CSA

This Guide is a supplement to the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs' (WCSAP) general guide to psychoeducational support groups, Circle of Hope. Circle of Hope provides information about the nature of psychoeducational groups and how they differ from self-help and therapy groups. In addition, there is general…

Your work with parents is invaluable to the healing of child and teen survivors, families, and communities. Many programs have contacted WCSAP to inquire about resources and curricula for facilitating psychoeducational support groups for nonoffending parents and caregivers of children who have been sexually abused.

This guide includes:

• considerations for facilitators,
• a complete 8-week curriculum,…

Including siblings in treatment permits families to realize the maximum benefits of therapy for the victim as well as each family member.

—Baker, Tanis, & Rice, 2001

A child can't help being affected in some way by the sexual abuse of a brother or sister, but siblings' needs are often overlooked.

Nonabused children whose siblings have been abused may have to deal with:

• confusion because adults do not…

This presentation is designed for sexual assault advocates who work with caregivers of children with a history of sexual abuse and who may be exhibiting sexual behavior problems.  The presentation will include information regarding typical sexual development, as well as how to distinguish typical sexual behavior from problematic sexual behavior for children ages 12 and younger.  Common misconceptions about children with sexual behavior problems will be dispelled.  This presentation will…

This issue of the Digest focuses on research about children and teens that have come into contact with the criminal justice system because they are victims of crime. We know that one in four girls and one in six boys are sexually abused before the age of 18. When these crimes are reported, those individuals typically become involved with the criminal justice system.

As advocates, we recognize that the justice system can be complex, confusing, and often unpredictable. These concerns…

Inside parents can find out about healthy sexual development for children, why it is important to talk to children about sexuality, and tips for having these conversations. It's a great way to get the conversation started!

PDF download:

• English
• …

Providing advocacy services for children and teens who have been sexually abused often requires specialized knowledge and skills. Ensuring that your young clients and their parents are fully informed and supported means having specific information about things such as:

• The rights of child victims
• The procedures for a child medical exam
• Confidentiality and consent considerations for minors
• Mandatory reporting
• The roles…

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, is a therapeutic technique that helps clients to deal with trauma and disturbing memories. Developed by Francine Shapiro, Ph.D., in the 1980s, EMDR has been extensively researched and found to be an effective method of treating posttraumatic stress. The theory behind EMDR is that trauma memories must be disrupted not only cognitively but also neurologically, allowing the brain to handle past trauma in a different manner. EMDR is…

Children who have been sexually abused have often experienced an entire series of traumatic events, from multiple victimizations to seriously disrupted relationships with their parents. These children's experiences can't be described with the traditional posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) label; their fundamental ways of interacting with the world and sometimes even their biological functions are changed because of the chronic, pervasive stress to which they have been exposed at this…

In cases of child sexual abuse, some prosecutors discourage parents or others from placing a child in therapy until after the trial. The fear is that therapy will create memory and suggestibility issues which may be used by defense counsel to attack the child's credibility. Therapists confronting this issue can make the following points.

1. If a child wants or needs therapy, it is unethical to withhold this treatment. Numerous studies document that sexual abuse…

This webinar will provide an overview of crisis intervention in cases of child sexual abuse. It is intended to build upon and enhance the content presented in the related section of the From Hurt to Hope Child Advocacy Guide. The guide and each complementary webinar aim to support sexual assault advocates in their work with children and families.

The information gathered from this survey highlighted those areas that require further attention and additional resources. It also identified that programs have been adaptive and innovative in responding to this problem despite existing resource and knowledge gaps. Some of the practices that are already being implemented, such as system coordination, have proven to be quite valuable in this context but we must also continue to expand our thinking and relationship-building efforts beyond…

Sometimes we are so busy walking the path of our daily lives that we don't have the time to go exploring for resources. We hope this resource guide will support you in your journey working with children and teens who have been sexually assaulted and their nonoffending family members. The resources in this guide were supplied by therapists across the state doing this work.

