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ABSTRACT
Child sexual abuse is associated with factors that enhance the vulnerability of the child, raising physical and mental health complications in adulthood. Three hundred and fifty students participated in this cross-sectional study. Important determinants of sexual abuse were parents not living together, not living with parents, family type, and current parents’ marital status (p < 0.05). Respondents living with both parents were two times less likely to experience sexual abuse (OR = 0.5, CI: 0.3, 0.9) than respondents living with their guardians. Respondents whose parents were living together were about two times less likely to experience sexual abuse (OR = 0.6, CI: 0.3–0.9) than respondents whose parents were not living together. Respondents whose parents were either divorced or separated were about six times more likely to experience sexual abuse (OR = 5.6, CI: 1.1–27.2) than respondents with widowed parents. The study showed that parental togetherness protected against child vulnerability and risk of being sexually abused.
Ethical standards and informed consent
All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. Informed consent was obtained from the principals of each school, and an assent form was signed by the respondents after the purpose of the study had been explained to them.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank all the principals and students in Aba zone, Abia state, where the study was conducted, for their cooperation.
Disclosure of interest
Chigozirim Nlewem and Olukemi K. Amodu declare that they have no conflict of interest to report.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Chigozirim Nlewem
Chigozirim Nlewem is a postgraduate student of child and adolescent health from the University of Ibadan, College of Medicine, Ibadan, Nigeria. Her research interests are in child health, child sexual abuse, female issues, adolescent health, and family.
Olukemi K. Amodu
Olukemi K. Amodu is a senior lecturer and research fellow and acting director of the Institute of Child Health, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. Her research interests include molecular biology and genetics, specifically developing epidemiological models that predict malaria severity in children, and child health.