Cited by 20Child Abuse and TraumaPsychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual OffendingMilitary, Security, and Education Studies

Psychological and Emotional Harms of Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in Children Under the Age of 18: A Systematic Review of the Evidence

Open access
Page, Sabrina, McFeeters, Ashleigh, Rani, Nurul Hasyimah Mat, Slater, Carleigh, Stevenson, James, Quayle, Ethel, Fry, Deborah·2025·Child Abuse Review

Abstract

Online child sexual exploitation and abuse (OCSEA) is a growing public health concern, with significant psychological and emotional impacts on victims. As digital communication evolves, the complexity and prevalence of OCSEA increase, highlighting the need for a comprehensive understanding of its effects on children. This systematic review examines the psychological and emotional harms experienced by victims under 18, with the goal of improving prevention and intervention strategies. This review also explores the relationship between specific forms of OCSEA and their psychological outcomes, informing future policies and practices. Following Cochrane guidelines and PRISMA standards, this review covers studies from 1989 onwards, including primary, secondary and mixed‐methods research, as well as grey literature. Studies reporting psychological or emotional harm due to OCSEA victimisation are included. Data extraction and quality assessment were performed using standardised tools, and a narrative synthesis was employed to summarise the findings. This review enhances understanding of the psychological and emotional impacts of OCSEA, supporting the development of effective strategies for prevention and intervention.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1002/car.70048

Cites

84 of 84 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

We couldn’t retrieve this paper’s full text, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Bespoke AI-generated content acquires value as criminal currency within offender economies, extending circulation and survivor-harm dynamics.

    “Such bespoke content also acquires value as criminal currency within offender economies (IWF 2023), extending the circulation and survivor-harm dynamics already documented in previous literature (Page et al. 2025; Salter et al. 2025; Schmidt et al. 2024).”
  • Prior work has shown that CSAM harms are not limited to the moment of original abuse but continue through circulation, viewing, downloading, recontextualisation and re-exposure.

    “Prior work has shown that CSAM harms are not limited to the moment of original abuse but continue through circulation, viewing, downloading, recontextualisation and re-exposure (Page et al. 2025; Salter et al. 2025; Schmidt et al. 2024).”

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

1 of the 85 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Page, S., McFeeters, A., Rani, N. H. M., Slater, C., Stevenson, J., Quayle, E., & Fry, D.
Affiliations
University of Edinburgh (GB)
Corresponding author
Page, Sabrina
Venue
Child Abuse Review
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2025-06-27
Volume
34
Issue
4
ISSN
  • 0952-9136 (ISSN-L)
  • 1099-0852
OpenAlex
W4411743782
Cited by
20
References
85
Citations by year
2026: 16 · 2025: 4
FWCI
4.44
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Child Abuse Review (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
University of Edinburgh
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Military, Security, and Education Studies
Keywords
online child sexual exploitation, child sexual abuse, psychological harm, emotional harm, child victims, intervention strategies

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review