Evidence to the Northern Ireland Education Committee on Relationship & Sexualities Education

By Sophie King-Hill, PhD

Editor’s note: This is a transcript of part of Dr King-Hills evidence  to the Northern Ireland Assembly Education Committee mini-inquiry into relationships and sexuality education (RSE) on the 13th November 2024. This evidence focussed on three core issues in RSE. The importance of youth voice in RSE, RSE as a means to prevent child sexual abuse and harmful sexual behaviour in all its forms and the importance of working with boys and young men to support better outcomes for all genders. 

A recording of the proceedings, including the question and answer session can be found here –Committee for Education Meeting, Wednesday 13 November 2024 - Northern Ireland Assembly TV. Kieran

Introduction

I am an Associate Professor at the University of Birmingham in the Health Services Management Centre. My research is focussed on sexual behaviours and assessment in children and young people, sexual health, misogyny, masculinity, relationships & and sex education and the importance of youth voice. Much of my work is cross-sector, cross-disciplinary and centred around participatory and co-design approaches with young people. I have researched and written extensively about sibling sexual behaviour and abuse and led half of the research for the Home Office and Ministry of Justice funded National Sibling Sexual Abuse Project in England and Wales. I have carried out research in a number of fields that link strongly to RSE, for example Incels (exploring online extreme hatred of women), young men and boys and designing resources for schools with young people on Relationships and Sex Education (RSE). I have been an academic for 10 years and I think it is useful to highlight to the committee that I used to work within the third sector. I was the national impact co-ordinator for a leading young persons sexual health charity, used to teach RSE in schools to all ages and and prior to that I worked with teenage parents. These young parents were some of the most inspirational young people I have ever met – and this work demonstrated to me, over 20 years ago, the importance of relationships and sex education and its link to the choices that young people make. I am going to focus upon three components of my work: Young peoples voices, the importance of RSE to safeguarding children in relation to the prevention and early intervention of child sexual abuse in all its forms and the importance of working with boys and young men for the better outcomes of all genders.

Young peoples voices

The research that I have carried out demonstrates that young people are eager to be involved in the design and delivery of the RSE that they need. By doing this schools and leadership teams can ensure that the RSE that is provided is fit for purpose and supports the children and young people in negotiating and making sense of the world that they live in. Consistently young people are telling us that they are being taught what they already know. They also tell us that because of poor RSE they are using other means to learn about relationships and sex. The majority of this learning comes from the internet. This includes going to pornography or various social media platforms or discussion forums. These platforms and forums can be incredibly informative and positive or incredibly damaging and negative. This aspect also links strongly to the opt out aspect of RSE for parents. This is incredibly dangerous. It does not mean that children and young people are not getting information on relationships and sex, it means that they will get information however this may be diluted off their peers or from flawed internet sources. I would also like to highlight here that my research is not stand alone and echoes a wealth of research from a number of fields in this area.

 

I do appreciate that tangible examples are needed of how this may look. Leading RSE with young peoples voices can be carried out by involving children and young people in session planning, school policy design and evaluation. Participatory approaches also support teachers, parents and schools leadership teams in understanding the landscape that children and young people have to negotiate in modern society. This approach works well and ensures that all children and young people can flourish. Children and young people are not passive in their learning, they have agency, and professionals need to work with them to ensure good, robust, realistic and supportive RSE can take place that meets their needs.

 

In relation to this more work with parents and carers does need to take place. It needs to be acknowledged that many parents and carers are not comfortable talking with children and young people about RSE. With this we have to be supportive and bring parents and carers in to the schools to understand the research that underpins good RSE and how it protects, rather than harms, children and young people. In the same vein teachers and educators need to be extended the same understanding in a whole school, proactive approach to RSE.  Good, robust and evidence based training is crucial for teachers and there also needs to be an avenue for them to state when they feel they cannot teach aspects of RSE. As my research with children and young people clearly indicates - if a teacher is uncomfortable teaching certain sessions then no deep learning will take place. It is useful to note that early, evidence based RSE does not encourage sexual activity and abstinence education does not work, this approach fosters shame and shuts down important dialogue. Good RSE has been shown to delay sexual activity in young people by supporting informed choices. This is not only echoed in my research but that of the Sex Education Forum, UNESCO and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for example. Despite this evidence, education on developmentally appropriate sexual behaviours in Children & Young People (CYP) is still fraught with issues due to the perceptions of sexual behaviours and the position of CYP and how they are perceived in wider society. However, it is vital to keep in mind that CYP are entitled to robust and evidence based RSE that can support them to negotiate the sexual world around them and make informed decisions about their own sexual behaviour. Schools also require flexibility when responding to urgent contextual needs of children and young people - the sharing of pornography for example. Evidence clearly indicates a need to be led by the context into which the RSE is situated, underpinned by the perspectives of children and young people. Not accounting for this can create inadequate learning environments and prevent the urgent needs of children and young people being met.

