Corporal punishment is a unique, but common, form of violence against children in Canada because along with being legally protected, it is also often socially normalized. Faith leaders have played an important role in this process by, over centuries, animating interpretations of sacred texts that are rooted in colonial patterns of power and control. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action 6 urges the Repeal of Section 43 of Canada’s Criminal Code. One contributing factor to blocking progress on this Call to Action is the amplification of colonial Christian interpretations of sacred texts that normalize violence against children and that are rooted in colonial-shaped ideas about gender roles and power. Repeal of Section 43 is a substantive piece of a clear decolonizing strategy. It concretely addresses violence towards children and reshapes society in the best interests of all children.
ABSTRACT Objective: to describe the development, validation, and evaluation of an educational video on the prevention of sexual violence against children for family caregivers. Method: Methodological study developed in three stages: 1) Development of the educational video; 2) Content and appearance validation with 22 referees; and 3) Semantic evaluation with 11 family caregivers. Validated data collection instruments were used for content and appearance validation with referees, as well as for semantic evaluation. The validation criterion was agreement above 80%, analyzed using the content validity index, binomial test and absolute frequency. For semantic evaluation, intentional non-probabilistic sampling was used. Results: the video included elements such as concept, victim and aggressor profile, identification (child's report and signs and symptoms), forms of prevention, forms of reporting, and protection network, distributed in opening, eight scenes, and closing, with a total time of nine minutes and 35 seconds. In content validation, agreement was satisfactory, with an average content validity index of 0.99, and in appearance validation, the average content validity index was 0.83. The semantic evaluation, conducted with 11 representatives of the target audience, obtained 100% agreement for all evaluated items. Conclusion: the video was considered valid in terms of content and appearance by the referees and understandable by representatives of the target audience, becoming a technology that can contribute to the prevention of sexual violence against children.
Valdirene Tenório Siqueira, Gabriela Cunha Schechtman Sette, Jaqueline Galdino Albuquerque Perrelli et al.
ABSTRACT This article analyzes the absence of the theme of Sex Education (SE), with a focus on the Prevention of Sexual Abuse (PSA), in the Teaching Degree courses in Pedagogy in Brazil. From the analysis of curricula, syllabus matrices of five institutions – one per region of the country – significant gaps in initial teacher training are evidenced, especially regarding the preventive approach to child sexual abuse in the school context. The study is organized into three axes: the scenario of sexual violence against children and adolescents, the legal foundations that guide preventive actions and the limits of teacher training. The results point to institutional silencing as a factor that contributes to the perpetuation of violence, reiterating the role of Education as an agent of transformation and of teachers as fundamental actors in the prevention of abuse, as well as in the identification and reception of students who are victims and/or witnesses of abuse.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to assess interpersonal nonsexual violence against children and adolescents in a tertiary university hospital. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed in 240 patients under nonsexual violence situation for 15 consecutive years. Data analyses included demographic data, hospital referral site, type and author of nonsexual violence, legal referral, laboratorial and imaging examinations, and outcomes. RESULTS: Nonsexual violence situation was diagnosed in 240 (0.1%) of 295,993 patients for 15 years: 148 (61.7%) in children and 92 (38.3%) in adolescents. Out of 240, the most frequent types of violence were negligence in 156 (65.0%), physical 62 (25.8%), psychological/emotional aggression 52 (21.7%), Munchausen by proxy syndrome 4 (1.7%), and bullying/cyberbullying in 3 (1.3%). Out of 123, the most common pediatric chronic conditions were chronic kidney disease 24 (19.5%), human immunodeficiency virus 14 (11.4%), prematurity 9 (7.3%), cerebral palsy 8 (6.5%), and asthma 8 (6.5%). Further comparison between children versus adolescent under nonsexual violence situation revealed significant difference between the hospital referral sites. The frequency of patients under violence referred from outpatient clinics was significantly reduced in children versus adolescents (27.7 vs. 62%), whereas emergency department was higher in the former group (57.4 vs. 25.0%; p<0.001). All types of violence situations and pediatric chronic conditions were similar in both groups (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Nonsexual violence against our pediatric population was rarely diagnosed in a tertiary hospital, mainly negligence, physical, and psychological/emotional aggression. Approximately two-thirds of violence diagnosis occurred in children, referred mainly by the emergency department. In contrast, approximately one-third of violence diagnosis occurred in adolescents, referred mostly by outpatient clinics.
