exclusively male.
The incest child victim can be either male or female, with most victims being female. The offender may meet criteria for being a pedophile but in most instances this is not so. The typical incest offender appears in most instances fairly normal on the surface. What is lacking is a profound failure to appreciate the value and vulnerability of the child and the degree of damage caused by the abuse. In addition to the absence of empathy, the incest offender may be antisocial with poor impulse control and difficulties in tolerating frustration. The incest behavior frequently follows acute stress situations for the offender and is further exacerbated by substance abuse problems.
The incest offender operates very much like the pedophile. Physical force and violence are less frequently employed than seduction and enticement, and the use of the offender’s dominant position and parental authority. Incestuous abuse carries with it greater emotional damage to the child victim than assault by an individual outside of the family, especially so when physical force or threat has been employed. Incest destroys a child’s developing sense of trust when she or he cannot feel safe in his/her own home. The level of damage is further escalated in cases in which the mother refuses to believe her child, facilitates the abuse, or otherwise fails to protect her child, as well as in instances where the reporting and criminal justice system fail to protect the child from further sexual abuse.
Incest can occur in any family. Race, ethnicity and socio-economic status do not provide immunity. The risk is increased by the presence in the home of adults with anti-social personality problems and substance abuse. However, a well-structured, close and caring family that is respectful of personal boundaries reduces risk.
The Adult Heterosexual Male and Exploitation of Adolescent Girls: Although often taken for consensual sex, sexual relations between adult males and unrelated adolescent girls is yet another variant form of child sexual abuse. Frequently the offender is twice the age of the victim and sometimes older. The same principles that govern pedophilia and incest apply to this type of victimization. The perpetrator uses the child as a “sex toy,” with no regard for the emotional welfare of the child. The offender makes use of his age, status, money, and dominant position to entice and manipulate the victim, who is often an emotionally starved child. The offenders are typically impulse-ridden and exploitive in their relationship with others. Antisocial personality problems are common, as well as substance abuse, which serves to undermine already faulty judgment and impulse control.
This type of abuse is reportedly common throughout the West Indies, and like other categories of abuse, has become normalized in local culture. Despite the seemingly willing participation by the victim, these relationships should not be viewed as consensual sex. Consent suggests that both parties have equal status and that the decision to engage in sex in an informed one. Young adolescent girls are legally unable to provide informed consent, and they lack the level of maturity and life experience that would allow them to make such decisions. The social costs are enormous with regard to increased promiscuity and ‘acting out’ on the part of adolescent girls, unplanned pregnancy, the spread of HIV-AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, and most importantly, impairment in the child’s ability to develop healthy, loving relationships.
In St. Kitts and Nevis we are currently observing a 16-day Campaign Against Violence Against Women and Children, sponsored by the Department of Gender Affairs. The abusive behaviors described in this article should be viewed in the larger context of gender-based violence. Please take this opportunity to join in efforts to break the silence on child sexual abuse through open discussion in your families, schools, community groups, and churches.
The writer is a licensed Clinical Social Worker and a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer working in the Ministry of Health
"LifeLines is a monthly column dedicated to addressing issues of mental, behavioural, and social health. The column appears on the 1st weekend of the month, and is written by professionals in the field of social work, mental health, and community medicine".