 

Safeguarding

Robust, incremental and well planned RSE can also be the first step in combatting and reducing child sexual abuse, sibling sexual abuse and behaviour, child sexual exploitation and harmful sexual behaviour in children and young people. My research and that of others makes a clear link as to why robust, evidence based RSE can work as a vehicle for encouraging young people to engage with safe adults in their lives which fostering early reporting of experiences of harm and abuse. Inhibiting RSE is proven not to work and results in barriers to reporting and compromises safeguarding. Children and young people are more vulnerable when information, concepts and education in RSE is hidden from them. The school should be a safe place to raise awareness of what abuse is and to model healthy relationships. All aspects of harmful sexual behaviour and child sexual abuse can be prevented and recognised early though good, realistic and well taught RSE. An example of this can be seen thought the National Sibling Sexual Abuse Project in England and Wales where I co-led the research. This project found that sibling sexual abuse and behaviour was often contextualised in a dysfunctional family setting and that a large proportion of reporting took place when the survivors were adults. This was due to the lack of recognition of the harm that was taking place as a child. The study found that good RSE can support children and young people in this situation to recognise earlier when they are being sexually harmed – resulting in earlier reporting leading to more positive life-long outcomes. This is also strongly links to Article 34 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which states that ‘Governments must protect children from all forms of sexual abuse and exploitation’.

Boys specific work

One of the key components of my recent work relates specifically to young men and boys.

My research and that of others strongly indicates a need for sexual violence prevention strategies that directly engage with young men and boys to reduce violence against women and children by facilitating the inclusion of their voices. Working with young men and boys appears to be the solution when aiming to reduce sexual and gender based violence and negative outcomes for young men and boys. Toxic influencers have gained traction of late – negatively influencing young men and boys – which tells us, as a society we have failed our young men and boys. In England for example, the Ofsted review in 2019 of sexual harassment in schools found that nearly 9 in 10 girls said that they or their peers were sent unwanted explicit pictures or videos, with nearly 50 per cent of boys reporting the same. 92 per cent of girls and 74 per cent of boys said that sexist name-calling happened to them or their peers. Since March 2021, over 50,000 testimonials of young people's experiences of sexual harassment and violence in schools have been shared on the Everyone's Invited website, this includes all of the UK and Ireland. Despite this there is very little work that specifically captures the voice of the boy in relation to sexual harassment. However, there is a wealth of research that states that dialogue, understanding and communication is a key aspect to culture shift. The Women and Equalities Committee (2023) in England, Scotland and Wales suggests an urgent need to directly engage young men and boys. However, in my work and research with young men and boys I have found that blame culture compounds, rather than solves the issue. Blaming boys is counter-productive. I would like to highlight, this is not an apologist position, women are overwhelmingly beaten, raped and murdered by men. However, a new perspective needs to be taken under the RSE umbrella because what we are doing to combat this problem is seemingly not working. Young men and boys need to be supported and empowered to be part of the solution. Violence experienced by boys from boys needs more recognition. Consent education needs to also focus upon young men and boys and whether they consent to sexual activity, as this is not part of the current conversation. Mental health issues in young men and boys needs more attention. At the moment no gender is winning.

Summary

So to summarise, there is a wealth of evidence that supports robust and well-planned RSE that is incremental from a young age. RSE is nuanced and complex. The voices of children and young people should be central to RSE design. Little or no RSE and RSE that is not grounded in robust research results in long term, lifelong negative outcomes for many children and young people. Good, research based, RSE can prevent, reduce and foster early intervention of all aspects of child sexual abuse. Good and realistic RSE can create safe space for children and young people to both recognise and report sexual harm. More training and support for teachers is required. More direct work is needed for young men and boys. This needs to be done with the well-being of all genders in mind and to complement violence against women and children strategies that are in place. This also has to be completed with a positive perspective given to young men and boys to foster successful male mental health outcomes. To conclude, I would like to highlight that it is the right of children and young people to have access to robust and realistic RSE.

 

The utility of developmental perspectives for teens with problematic sexual behaviors as a part of parent and youth counseling

 By Norbert Ralph, PhD, MPH, San Leandro, CA

An important part of treating youth with problematic sexual behaviors (PSB) is helping them and their parents understand contributing factors. Various treatment models have been developed to address causal factors contributing to PSB, including relapse prevention (Steen, 1999), cognitive-behavioral interventions (Hunter, 2011), trauma-focused therapies (NCSBY, 2019), the Good Lives Model (Van Damme et al., 2017), dialectical behavior therapy (Birgersson, 2024), and Multisystemic Therapy (Satodiya, 2024).

The National Center on the Sexual Behavior of Youth identifies factors such as family adversity, child vulnerabilities, modeling of coercion, and modeling of sexual behavior (NCSBY, n.d.). Bonner (2009), in her pamphlet Taking Action: A Support for Families of Adolescents with Illegal Sexual Behavior, identifies contributing factors such as curiosity/experimentation, impulsivity, immaturity, delinquency/aggression, psychological problems, exposure to sexual materials, sexual abuse, and sexual attraction to children. Finkelhor, Ormrod, and Chaffin (2009) mention immature impulse control, cognitive distortions, and delayed moral development. Ralph (2015) emphasizes delays in prosocial reasoning and psychosocial maturity as contributing factors to PSB.

In clinical settings, parents are often in extreme distress, seeking to understand these behaviors and asking, "Did we do something wrong?" They worry whether these behaviors will continue or escalate. Parents benefit from clear, relevant, evidence-based, and compassionate answers about why PSB occurred and how to prevent it.

Framing PSB partly in terms of developmental factors and psychosocial immaturity is useful. Adolescents are developmentally different from adults, as recognized by the juvenile justice system and Supreme Court rulings (Steinberg, 2014). Adolescents, while responsible for their actions, are "less guilty" due to immaturity. Research shows that youth with delayed psychosocial maturity have a higher risk for probation involvement (Férriz et al., 2018). Also, as youth mature psychosocially, they are less likely to engage in criminal behaviors (Steinberg, Cauffman, & Monahan, 2015).

I use a practical example: comparing adults and teens swimming in a pool. Adults stay in their lanes, while teens often swim into others' lanes, motivated by having fun with friends. This behavior illustrates how adolescents may not fully understand social rules or respect others' boundaries. This immaturity is reflected in crime statistics, where the peak rate of PSB in Canadian data occurs at ages 13 and 14 (Allen, 2016). Adolescents' brains are highly responsive to rewards and novelty, but impulse control doesn't fully develop until the mid-20s (Steinberg, 2014). This biological mismatch, combined with heightened sexual development during adolescence, creates a vulnerable period for risky behaviors, including PSB.

Research shows that recidivism rates for PSB are low—around 3–5% in some studies—likely due to increased psychosocial maturity over time (Caldwell, 2016; Lussier et al., 2024). Effective psychosocial interventions that promote prosocial development may help reduce general delinquency and PSB (Kettrey & Lipsey, 2018). The right type and amount of treatment, especially if started promptly, contributes to positive outcomes. Following the Goldilocks principle of "not too much and not too little" treatment is essential (Peck et al., 2023).

In my experience, explaining factors like brain development, psychosocial immaturity, and the potential for positive outcomes with effective treatment has been immensely helpful for parents. They often gain a clearer understanding that their child's immaturity contributed to the behavior, which eases fears and helps them develop a constructive path forward. Shifting from a narrative of fear to a developmental, evidence-based explanation helps parents feel more hopeful and less burdened by pessimistic scenarios.

This developmental perspective is also helpful for adolescents. Many youth express deep regret and confusion about their actions, often saying they don’t know why they did what they did. Like their parents, they are overwhelmed by distressing thoughts about their behavior. By providing a developmental framework, I help them understand that immature thinking and poor judgment contributed to their actions. This understanding doesn't absolve them of responsibility but fosters self-compassion for their younger selves, who lacked awareness of the harm they were causing. It helps them see their history of PSB will not define who they are and understand how treatment will help them develop more effective, prosocial responses.

This approach also provides youth with a more optimistic view of their future. As they engage in treatment and develop problem-solving skills, they build a healthier self-image and hope for a better future. Many youth, through counseling, understand that their actions don’t define their future. With time and support, they develop better decision-making skills, become more prosocial, and reduce the likelihood of harmful behaviors. They see a realistic hope for a positive, rewarding life.

Framing PSB as a result of psychosocial immaturity helps parents understand these behaviors and reduces fear while fostering self-compassion and optimism in youth. With proper treatment and maturation, recidivism rates are very low. This approach shifts families from fear to understanding, providing a realistic basis for hope and a positive, prosocial future for the youth.

 References

Allen, M. (2016). Young adult offenders in Canada, 2014. Juristat, 36(1), 1-8. Statistics Canada. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/85-002-x/2016001/article/14561-eng.pdf?st=ZbsUpckq

Birgersson, A. (2024, April 17). Using dialectical behavior therapy in schools and mental health counseling [On-demand training]. Safer Society Continuing Education Center. https://safersociety.org/using-dialectical-behavior-therapy-in-schools-and-mental-health-counseling-not109-a/

Bonner, B. (2009). Taking action: A support for families of adolescents with illegal sexual behavior. Safer Society Press.

