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The literature on child sexual abuse (CSA) has contributed significantly to the understanding of its characteristics, epidemiology, and consequences. Considerably less attention has been dedicated, however, to the subjective experiences of the abused children, and more specifically to their experiences of pain. The current study explored the way children perceive and describe pain during and shortly following incidents of sexual abuse. The sample was comprised of 35 transcripts of forensic interviews following alleged CSA. Thematic analysis of the children’s narratives identified three themes: (a) pain during the abusive incidents, described using words indicating its intensity and quality; (b) pain shortly after the abusive incidents, including weeks later, and (c) pain as embedded within the complex dynamic with perpetrator. The children struggled to localize the pain, mainly using words such as “inside” and “deep.” Moreover, they testified that in the course of the abusive incidents, they were often silenced when trying to communicate their pain to the perpetrators. The children’s narratives provided us with a unique opportunity to learn about the pain not only during the abusive incidents but also following it. Additionally, children described suffering from pain in areas that were not directly injured during the CSA incidents, mainly referring to the head, abdomen and legs. The discussion addresses the potential intervening factors in peritraumatic CSA pain, as well as its potential links with chronic post-traumatic physical and mental morbidity. This study illuminates the necessity to address the complicated links between short- and long-term physical, emotional, cognitive, and interpersonal manifestations of CSA.

Child maltreatment (CM) has received much research attention in recent years, leading to the enormous development of services provided to children worldwide. However, although the literature in the field of trauma studies recognizes that responses to trauma are of central importance, for a variety of reasons, the research on this subject is sparse. The current systematic literature review was therefore designed to characterize and analyze the existing knowledge on children’s responses to CM, while putting in focus all possible responses that will appear in the identified manuscripts. Key databases were explored using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, and only six studies were identified as relevant to the focus of the current study. Utilizing thematic analysis, the results addressed four main themes: the studies’ methodologies, the terminology and responses that were explored in these studies, the abuse-related factors and contexts that were taken into account, and the consequences for the children (of their responses to the maltreatment). A key conclusion from this review is that concepts in this area, as well as theory, are considerably lacking. Promoting the development of theory regarding children’s responses to CM is urgently needed, as it will greatly impact clinical intervention, legal investigation, and the development of prevention programs.

Child abuse (CA) is a global problem that has received attention from policymakers, researchers, and practitioners. The majority of studies have focused on the phenomenon’s epidemiology and consequences, alongside groundbreaking writing on victims and perpetrators. The concept of others who are present during the abuse is understudied and underdeveloped, despite its vital importance in better understanding children’s experiences as well as their disclosure. The current study was designed to spotlight the phenomenon of others' presence, beyond the victims and perpetrators, during child abuse incidents. The current literature review was guided by a scoping review strategy. The results revealed scant empirical data, with only 15 studies meeting the inclusion criteria of the study. The articles that met the inclusion criteria addressed other people’s presence during CA incidents, were published in peer-reviewed journals, and were written in the English language. These articles’ analyses addressed the relations of the survivors with these others, pointing mainly to two identities: accidental bystanders who are not familiar with the child and family members of the child. The results provided a glance into the process that accidental bystanders go through during the abuse and the meaning of their presence for those who are family members. The perceptions and experiences of the children themselves with respect to the presence of the others during the abuse are noticeably lacking. The key conclusion from the current scoping review pinpoints the urgent need to advance the empirical knowledge on the presence of others during incidents of child abuse, especially others who are familiar to the children and are a significant part of their lives. The conceptualization of this phenomenon has the potential to better adapt prevention and intervention efforts in the field of child abuse.