OBJECTIVES: to analyze the hospital structure elements that demarcate (in)visibilities of institutional violence in hospitalized children. METHODS: this is a descriptive-exploratory qualitative study that used approaches with Foucault's thinking. Ten companions and 39 healthcare professionals from a university hospital in Salvador, Bahia participated. Data collection took place from November 2018 to June 2019 through semi-structured interviews. The discourse analysis method was used. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board. RESULTS: institutional violence was understood in the violations and invisibilities of the structure of health services through the problems: in infrastructure (physical structure, lack of human and material resources, scrapping of equipment); administrative and management; pilgrimage. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: it is necessary to realize the invisibilities of the infrastructure to act in confronting institutional violence to hospitalized children.
Ana Carla Petersen de Oliveira Santos, Climene Laura de Camargo, Mara Ambrosina de Oliveira Vargas
This study aims to discuss the reflexivity of female children victims of sexual violence during a psychosocial intervention with a psychodramatic orientation, seeking out to understand the meanings present in the dialogues and plays. The research participants were 13 girls victims of sexual violence perpetrated by an adolescent close relative. Two group sessions records were used to focus on the interpretation of reflexivity on the theme of protection. The results describe the sessions in the organization: warm-up, dramatization and sharing. The discussion focuses on the earnings that play and dramatic plays bring to reflexivity about a topic such as arduous as sexual violence. The creation of a playful environment favors a dialogue between victims and adolescent offenders.
Sexual violence against children and adolescents is considered a serious public health problem. The objective of this study was to analyze the risk indicators associated with child and adolescent sexual abuse. The research included all cases of sexual abuse against children and adolescents that occurred in the city of Recife and were archived from 2015 to 2019 in the high court of the state of Pernambuco. Data on crimes against sexual dignity were extracted from the electronic system used by the Pernambuco court called Judwin. A total of 226 cases were examined following approval by the Local Ethics Committee. This study obtained two hundred and twenty-six cases, and the analysis showed that the most common sexual crime committed against minors was child rape. In 84.1% of the studied cases, the aggressor was from the same social circle as the victim, who was mostly female (71.7%). The geographic distribution of crime scenes showed that sexual crimes were more prevalent in areas of social vulnerability. As a result, 50.4% of defendants were convicted, 30.5% were acquitted of the charges, and in 14.6% of cases, the punishment was waived. The limitation period elapsed in 13.9% of cases. The main risk factors associated with the victim were being a child and female, while for the aggressor, the primary indicators were being a male adult and having social contact with the victim.
Thaíse Urbano Caldas, DOURADO, Ana Claudia de Amorim Gomes, Marcus Vítor Diniz de Carvalho et al.