Caldwell, M. F. (2016). Quantifying the decline in juvenile sexual recidivism rates. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 22(4), 414–426. https://doi.org/10.1037/law0000094

Férriz Romeral, L., Sobral Fernández, J., & Gómez Fraguela, J. (2018). Moral reasoning in adolescent offenders: A meta-analytic review. Psicothema, 30(3), 289-294.

Finkelhor, D., Ormrod, R., & Chaffin, M. (2009). Juveniles who commit sex offenses against minors (NCJ 227763). Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/227763.pdf.

Hunter, J. A. (2011). Cognitive-behavioral treatment of adolescent sexual offenders: Theoretical and practical considerations. In M. C. Calder (Ed.), Contemporary practice with young people who sexually abuse: Evidence-based developments (pp. 123-145). Russell House Publishing.

Kettrey, H. H., & Lipsey, M. W. (2018). The effects of specialized treatment on the recidivism of juvenile sex offenders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 14(3), 361–387. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11292-018-9329-3

Lussier, P., McCuish, E., Chouinard Thivierge, S., & Frechette, J. (2024). A meta-analysis of trends in general, sexual, and violent recidivism among youth with histories of sex offending. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 25(1), 54–72. https://doi.org/10.1177/15248380231162469

National Center on the Sexual Behavior of Youth (NCSBY). (n.d.). Problematic sexual behavior: Protective factors and vulnerabilities [PDF]. https://www.ncsby.org/sites/default/files/Problematic%20Sexual%20Behavior%20-Protective%20Factors%20and%20Vulnerabilities%20(1).pdf

National Center on the Sexual Behavior of Youth (NCSBY). (2019). Implementing trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for children with problematic sexual behavior. Oklahoma TF-CBT. https://oklahomatfcbt.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Implementing-TF-CBT-for-Children-with-PSB-H.pdf

Peck, R. W., Shahin, M. H., & Vinks, A. A. (2023). Precision dosing: The clinical pharmacology of Goldilocks. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 113(4), 685–686. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpt.2112

Ralph, N. (2015). A follow-up study of a prosocial intervention for juveniles who sexually offend. Sex Offender Treatment.

Satodiya, R., Bied, A., Shah, K., Parikh, T., & Ash, P. (2024). A systematic review of Multisystemic Therapy in adolescent sex offenders. Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 52(1), 117-123. https://doi.org/10.29158/JAAPL.230117-23

Steen, C. (1999). The relapse prevention workbook for youth in treatment (guided workbooks for juvenile sex offenders). Safer Society Press.

Steinberg, L. (2014). Age of opportunity: Lessons from the new science of adolescence. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Steinberg, L., Cauffman, E., & Monahan, K. C. (2015). Psychosocial maturity and desistance from crime in a sample of serious juvenile offenders (NCJ No. 248391). Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice. https://www.ojjdp.gov/pubs/248391.pdf

Van Damme, L., Fortune, C.-A., Vandevelde, S., & Vanderplasschen, W. (2017). The Good Lives Model among detained female adolescents. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 37, 179-189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2017.10.005

Honoring Our Colleague, Diane Langelier

By David S. Prescott, LICSW

Organizing conferences and other trainings is tough work that requires just the right people–just ask anyone who has worked for ATSA and its chapters. Having had the privilege of participating in conferences on five continents, one recognizes a kind of archetype of the person who makes it all happen. Not an event planner in the traditional sense, this person always seems to be working quietly behind the scenes. They avoid the limelight, calling no attention to themselves, and make complicated things seem simple to the attendees. When such organizers do their work effectively, they tend to pass only barely noticed in the conference experience.

Above all, these people believe in, and quietly embody the mission of preventing abuse. Diane Langelier is the ultimate example.

I first met Diane Langelier in the final days of September 1999–25 years ago! She was managing the registration and operations for a ten-day training event on adolescents who had sexually abused. The training, coordinated by New England Adolescent Research Institute (NEARI), gradually morphed into several different conferences, including the annual conference of MASOC and MATSA (the Massachusetts chapter of ATSA). She has been involved at every turn in every one of these conferences, and related trainings.

The people who benefit most from the diligence of people like Diane never know to say thank you because they won’t have been abused. Through her efforts, it is impossible to know how many people owe a debt of gratitude to Diane for her work in furthering the education that prevents abuse.

To round out this blog post, I turned to some of her closest colleagues. What do they say?

