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Children and adolescents: victims who become perpetrators

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Arnon Bentovim  and
Bryn Williams
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Irrespective of whether one considers official statistics, the proliferation of clinical referrals, research initiatives, review articles or even media attention, the problem of children and adolescents who sexually abuse other children has become a subject of increased attention. Given the proportion of young abusers who are themselves victims of sexual abuse, understanding the continuities between sexual victimisation and sexually abusive behaviour has been important. Despite the paucity of reliable evidence, it is clear that the majority of children who are sexually abused do not become abusers. Moreover, we know that around half of all young abusers have not themselves been victims of abuse. This paper sets out to consider these issues and highlight potentially important factors in understanding the origins and development of sexually abusive behaviour at an early age.

Type
Research Article
Information
Advances in Psychiatric Treatment , Volume 4 , Issue 2 , March 1998 , pp. 101 - 107
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 1998 

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