Two Roads, One Destination: Community and Organizational Mechanisms for Contextualizing Child Abuse Prevention in Australia and the UK

Firmin, Carlene; Rayment-McHugh, Susan

doi:10.1007/s42448-020-00049-3

Cited by 9 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 38 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…On the other hand, the contextual clinical practice in this case study highlighted a need to focus prevention efforts on “place”, in addition to “people”. Consistent with the contextual safeguarding approach developed in the UK (Firmin, 2018, 2017), the clinical assessments in this case study highlighted a need to create safer environments for young people in these communities, rather than simply safer individuals (Firmin and Rayment-McHugh, 2020). This has far-reaching implications for preventing youth sexual violence and abuse (YSVA) on a larger scale, creating new opportunities for primary and secondary prevention, such as reducing abuse precipitators and/or opportunities to offend.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 57%

“…This contextual lens should not replace a focus on the "person" in clinical practice. Instead, these contextual activities should augment and extend practice through an added focus on "place" (Firmin and Rayment-McHugh, 2020). Therefore, this is about promoting a more comprehensive clinical and preventive agenda.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Bystander interventions could also enhance informal guardianship, including among peers. Firmin and Rayment-McHugh (2020) report promising outcomes from pilot projects promoting a contextual safeguarding agenda of this nature.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unsurprisingly, calls have been made to adopt a contextual approach to abuse prevention (Firmin, 2018). However, despite subsequent innovations in the prevention field (Firmin and Rayment-McHugh, 2020), clinical and rehabilitation services largely maintain an individually-focussed agenda (Smallbone et al , 2013a). This individually-focussed approach has origins in psychiatry and psychology, and in popular practice models adapted from those of adult offenders.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Beyond the justice system, education for young people, addressing victimisation experiences and managing pornography use are also advocated (McKibbin et al , 2017). Contextual safeguarding initiatives, such as those reported by Firmin and Rayment-McHugh (2020), remain an exception.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Introducing a contextual lens to assessment and intervention for young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviour: an Australian case study

Rayment-McHugh

Adams

McKillop

2021

JCS

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose Intervention for young people engaging in harmful sexual behaviour has been largely based on individual-level conceptualisations and assessment. Prevention efforts reflect this individual-focus, relying primarily on offender management and justice responses. Risk of sexual abuse, however, is often situated outside the individual, within the broader social and physical systems in which young people are embedded. Lack of recognition for how contextual factors contribute to sexual abuse narrows the focus of prevention and intervention, overlooking the very contexts and circumstances in which this behaviour occurs. This paper aims to demonstrate the utility of contextual practice with young people who sexually harm, and implications for prevention. Design/methodology/approach An Australian case study is used to showcase the “why”, “what” and “how” of a contextual approach to assessment and treatment of young people who sexually harm. Findings Contextual approaches extend the focus of clinical practice beyond the individual to include the physical and social contexts that may contribute to risk. Adding a contextual lens broadens the approach to assessment, affording new opportunities to tailor the intervention to local contextual dynamics, and identifying new targets for primary and secondary prevention. Originality/value This is the first known attempt to extend understanding of contextual approaches to clinical assessment and intervention for young people who sexually harm, using a case study method. The case study showcases contextual assessment and intervention processes that challenge traditional thinking and practice in this field. Importantly, the case study also reveals new opportunities for primary and secondary prevention that emerge through this contextual clinical practice.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 57%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Introducing a contextual lens to assessment and intervention for young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviour: an Australian case study

Rayment-McHugh

Adams

McKillop

2021

JCS

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Context matters: Conceptualising and operationalising the contextual prevention of child sexual abuse

Rayment‐McHugh,

McKillop,

Adams

et al. 2024

Child Abuse Review

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There is growing recognition of the contextual dynamics of child sexual abuse, with a developing evidence base supporting it, sparking calls to ensure prevention efforts are contextualised. Contextual approaches extend the focus of prevention beyond the individual, to include immediate situations, and the physical and social contexts in which abuse occurs. Although academic and industry support for contextual approaches is gaining momentum, there is no consistent definition of contextual prevention nor operational clarity currently available to inform research, policy and practice. This contributes to a lack of policy guidance and practice consistency; also impeding much needed evaluation research, and likely slowing scholarly and practice uptake. In this article, we address this important gap. Based on a critical review of relevant literature, we propose a conceptual definition of contextual prevention and its operationalisation and provide a framework and guidance for policymakers and practitioners tasked with protecting children from child sexual abuse.

show abstract

Rural Children’s Well-Being in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspectives from Children in the Midwestern United States

Newland

Mourlam

Strouse

2022

Int. Journal on Child Malt.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Children in rural areas are more likely to experience a variety of risk factors that increase their vulnerability to physical and mental health disparities. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model (1986) was used as a framework for understanding rural children’s perceptions and well-being within multiple interactive contexts during the COVID-19 pandemic. This phenomenological study was designed to explore rural children’s perceptions of their well-being and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their contexts and well-being. This sub-study of the Children’s Understandings of Well-Being project followed the standard qualitative interview protocol with additional prompts related to the pandemic. Rural children (age 8 to 18, N = 72) from the Midwestern United States participated from March 2020 to November 2021 via teleconferencing. Phenomenological analyses of transcripts focused on the essence of children’s understanding of well-being and their perception of the impact of the pandemic on their contexts and well-being. Each transcript was coded by author 1 and verified by author 2, and discrepancies were identified, discussed, and resolved. The third author served as an external auditor to enhance trustworthiness. First-cycle coding focused on children’s specific references to well-being experiences during COVID-19. Second-cycle selective coding focused on specific well-being experiences and contexts that were impacted by COVID-19. These codes were used to develop two broad themes, “Well This Kinda Stinks, But We Just Adapt” and “ Safety Means Something Different to Me Now .” The meaning of themes and subthemes are explored, with implications for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.

show abstract

Two Roads, One Destination: Community and Organizational Mechanisms for Contextualizing Child Abuse Prevention in Australia and the UK

Cited by 9 publications

References 38 publications

Introducing a contextual lens to assessment and intervention for young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviour: an Australian case study

Introducing a contextual lens to assessment and intervention for young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviour: an Australian case study

Context matters: Conceptualising and operationalising the contextual prevention of child sexual abuse

Rural Children’s Well-Being in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspectives from Children in the Midwestern United States

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About