Some of the resources are designed to help therapists expand their own knowledge, while others are intended to be…

Working with child sexual abuse/assault (CSA) victims and their nonoffending parents/caregivers/families can present a unique dynamic for Community Sexual Assault Programs (CSAPs) and advocates. What does confidentiality look like for a 10-year-old or a 15-year-old? What decisions can children or teens make for themselves? Who is my client, the child or the parent? Why is the child going through a medical assessment when the last abuse was three months ago? Why does the parent act like this…

The research presented here has several implica­tions for service providers. Our first aims are always to support the safety and self-determi­nation of child sexual abuse survivors in fos­ter care and their foster and adoptive parents. Since many of our interactions are likely to be with the parents, it is important that we ex­plain the dynamics and effects of sexual abuse and situate problematic behavior as a normal response to trauma.

Service providers can ex­plain the importance…

This "Research and Advocacy Digest" explores sibling incest dynamics and victimization effects. It features an enlightening expert interview by John Caffaro, who provides a quality overview of sibling incest trauma and shares considerations for advocates and clinicians providing services to sibling incest survivors and their families.

Historically sibling incest has been scarcely studied. It has been unrecognized, overshadowed by parent-child incest research, or dismissed as normal…

The articles and featured interview in this issue explore long-term effects of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) to adult survivor wellbeing and functionality.

Upon filtering through the research and critically thinking about reported effects to survivor well-being and functionality, three challenges become quite apparent. These include,

1. designing comprehensive and representative CSA effect studies is intrinsically difficult;
2. there is a need for…

The publication is organized into five sections in addition to the appendix:

• Stakeholder Recruitment
• Underlying Conditions
• Needs Assessment
• Development of the Community Plan
• Evaluation

Each section consists of a brief overview of the supporting community development concept and a first person narrative from the facilitator of the community development process. It is our hope that information in this…

At WCSAP, we receive a lot of questions from advocates about the "ins and outs" of mandated reporting. Although Washington's law about mandated reporting is pretty straightforward, it can feel much more complex in practice. Here are some quick answers (that do not constitute legal advice) to some of the recent questions we have received on this topic:

Q:

Do I need to report sexual abuse of a minor that is not committed by a parent or caregiver? What…

A question often posed to us is, "how much do I try to get a child to talk about their sexual abuse?"

We are all operating under the mandate of "do no harm." When working with a child who is not spontaneously engaging in trauma exposure, how do we know when trauma exposure is indicated and how do we go about engaging the child? What about the possibility we may further traumatize, further ingrain trauma responses, or create new trauma pathways? What about colluding with trauma…

WholeSomeBodies is a curriculum for adults who have children and youth in their lives. Includes a guide for facilitators and a participant workbook with activities and materials to support workshops that address topics such as:

• etymology and circles of sexuality,
• sensuality,
• gender,
• childhood messages,
• body image, and
• media awareness.

Additional material addresses how to have difficult…

Provides enlightening empirical studies and reviews of the literature on peer harassment, bullying and victimization.

1. Bullying
2. Peer Harassment
3. Violence Prevention
4. Sexual Harassment
5. School

• Author: Elias, Maurice J.
• Call Number: 155.ELI
• Publisher: Haworth Press, Inc, 2003.

Doin' it: Sex, Disability & Videotape 35 minutes, open captioned

1. Disability
2. Prevention

• Publisher: Beyondmedia Education, Unknown.

Curriculum designed to help the prevention of dating violence.

1. Partner Violence
2. Education
3. Prevention: Adolescents/Teens

• Author: Foshee, Vangie
• Publisher: Safe Dates

An interactive exercise, that addresses the issue of sexual harassment in the school and workplace. While intended for students 14-18, the materials are relevant for adults as well!

1. Sexual Harassment: Adolescents/Teens

• Author: PCAR, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape