The effects of childhood sexual abuse on the young victims are devastating, with life-long consequences (Mullen and Fleming 2005). While some mange to lead normal lives, the statistics do not paint a pleasant picture for most outcomes. Many of the estimated 60 million survivors of childhood sexual abuse suffer long-term effects such as "fear, anxiety, depression, anger, hostility, inappropriate sexual behavior, poor self esteem, tendency toward substance abuse and difficulty with close relationships" (www.prevent-abuse-now.com). The abuse also makes them more likely to engage in criminal behavior - 31% of women in state prison, and 95% of teenage prostitutes have been abused sexually รป as well as substance abuse and other self-destructive behavior.
Every aspect of childhood sexual abuse is a losing proposition. The child feels betrayed and angry, but also guilty. The result is a mistrust that undermines relationships and leads to conflicts. This further encourages and perpetuates the low self-esteem resulting from the initial abuse.
Childhood sexual abuse is a very disturbing problem with few easy solutions. It has been estimated that 10% of boys and 25% of girls have been sexually abused nationally (Whealin 2005).
But it is a crime that is difficult to detect, prove, and prosecute. For one thing there are usually no other witnesses but the perpetrator and the victim. Physical evidence is often lacking. The children whose testimony is critical to detecting this kind of abuse are notoriously unreliable as witnesses. Many, if not most kids who have been victimized may initially deny it ever occurred, for reasons that are easy to understand. And at the other extreme, false accusations of childhood sexual abuse, such as the mass hysteria surrounding the notorious McMartin preschool trials, in which numerous innocent people had their reputations ruined only to be later exonerated, are almost equally damaging from a psychologic...