Public Perceptions of Child Sexual Exploitation Abroad: A Vignette Experiment on the Influence of Social Distance

This study examines the impact of social and spatial distance on public opinion about sexual exploitation of children. A randomized vignette experiment among members of a Dutch household panel investigated whether public perceptions of child sexual exploitation were more damning or more lenient when it occurred in a country closer to home, and explored theoretical explanations. The results show that offenses committed in the Netherlands or U.S. are overall perceived as more negative than those committed in Romania or Thailand. Social distance affects public perceptions about crime severity, and victims are attributed more responsibility in socially close than socially distant conditions. The study concludes that public perceptions are contingent upon the crime location, even when applied to child sexual exploitation.

Problematising Young Male Victims in Twenty-First Century English Child Sexual Exploitation Policy: a Critical Discourse Analysis

Since 2000, English child sexual exploitation (CSE) policy has expanded, both in its understanding and response, to the increasing recognition and scale of the problem. Since 2011, with the move from statutory guidance to a government action plan, there was, for the first time, a substantial increase in CSE responses across English local authorities. Within English CSE policy, male victims are often referenced as a minority population in the ‘dance’ between gender-neutral and gender-specific guidance. For an observable eight-year period, specific CSE guidance was issued on ‘Boys and Young Men’ between 2009 and 2017. Using a qualitative case study methodology with 18 professionals in England, a critical discourse analysis, inspired by Foucauldian and liminality theories, was undertaken to understand the ‘ethics’ within professional perceptions of male victims in contemporary CSE policy. The key findings highlight an incongruity of existing CSE vocabulary with male victims due to overtly gynocentric connotations. This article identifies how male victims have been perceived in the ‘shadows’ of their female peers, perhaps, as a policy ‘afterthought’, with consequential professional practice. Essentially, male victims have been implicated through this gendered conceptualisation and are assembled awkwardly on the surface of mainstream CSE discourse in England.

Online child sexual exploitation material: A comparison from police data on men charged with child sexual exploitation material exclusively and men charged with contact child sexual abuse exclusively

We do not know whether men who access Child Sexual Exploitation Material (CSEM) are contact child-sex offenders using technology - or a new and different type of child sex offender. This study compares men who were charged with Contact Child Sexual Abuse (CCSA) (n = 95) exclusively, and men who were charged with offences involving online CSEM (n = 99) exclusively. This is the first study of its kind in Australia, the first to divide participants into mutually exclusive offending type groups and to do this using police data. Logistic regression results indicated that CSEM offenders were significantly more likely to be older, more likely to be employed, have fewer criminal charges and supervision violations compared to CCSA offenders. The findings further highlighted the heterogeneity of those charged with child sexual offences based on offence typology. The identification of demographic, lifestyle and interpersonal characteristic differences between online CSEM and CCSA offenders’ questions the use of uniform approaches to community supervision and treatment protocols. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of an increased volume of people charged with CSEM offences.

Developing a Typology of Child Sexual Exploitation Material Offending in New Zealand

<p>Existing typologies of child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) offending are significantly limited as many have not been empirically developed or tested for their validity or reliability. Furthermore, their practical utility is limited, as many typologies classify individuals based only on the type of CSEM offending they engage in or are limited to a small number of variables. The current research addresses these issues by developing an exploratory typology of individuals who have engaged in CSEM offending using a data set of 557 individuals in New Zealand, who have been identified by the Department of Internal Affairs. A latent class analysis was conducted using their offence characteristics to identify distinct subgroups within the sample. Follow-up tests were conducted to evaluate how these groups differed on various individual characteristics to develop a more detailed understanding of the individuals within each group. Results found four distinct subgroups of individuals who varied according to their level of engagement with the material, technical capability, type of CSEM offending, and the type of material they searched for. Post-hoc tests also revealed significant differences in access to children, previous sexual offending, and previous CSEM offending between groups. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.</p>

Developing a Typology of Child Sexual Exploitation Material Offending in New Zealand

<p>Existing typologies of child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) offending are significantly limited as many have not been empirically developed or tested for their validity or reliability. Furthermore, their practical utility is limited, as many typologies classify individuals based only on the type of CSEM offending they engage in or are limited to a small number of variables. The current research addresses these issues by developing an exploratory typology of individuals who have engaged in CSEM offending using a data set of 557 individuals in New Zealand, who have been identified by the Department of Internal Affairs. A latent class analysis was conducted using their offence characteristics to identify distinct subgroups within the sample. Follow-up tests were conducted to evaluate how these groups differed on various individual characteristics to develop a more detailed understanding of the individuals within each group. Results found four distinct subgroups of individuals who varied according to their level of engagement with the material, technical capability, type of CSEM offending, and the type of material they searched for. Post-hoc tests also revealed significant differences in access to children, previous sexual offending, and previous CSEM offending between groups. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.</p>

Trust and Relationship Development Among Users in Dark Web Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Networks: A Literature Review From a Psychological and Criminological Perspective

The increased potential and speed of the Internet has changed the nature of sexual crimes against children. It enables individuals with a sexual interest in children to meet, interact, and engage in illegal activities. The literature review presented here aims to provide an overview of the current knowledge and understanding of trust and relationship development among users of online networks that are dedicated to the sexual exploitation and abuse of children. A systematic search using six databases was conducted to identify relevant literature from a psychological and a criminological perspective. Twenty-one studies met the inclusion criteria that centered around the key aspects of the literature review’s research question, namely, (i) child sexual exploitation and abuse, (ii) Dark Web platforms, (iii) online forums and networks, and (iv) trust and relationship development. Our findings reveal that the engagement in interpersonal communication and interactions with like-minded others serves various functions, including validation, normalization, and support, as well as access to expert advice, information, and material. Dark Web networks are high-stake and risky environments, where users have to manage a continuous flow of threats, with information about others and their trustworthiness being limited. The establishment and maintenance of trust is of social and technical relevance, and users have to navigate a number of demands and commitments. Findings are discussed in relation to theoretical and practical implications, as well as directions for future research.

Self Perceptions and Cognitions of Child Sexual Exploitation Material Offenders

Identifying the self-perceptions of child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) consumers compared to a reference population of non-consumers is critical in establishing distorted cognitions that may not be elucidated when comparison is made with groups who have committed other offenses. This exploratory work utilizes a quantitative approach toward identifying how individuals previously convicted of child pornography offenses view CSEM and CSEM offending, using a group of non-offenders as a baseline. The target group was selected based on their inclusion in two sex offender registries for child pornography offenses ( n = 78). A reference group of non-offenders ( n = 254) was gender-matched from a subset of a prior study evaluating the public perceptions of CSEM. Both groups were adults located within the United States and were asked questions using an online survey about their general perceptions of CSEM, their endorsement of CSEM beliefs, and their opinions related to the legality of various forms of CSEM and associated laws and sentencing guidelines. The study found that CSEM consumers more accurately assessed risks associated with CSEM offending, but that they exhibited potential minimization-based cognitive distortions related to severity and victimization and more strongly endorsed child erotica and virtual child pornography being legal. Additionally, they endorsed treatment over prison, and were strongly opposed to sex offender registration for child pornography offenses. The results provide potential treatment targets, including behavioral areas that may be pathways to CSEM offending.