BACKGROUND: Violence against children (VAC) is a global public health problem, and parenting programmes are a key strategy to reduce VAC at home. We developed and evaluated a preschool-based, early childhood, violence prevention, parenting programme (the Irie Homes Toolbox) in Jamaica and reported significant reductions in parents' use of VAC [Effect size (ES) = -0.29] and increases in parents' positive practices (ES = 0.30). This study presents qualitative findings on the mechanisms of action of the programme. METHODS: As part of a cluster randomized trial, 115 parents from nine preschools participated in the Irie Homes Toolbox parenting programme. The programme consisted of eight 90-min sessions with groups of six parents and focussed on strengthening parent-child relationships, understanding children's behaviour, using appropriate discipline strategies and understanding and managing emotions. We conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with a stratified random sample of 28 parents (two to four parents per school) and with nine preschool teachers (one teacher per preschool). Topic guides were developed to explore participants' perspectives of the mechanisms of action of the programme. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed, and data were analysed using the framework approach. RESULTS: The most salient direct pathways to reduced VAC by both parent and teacher reports were through parents' use of alternative strategies to manage child misbehaviour and through improved parent well-being, especially parents' self-management skills. Other factors leading to reduced VAC by parents, reported by both parents and teachers, included self-identification as an 'Irie parent', use of proactive parenting strategies and improved child behaviour. Parents reported that the main factors leading to continued use of VAC were their inconsistency in using positive discipline strategies and poor emotional self-regulation. CONCLUSION: Reports from participating parents and preschool teachers indicate that contents related to parental self-management and how to use positive discipline strategies to manage child misbehaviour were important factors on the pathway to reduced VAC.
Taja Francis, Dania Packer, Helen Baker‐Henningham
This article presents an analysis of the confrontation of the State to act against sexual violence against children and adolescents, with a common name to the terms children and adolescents, with the objective of discussing public policies. Efforts are concentrated on the legal and regulatory aspects for sustainability and implementation of public policy programs in the Brazilian state. Initially, consideration was given to the definitions and concepts of public policies based on the main doctrines and researchers on the topic, such as Wildasky (1979); Maria Paula Bucci (2006), guidelines for making political decisions are added in the structuring and formulation of concrete actions, as indicated by Enrique Saraiva (2006). Then, it dialogues with the list of the main public policies arising from the action of the Brazilian state, listing the main ones: Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA) through Law No. 8,069 of July 13, 1990; the creation of the National Council for the Rights of Children and Adolescents (CONANDA) in 2000, among other programs in the following years, including the National Plan to Combat Child and Youth Violence (PNEVSCA), the Integrated Actions Program and References for Confronting Child and Youth Violence in the Brazilian Territory (PAIR) and the Sentinela Program, which constituted a set of social assistance measures to assist children and adolescents who are victims of sexual exploitation. In addition, it discussed the international conventions adopted by the United Nations (UN) for the rights of children and adolescents, as well as considerations about the indicators of sexual violence against them. Finally, it was concluded that the National Plan to Combat Violence against Children and Adolescents in the Brazilian case was important as a policy outlined and implemented in its different phases as a cycle of public policies, and that despite the progress, the current perspectives are outlined by the state as incipient and without the necessary resources as required. In this sense, the state’s policy focuses precisely on responding to various situations of violence in the context of social vulnerability.
OBJECTIVE: Violence against children (VAC) is a global public health and human rights issue that can lead to long-lasting negative consequences for individual and societal outcomes. While extensive evidence indicates that parenting programmes might be effective in preventing VAC, there are several unsolved questions on how to ensure interventions are acceptable, feasible, effective and sustainable, particularly in low- and- middle-income countries (LMICs). METHOD: In this study, we report findings from a qualitative examination of policymakers' (N = 10), early childhood and parenting programme facilitators' (N = 20) and parents' and other caregivers' (N = 38) perspectives on VAC prevention to examine the implementation ecosystem of parenting programmes in Colombia, including contextual risk and protection factors, features of existing programmes, and stakeholders' needs. We conducted interviews and focus groups using a semistructured format, along with a thematic approach, to analyse the data from each group of participants (i.e., policymakers, facilitators and caregivers) independently. RESULTS: Overall, the data revealed the critical role of intersecting and interacting factors at the micro (e.g., caregivers' capabilities and beliefs), meso (e.g., programme content and delivery approaches) and macro (e.g., policymakers' vision and existing infrastructure) levels in exacerbating risks/imposing barriers versus protecting/promoting VAC prevention. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide evidence on the implementation ecosystem of prevention programmes to inform the design of novel strategies and programmes aimed at preventing violence and promoting families' well-being and young children's development.
Jorge A. Cuartas, Luciana Beccassino, Helen Baker‐Henningham et al.