First, MASOC Executive Director Emerita, Joan Tabachnick, noted:

“I could tell so many stories about Diane.  How she sits at the front desk from the beginning of each conference until the end.  She knows each name and remembers stories about each person, and she treats every single one of us with incredible kindness and respect. THAT is exactly what our field is or at least should be about, and she models it for everyone as they walk in the door.  

“Everyone always saw Steve Bengis (Founder of MASOC, NEARI Press, and the NEARI School) as the face of MASOC and this conference, and he was out in front.  But it was Diane who did ALL of the detail work to make sure that the conference ran smoothly.  From reaching out to sponsors, to registering individuals and whole groups from state agencies, making packets of information (in the old days), editing our brochure for typos and then our website, to making sure that there were signs for each room and putting the right workshops in each room, and I could go on and on.  And in the old days?  This was all done by hand, and we had 15 workshops for each session!  

“And in addition to this, if you sit with Diane during any of the sessions or in the down time, she has a wicked sense of humor that she also used when she got a particularly challenging phone call (e.g., a question that was answered at least five times on the website and in the brochure)–but always after she hung up the phone.  

“I can't say enough about Diane!”

Meg Bossong, the Executive Director of MASOC (along with that organization’s board of directors), had this to say:

“As NEARI’s fiscal manager, Diane Langelier has shepherded MASOC from its roots as a tiny, all-volunteer organization existing on in-kind contributions, work trades, and the donations of time and treasure by its founding members to its current form. Diane has done the often unsung but deeply essential work that makes organizations run: opening the mail, managing the books, and being the voice on the other end of the phone whether someone needed an invoice for a conference or was a parent or a clinician looking for help. She has welcomed thousands of people to MASOC’s conferences and helped people with problems big and small for decades. We are profoundly grateful for her work and her deep knowledge and care.”

Finally, Past MASOC Board Chair Kevin Creeden added his own thoughts in his own inimitable style:

“Diane:  patient, kind, incredibly competent, funny, does not suffer fools.  At MASOC we have been incredibly fortunate to have leaders like Steve Bengis and Joan, but Diane is the cornerstone that they both have leaned on.  I would say she is the “Conference Queen”, but I don’t think queens tend to work as hard as Diane does.  I propose that we rename the conference center at the Best Western (where the MASOC and MATSA conferences have traditionally taken place) after Diane (or at the minimum the Princess room: Princess Di ?)”

In my own final analysis, most important of all is that Diane Langelier has helped thousands of professionals and assisted in improving the lives of countless thousands more. That is a fantastic track record for someone who is only rarely acknowledged. I trust I speak for all attendees and readers when I say a heartfelt “thank you!” to Diane.

Million Mile Reflections

By David S. Prescott, LICSW, and Kieran McCartan, PhD

ATSA’s Sexual Abuse blog reached a milestone in the past few weeks: It has now been read well over a million times. This is the blog’s 546th post, and it was recently rated as the world’s 5th most-read blog in the area of sexual abuse. We regard this last statistic as particularly welcome; ATSA’s blog focuses in different areas from those of organizations such as RAINN, NCMEC, The Centre for Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse, which often work more on raising awareness of common issues and challenges among those who have been victimized. They are less likely to focus on areas like risk assessment, treatment innovations, or the use of the polygraph.

The blog itself started as a venue for discussing studies published in the journal, Sexual Abuse. Robin Wilson was the original “blogger.” Kieran remembers getting the email to take over from Robin in the summer of 2014, he was on a train from Leeds to Bristol after having attended a Circles of Support and Accountability conference. David was already contributing at that point and then participated more regularly when Kieran came on as chief blogger. The blog became more regular moving to three or four times a month, and its content expanded into other directions: taking note of innovations in assessment and treatment, sometimes mentioning trainings or reviewing conferences, and occasionally providing reviews of multiple studies. Since 2014, Jon Brandt, Alissa Ackerman, and Kasia Uzieblo have all served as Assistant Bloggers. Others have often stepped in to provide guest posts, including Joan Tabachnick, Cordelia Anderson, members of ATSA’s Prevention Committee, Don Grubin, Norbert Ralph, and many others. We have been grateful to them all.

The aim of the blog has always been two-fold, communication and upskilling. It’s important to emphasise the importance of talking about sexual abuse and making it a true lived reality, so that people and communities and understand and own it. Because both Kieran and David write academically and professionally as part of their day jobs, they understand the importance of research and the evidence base, but academic writing is not always the best way to communicate issues to different populations. We must talk to people where they are at and in a way that appeals to them. Writing the blog has help communicate our understandings of sexual abuse and hopefully upskilled a range of populations, encouraging further debate and insight. The most important thing that the blog can do is make people stop and think; hopefully we have done this over the years.

