Boys Abused in a Community Setting: An Analysis of Gender, Relationship, and Delayed Prosecutions in Cases of Child Sexual Abuse

ABSTRACT

Previous research on gender differences and delay of disclosure of child sexual abuse is inconclusive; some research has found that male victims are more likely to delay disclosure than female victims, while other studies have found no gender difference. The present archival study investigated this inconsistency by examining factors that interact with delay. Judicial outcomes of child sexual abuse cases were coded (N = 4237) for variables related to the offense, the complainant-accused relationship, and court proceedings. Males and females differed with respect to delay only when the relationship between the complainant and the accused was established in the community (e.g., sports coach) or was a stranger to the child. When the accused was a parent, other relative, or a non-relative connected to the child through the family, there was no difference in delay between males and females. Further, males were more vulnerable in the community, as evidenced by a higher proportion of accused community members with male than female complainants, even though males represented fewer than 25% of cases in the database. These findings may help explain inconsistencies in gender differences in delayed disclosure. Implications regarding education about child sexual abuse are discussed, with a focus on male victims.

KEYWORDS:

• Children
• youth
• victims
• assault
• disclosure

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Tina Bahareh, Bridgit Dean, Rachel Feng, Felicia Luo, Leanndria Halcro, Chelsey Lee, and Karen Mangat for assistance with data collection.

Disclosure of interest

Authors declare that they have no conflicts to report.

Ethical standards and informed consent

Given that this research relies only on publicly available information that is legally accessible, it was exempt from review by the Research Ethics Board (see article 2.2 of the Canadian Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans, 2014).

Notes

¹ Some data from cases to 2002 involving 2064 outcomes of HCSA only have been published elsewhere (e.g., Connolly, Price, & Read, 2006; Connolly & Read, 2003; Connolly & Read, 2006, 2007; Read, Connolly, & Welsh, 2006). Some data from cases to 2012 involving 4237 outcomes of CSA and HCSA have been published elsewhere (e.g., Coburn, Chong, & Connolly, 2017; Connolly et al., 2017; Giroux, Chong, Coburn, & Connolly, 2018; Vargen, Weinsheimer, Coburn, Chong, & Connolly, 2018).

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by funding for the 1^st author, Patricia I. Coburn (Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Canadian Graduate Scholarship, GXSO122) as well as the 6^th author, Deborah A. Connolly (Insight Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (435-2013-0291)).

Notes on contributors

Patricia I. Coburn

Patricia I. Coburn, M.A., is a Ph.D. candidate in the Experimental Law and Forensic Psychology program at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada. She is also an instructor in the Psychology Department at Kwantlen Polytechnic University; Surrey, BC, Canada.

Madison B. Harvey

Madison B. Harvey, B.A. (Hons), is a Masters student in the Experimental Law and Forensic Psychology program at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada.

Shelbie F. Anderson

Shelbie F. Anderson, B.A. (Hons), is a Masters student in the Experimental Law and Forensic Psychology program at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada.

Heather L. Price

Heather L. Price, Ph.D., is a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in the Department of Psychology at Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, BC, Canada.

Kristin Chong

Kristin Chong, M.A. attended graduate school in Law and Forensic Psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City, NY, USA and Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, BC, Canada.

Deborah A. Connolly

Deborah A. Connolly, Ph.D., LL. B. is a Professor and Chair in the Psychology Department at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada.