Focus Areas

2010 Survey Results and Recommendations
PDF
January, 2011

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…

Topic
  • Child Sexual Abuse
  • Trafficking & CSEC
PDF
January, 2010

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…

Topic
  • Parents & Caregivers
  • Therapy
A Child Sexual Abuse/Assault Advocacy Guide
PDF
December, 2009

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…

Topic
  • Child Sexual Abuse
  • Parents & Caregivers
PDF & Printed Materials
August, 2009

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 excellent information about the nature of psychoeducational groups and how they differ from self-help and therapy groups. In addition, there is information about how to select participants, work with a co-facilitator, establish a curriculum, handle the inevitable concerns that arise in the course of running…

Topic
  • IPSV
  • Support Groups
PDF
June, 2009

Intimate Partner Sexual Violence (IPSV) is a comprehensive term that includes not only marital rape, but all other forms of sexual assault that take place within a current or former intimate relationship, whether the partners are married or not. Sometimes referred to as "sexual assault within the context of domestic violence," IPSV is a complicated, heart-wrenching form of abuse that has often been overlooked by the general public, law enforcement, and human service providers. IPSV is at the…

Topic
  • IPSV
PDF
May, 2009
I am a person, so treat me like you.
Don't hurt me, abuse me,
or embarrass me too.
I think and I feel and I will speak out-
If someone does hurt me,
I'll stand up and shout!

This poem is a nice summary of this issue of Partners in Social Change, where we turn our attention to disabilities and sexual violence prevention.

To craft this issue, we asked ourselves a few questions.

  1. If our organization…
Topic
  • Disability
PDF
November, 2008

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…

Topic
  • Child Sexual Abuse
  • Parents & Caregivers
Intimate Partner Sexual Violence
PDF
July, 2008

A systematic response to intimate partner sexual violence is one that involves all levels of advocacy, legal, and political realms. The articles within this issue illustrate the complexities of IPSV, while painting a picture of that systematic response.

By capturing the voices of survivors, advocates and legal leaders in this movement to end violence against women, this "Connections" will inspire you to look beyond traditional paths of service delivery, dig deeper into the root…

Topic
  • IPSV
PDF
June, 2008

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…

Topic
  • Child Sexual Abuse
PDF
April, 2008

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…
Topic
  • Child Sexual Abuse