Child sexual abuse is the sexual exploitation of a minor. Sexual abuse occurs when a child is manipulated, forced, or tricked into touch or sexual contact. It can also occur without touching, including times when a child is subjected to exposing, or receives obscene phone calls.
Sexual abusers may be strangers, but approximately 75% of the abusers are known to the child or the child's family. Children are especially vulnerable to sexual abuse as they usually are not developmentally capable of understanding or resisting the contact. They may be psychologically, physically, or socially dependent on the offender.
The following are conditions of sexual abuse that should be reported:
- Child is engaged in genital or oral stimulation, fondling, or sexual intercourse with a parent, guardian, caretaker, or other person in a position of authority
- Child receives obscene phone calls or is the victim of indecent exposure
- Child is engaged in prostitution
- Child is the subject of pornographic materials
- A juvenile is the perpetrator of sexual abuse
By conservative estimates, a child is sexually abused in America every two minutes. One in every five victims is under the age of seven. Almost half of these children will be victims of repeated sexual abuse. Since the sexually abused child may lack the signs of injury evident in physical abuse or neglect, sexual abuse can be difficult to identify. The best indicators may be a sudden change in behavior or signs of emotional upset.