If there has been anything we’ve learned by watching which posts garner the most attention and feedback, it has been the importance of how we all frame our messages. Guitarist and composer Frank Zappa once observed that, “The most important thing in art is the frame.” Otherwise, he observed, it’s all just a bunch of stuff on the wall. So, it is with the work of responding to and preventing sexual abuse. Several ATSA conference plenary speakers in the early and mid-2000s, along with our most recent ATSA lifetime achievement award winner Joan Tabachnick and Gail Burns Smith winner Alissa Ackerman (both past and present bloggers) have challenged us to consider how we construct our messages and arrange them in a way that meshes with the public’s highest aspirations. For example, we don’t simply work in prisons or civil commitment centers; our work really is about preventing sexual abuse from occurring and recurring. From there, we’ve learned the importance of writing tight prose for a general audience. If anything, the proof this approach lies in the fact that ATSA’s blog posts are rarely misunderstood.

Using safety tech to help stop people from watching child sexual abuse images and videos

By Larissa van Puyvelde, Minne De Boeck and Catherine McShane

Editors note: the PROTECH tool and the consortium that produced it were funded by the EU Horizon 2020

The growth of technology, ease of access to the internet and the ability to be anonymous online has fuelled the supply and demand for child sexual abuse images and videos online. Millions of child sexual abuse images and videos are distributed on the internet every year and these are only the ones that we know are reported by organisations like the Internet Watch Foundation in the UK or the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children in the US.

The impact on survivors of child sexual abuse is horrific, as imagery of their abuse can continue to circulate online long after they may have been rescued and safeguarded. Survivors suffer repeated victimisation whenever the record of their ordeal is shared and viewed. Traditional law enforcement approaches struggle to cope with the volume and scale of the global problem.

New ways to tackle the complex issue urgently need to be explored and, as part of the EU’s strategy for a more effective fight against child sexual abuse, the EU has been funding several studies aimed at early intervention.

One such project, Protech, regards the development, implementation and evaluation of a safety tech tool to stop the viewing and distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The intention is for it to be used as part of a prevention programme by people who are at risk of viewing CSAM. The project is mid-way, and what follows are early insights into the project’s progress so far.

To develop the tool, the Protech project has brought together experts from the European Union (Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Ireland[i]) and the United Kingdom, from diverse backgrounds including criminology, public health, clinical and forensic psychology, technology, child protection and internet safety.

The aim is to create on-device technology in the form of an app that aims to identify and prevent sexual abuse images of children from reaching the screen of the user’s device and that displays blocking messages warning of harmful content.

The design of the safety tech started with the 'for and by' principle, which implies that the intended users would help inform how the tech should be shaped, to ensure that the app could effectively support them to stop their risky behaviour, and significantly reduce the viewing and demand for sexual imagery of children on internet-connected devices.

To do this, the project team invited two cohorts of participants to give input on how the technology should work and what was needed to ensure that it would be used. The first group included 30 individuals at self-reported risk of CSAM offending – those likely to want to view images and videos of child sexual abuse. The second group consisted of service providers, mainly therapists of CSAM users, who participated in focus groups.

All participants were asked to share their opinions and concerns regarding four domains for the app’s development: privacy issues (1), blocking functionality (2), potential interactivity (3) and possible deployment methods (4).

The results show that privacy (domain 1) was a challenging point, as most respondents indicated that they are concerned about the storing of personal data, data security and the potential legal consequences. Hence, sensitivity around privacy needed to be taken as a core point around which the app was developed.

For domains 2 and 3, Protech researchers could not find consensus among all responses. Overall, the results showed that every respondent would like to personalize features of the app. This highlighted the need to make the app customizable, for example, in terms of blocking messages or implementing a pornography filter, because some respondents felt that access to adult pornography would either help them control their impulses or perhaps make them worse. Some felt that adding certain features such as a diary would be helpful. Participants also advocated for access to FAQs relating to use of the app, and an option to provide feedback to the developers.

Among the participants, there was no unanimity on how best to download the app (domain 4). Some thought it would be easier to download it through an official channel. Then again, others found anonymity important. Through discussion with the app’s developers, it was decided to offer the download link through an external portal, the most secure method for deploying the app.

These findings created the first version of the app, called Salus. Salus is now ready to be tested in a pilot stage. During this stage it will be assessed whether the app or similar technology and its implementation, has the potential to be part of an effective prevention programme. The app uses machine learning and conventional techniques (such as keyword or URL matching for detecting known imagery of child sexual abuse) to block CSAM from appearing on the screen of the user’s device.

The Protech project relies on voluntary participation and participants will be able to make informed decisions during the entire pilot to ensure transparency about functioning, onboarding and how to withdraw from the app. There are, and always will be, methods by which users could circumvent technology such as this but the important characteristic of the Protech target group is that these will be individuals who want to take part, who want to get help and who have volunteered to do so.

The three month pilot will be rolled out for up to 30-50 participants in a treatment programme and will consist of an intervention group, which will effectively test the app. All participants will be sent a survey at two different time points with questions regarding their wellbeing, their (online viewing) behaviour and their opinions on the safety tech.

The final step of the project will draw on survey findings and evaluate the effectiveness and outcomes of the pilot. Furthermore, project partners will evaluate what has been achieved and learned as well as address any questions regarding the technology, implementation and the pilot that emerge because of the project.

If effective, the novel use of technology to help at-risk individuals to control their viewing of CSAM could hopefully be used as a blueprint for using safety tech for perpetrator prevention across the EU, but it is by no means a silver bullet. Ideally any technology would need to be implemented as part of a wide, holistic package of measures intended to help prevent child sexual abuse and exploitation, further protecting victims and alleviating the workload of law enforcement.

---

[i] The Protech project members are Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Tilburg University; The Lucy Faithfull Foundation; Offlimits/Stop it Now Netherlands; the University Forensic Center/ Stop it Now! Flanders at University Hospital Antwerp/University of Antwerp; SafeToNet; the International Policing and Public Protection Research Institute (IPPPRI) at Anglia Ruskin University and the Internet Watch Foundation.

 

The Changing Face of Men Behind the Scenes

By David S. Prescott, LICSW

An “Opinion – Data Points” piece in the Financial Times by John Burn-Murdoch dated September 20, 2024, illustrates a growing trend in research involving men’s experiences. Titled “Young Women Are Starting to Leave Men Behind,” it reviews the current state of education, employment, and outcomes and concludes, in essence, that much has changed in the past 30 years.

Reporting on these findings is never easy. Before even reading this kind of article, it is easy to object on the grounds that the “glass ceiling” is still firmly in place, that the majority of violence is perpetrated by men against women, etc. It is also noteworthy that the role of gender in this research is seemingly limited to cisgender men and women and does not examine race. Just the same, in line with Richard Reeves’ 2022 book, “Of Boys and Men,”  Burn-Murdoch points to data that professionals seeking to end abuse will want to know. From the article:

- Where slightly more men than women used to go to university; now far more women go than men. This finding is similar in the UK, US, Canada, Korea, Norway, and Spain.

-  Young women's employment rates are overtaking men's in several developed countries including the UK, US, Australia, Canada, France, and Norway.

-  The share of young men who are neither in education, in work, or looking for a job is climbing, including in the UK, US, Canada, and France.

-  Young women's incomes have overtaken men's in the UK. It is a similar story in the US, where young non-college women and college-educated people of both sexes have all seen incomes either hold up or increase, but non-college men have plummeted down the income distribution.

-  Young men continue to out-earn women in the US, though non-college men's economic status has fallen steeply.

As Burn-Murdoch notes, “while discourse and policy remain focused on other things, the repercussions of these tectonic shifts are quietly playing out everywhere you look.” He further comments that, “With socio-economic trajectories heading in different directions, a growing minority of young men and women do not see eye to eye. Young male support for populist rightwing parties is on the rise, particularly among those without jobs and degrees.” He further postulates that “Violent unrest is more likely with a growing pool of young men with little stake in society or their future. And relationship formation itself is being affected, as growing numbers of female graduates discover a shortage of male socio-economic counterparts, and simultaneously have less need than ever to pair up with a man for financial support.” Like Reeves, he emphasizes that situations should never be a zero-sum game. To this, this writer would add that the original aims of social unrest beginning in the 1960s was to increase equality, not to leave people behind.

Why mention these findings in a blog centered on sexual abuse prevention? After all, individuals are responsible for their own behavior and these kinds of findings should not be considered exculpatory with reference to violence. And all adults have a responsibility to prevent child abuse. Nevertheless, there is much going on behind the scenes of these data. One need only look at the life expectancy gap due to increases in “deaths of despair” among men.

Some considerations for practitioners include:

-  Taking note of the circumstances and contexts in which dynamic risk factors may become aggravated (e.g., collapse of social supports, escalating negative emotions, emotional loneliness, etc.).

-  Being able to discuss these findings with clients and understanding that societal inequities can be more complicated than they seem.

-  Doubling down on expressing empathy and compassion, and forming meaningful working alliances with clients.

Some implications for broader efforts at sexual abuse treatment and policy include:

-   The need to be aware of and discuss these issues with our colleagues and policymakers; while concepts like patriarchy and hegemonic masculinity continue to require our focus, we should also be aware that there are other changes taking place. We can’t focus in one area at the expense of another.

