Child Sexual Abuse: the Detrimental Impact of its Specific Features

Child Sexual Abuse in South Africa: A Criminological Case Study Analysis Exploring a Life-Course-Persistent Pathway for Serial Rape and Murder

“…During the assessment, the participant came across as being emotionally numb, until the last session, when he became tearful and emotional when reflecting upon his own sexual abuse he had suffered as a child and whilst living on the street (Maciel andBasto-Pereira, 2020: 2020). A prior history of CSA has been linked with sex trading (i.e.…”

“…According to the offender, he lost control over his own behaviour and this was fuelled by low frustration tolerance that he experienced (Bartol and Bartol, 2014: 369). It is also imperative to take note that the participant admitted to having been sexually abused as a child (Maciel andBasto-Pereira, 2020: 2119), when he was living on the street (survival sex). The participant lamented: "When I ran away and lived on the streets when I was still a child -I was taught by other street-kids to engage in sex for money to survive."…”

“…In this regard, 40% of the boys in the aforementioned study experienced a lifetime prevalence (from early childhood through to adolescence) of forced exposure to sexual acts. Lastly, it was also indicated in the study that posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, parental substance abuse, poor parent-child bonds and relationships, and poor parental monitoring and supervision played a role in the respondents' exposure and experiences of CSA (Artz et al, 2018: 791-792;Maciel and Basto-Pereira, 2020: 2117-2129.…”

“…It may also be conceivable that the ineffective resolution of early traumatic encounters for child victims might create long-term effects, such as survivors of CSA adopting feelings of despair, insufficiency, subservience to others, and incapability to control their own actions in the real world (Maciel and Basto-Pereira, 2020: 2117-2019. The aforesaid feelings and incapacities are expected to culminate in situations in which the affected child victims depict a lack of psychosocial skills and challenges in social relationships (Maciel and Basto-Pereira, 2020: 2124-2128. More particularly, dysfunctions in intimate sexual relations, which, in turn, underpin a sense of meagreness and subsidiarity may result in loneliness and withdrawal for the child victim (Maciel and Basto-Pereira, 2020: 299-300;Maniglio, 2010Maniglio, : 2117Maniglio, -2028.…”

“…It may be plausible that in sexual murderers, the amalgamation between early traumatic experiences, more specifically child abuse, social withdrawal, and/or unhealthy sexual desires, may be contributory to the development of deviant sexual fantasies that gradually progress, simultaneously increases, and convert into reality (Maniglio, 2010: 299–300). It may also be conceivable that the ineffective resolution of early traumatic encounters for child victims might create long-term effects, such as survivors of CSA adopting feelings of despair, insufficiency, subservience to others, and incapability to control their own actions in the real world (Maciel and Basto-Pereira, 2020: 2117–2019). The aforesaid feelings and incapacities are expected to culminate in situations in which the affected child victims depict a lack of psychosocial skills and challenges in social relationships (Maciel and Basto-Pereira, 2020: 2124–2128).…”