-  Understanding that if we really want to end violence, we may need to take a long, hard look at our education systems, including in the earliest grades.

-  There is an urgent need for more research to understand the roots of these trends and disparities.

The good news in all of this is that we finally have data to help us find our way. Whatever the pet theories that might emerge in some areas, we are several steps ahead in terms of finding data-driven ways forward.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All you need to know about preventing the perpetration of child sexual abuse

By Joan Tabachnick and David Prescott

What is the current state of prevention?  Stop It Now! hosted an engaging hour-long conversation with many leaders in our field about preventing the perpetration of sexual abuse.  This is particularly useful for you, as ATSA members, because you have such deep knowledge of the adults, adolescents and children who have sexually abused.  What you will hear is how YOUR knowledge is something the rest of the world needs to know.   

The discussion was part of an award ceremony, but what it offered was a rare insight from colleagues who have been doing this work for as many as 30-40 years. 

Karen Baker (former executive director of PCAR and the NSVRC), Cordelia Anderson (Preventionist extraordinaire), and David Prescott (ATSA co-blogger and past president of ATSA) spoke about what was known about sexual abuse 30 to 40 years ago.  Cordelia spoke about the profound silence around child sexual abuse.  There was nothing in the news, TV shows, or the movies that addressed this issue.   Nothing existed for treatment and the only prevention strategy was focused on stranger danger.  David talked about the lack of any general training for anyone working with children or adolescents or even adults engaging in problematic sexual behavior.  Karen echoed the comments from Cordelia and David and added that our only avenue for survivors was through crime reporting and yet these courageous individuals often faced victim blaming, shame, and the complete lack of resources for survivors.  Furthermore, the messaging was both incomplete and misleading in many ways.  Rather than convey hopelessness, these perspectives from the past decades showed us just how far we have come and the progress we have made.  There is no longer silence about this issue.  Information, training, programs, related to prevention and the focus on trauma-informed care has become the norm.  We now offer prevention strategies that reflect the reality of sexual abuse in families and communities. 

The other speakers focused their remarks on the future and what can be accomplished in the next three years.  Although Stop It Now! and ATSA have focused on the importance of preventing the perpetration of sexual abuse, the following four panel members spoke about how this perspective, especially in the last 10 years, has finally been embraced by the larger prevention community.  Ryan Shields (Assistant Professor of Criminology and Co-Chair of MASOC), Tyffani Dent (clinician, educator and Immediate Past President of ATSA), Elizabeth Letourneau (Director of the Moore Center and a past president of ATSA), and Jane Silvosky (Director of the National Center on the Sexual Behavior of Youth) each shared their insights on where the field needs to go. 

Ryan started us off, blending his background in public health and criminal justice.  Given that “we humans are story-telling creatures” he said, “part of our challenge is to describe what prevention looks like”.  It is easy to visualize how the criminal justice system works with arrests, court, judges and jails.  We need concrete stories of prevention as well.  Tyffani continued the thread that Ryan began and challenged us to tell “our” prevention stories in a way that can meet the diverse needs of diverse communities.  We need to create an overlay of these stories , our policies, and our funding to reach beyond the one solution of punishment.  She also emphasized the need to build our community efforts in collaboration with survivors.  It is so much more powerful if we tell our stories together and it can also break the isolation so many of us feel.   

Elizabeth spoke about the explosion of science and research on preventing the perpetration of sexual violence.  This means that we not only have developed perpetration prevention programs, but we are in the process of evaluating what is working.  She noted the concentration of prevention programs in the global north, not something that we had connected with before.  Even though it may not be a short term initiative, she spoke about the necessity of having government funding of these prevention programs.  Jane spoke eloquently and passionately about the need to align our work on the ground – families are not in silos like our professional communities.  They need our resources regarding sexual violence prevention but also suicide, child abuse, mental heath issues and so much more.  And we as adults need to align all of our resources around the children and around the trusted adults.  If we do want to address the complexity of these issues, families need to be able to talk about sex and relationships and the complexity of our human interactions, including pornography.  This is a multilayered conversation that needs to address spaces, both physical and electronic, that interweave the protective factors of each family and each program.  She ended with a message from youth – “This is serious and we need hope to get through.” 

The Q&A was equally engaging and multi-layered.  If you care about prevention, this is an easy hour to spend listening and learning from some of the best in our field.  Here is the LINK and you can watch the discussion starting at 20:07.

 

Blogger’s note: Joan is being modest. Although the discussion happened as described, it all took place in the context of celebrating Joan’s career as she received Stop It Now’s Founder’s Award. Congratulations, Joan!