Cultural Issues in Disclosures of Child Sexual Abuse

“Among disclosure facilitators is being asked about abuse and given the opportunity to “tell” (McElavaney et al., 2014); workshops on abuse and sexual abuse, in particular, can facilitate disclosures (Ungar et al., 2009b); and using culturally sensitive probes and questions (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Such occurrences indicate that victim blame and assumptions are likely to influence beliefs and actions related to CSA (see Fontes & Plummer, 2010, for an overview of issues related to CSA and child disclosures).”

“The vast majority of child sexual abuse is not disclosed to anyone while it is happening, if ever, and is rarely investigated by any protective agencies (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Hebert et al., 2009).”

“notions of family dishonour linked to girls losing their virginity, or blaming of girls for inviting abuse) (219, 220).”

“Although sexual abuse occurs in all cultures and societies, certain cultural beliefs and values may contribute to family climates in which children can be abused or may promote silence and secrecy about abuse (Fontes & Plummer, 2010, 2012).”

“Such cultural factors might influence the prevalence rates as well as the willingness to disclose sexual abuse (Alaggia, 2010; Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…that in cultures that value or require virginity for girls/women prior to marriage, fears that the survivor will be deemed non-marriageable due to loss of her “honor” are likely to prevent survivors from seeking help (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Reitsema & Grietens, 2016; Xiao & Smith-Prince, 2015).”

“…Asia and elsewhere have discussed the difficulties respondents face in openly disclosing during personal interviews (Chan, 2011; Radford, Corral, Bradley, & Fisher, 2013) and emphasized the importance of creating a warm and supportive environment to encourage disclosure (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Fontes and Plummer (2010) discussed several cultural-religious factors in the context of CSA, including cultural norms that may facilitate abuse such as shame, taboos and modesty, women’s status, obligatory violence, and patriarchy.”

“…that CSA disclosure process is shaped by the cultural belief systems such as taboos about sexuality, patriarchal attitudes, and devaluation of women (Brazelton, 2015), and that in turn influence the familial climate which either hinders or allows children to disclose abuse (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Caretakers who receive disclosures or who suspect CSA have to make delicate decisions about whether to report their concerns to anyone or “handle” the abuse themselves (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Fontes and Plummer (2010) also caution that certain Latino cultural values may impede disclosure of sexual abuse or inhibit parents from talking about CSA, thus necessitating educational efforts with Latinos.”

“In our opinion, there is not enough attention in the area of child forensic interviewing to ensure culturally sensitive child forensic interviews by culturally competent professionals as interviewers (Benuto & Garrick, 2016; Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…cultural norms and economic conditions impact the incidence of abuse (Hatcher et al., in press); whether abuse is discovered, disclosed, or reported (Fontes & Plummer, 2010); and the experience of abuse survivors within systems (e.g., domestic violence survivors; Platt, Barton, & Freyd, 2009).”

“…disclosing a past traumatic experience to others could exert a positive effect on subsequent health and wellbeing” (cited in Lam, 2015, p. 734), but Fontes and Plummer (2010) point out that “children who disclose to their pets or other children, for example, may experience some catharsis but are…”

“…to in a confidential and non-judgemental setting, receive appropriate referrals to services in the local community and information in an accessible formats (Allimant & Ostapiej-Piatkowski, 2011; Singh, 2009), and be spoken to with a warm, respectful, and supportive tone (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Families that are deeply connected to their communities or religious institutions may face being shunned by their larger family and ethnic community if they let outsiders know about a child’s abuse (Alaggia, 2002; Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…differences is reassuring given evidence that CSA risk is higher in African-American and Hispanic youth compared to Whites and non-Hispanic youth, respectively (Sedlak et al., 2010), and given that CSA disclosure and reporting are each associated with cultural factors (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Furthermore, increasing numbers of cases of child injury or detected child needs are perceived as problems that can be overcome outside the Ultra-Orthodox community, while parents feel that seeking assistance from professionals outside their environment is more legitimate (Fontes and Plummer, 2010).”

“…through having committed sins in this or a previous life, promoting premature forgiveness without accompanying child protection, and enhancing abusers’ ability to claim a right to children’s bodies, among other mechanisms, some of which may have yet to be identified (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Male self-disclosure is inhibited by feelings of extreme anger, withdrawal, and suppression, often accompanied by later drug use (Dhaliwal, Gauzas, Antonowicz, & Ross, 1996; Spataro, Moss, & Wells, 2001), and fear of being perceived as a potential perpetrator (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…culture is scarce (London, Bruck, Ceci, & Shuman, 2005), although some research is now exploring cultural factors, including values, that may influence whether children will disclose and how much they will disclose about sexual abuse in the context of forensic interviews (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“For instance, researchers have found a relationship between level of acculturation and disclosure (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…that adults tend to ignore or fail to recognise children’s attempts to resist or limit their exploitation, as researchers have found occurs (see Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Kitzinger, 1997; Wurtele, 2008), since the dominant adult-centred discourses do not recognise children’s strategies or…”

“However, cultural factors, such as shame, embarrassment, beliefs about modesty and chastity, religious beliefs, and male dominance, may prevent children and families from disclosing such experiences (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Families that are deeply connected to their communities or religious institutions may face being shunned by their extended families and/or ethnic communities if they allow them to learn of a child’s abuse (Alaggia, 2002; Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Perceptions of whether behavior is abusive, and the willingness to disclose abusive experiences, may also vary across sociocultural contexts (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…discusses how cultural context is a core component in sexual abuse victims’ lives including adults (e.g., Ahrens et al., 2010) and particularly children (e.g., Fontes et al., 2001; Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Graham et al., 2016; Haboush & Alyan, 2013; Reid et al., 2014; Wang & Heppner, 2011).”

“Relevant norms to be considered include how issues such as shame, respect, taboos around talking about sex, and gender relations operate in particular cultural contexts (Fontes and Plummer 2010).”

“…particularly resistant to change and independent governance (Smith & Freyd, 2014), that cultural factors also predispose CSA to silence and cover-ups (Fontes & Plummer, 2010), and that children generally are at an age and developmental stage of profound vulnerability at the typical age of onset.”

“Only a few studies have focused on non-White and/or non-Western survivors (e.g., Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Kanukollu & Mahalingam, 2011; Mason & Kennedy, 2014).”

“Taboos; sexual education; values like virginity, patriarchy, respect, and obedience; and the possible consequences of breaking social rules and expectations may strongly influence the likelihood of disclosure (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Gilligan & Akhtar, 2006; Haboush & Alyan, 2013).”

“As mentioned previously, cultural norms based on what is acceptable to share outside of the family may influence how much information will be shared with the worker (Conner & Grote, 2008; Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Zayas et al., 2009).”

“Fontes and Plummer (2010) have shown the value of identifying and eliminating organizational and systematic barriers in order to increase the capacity to protect children against CSA.”

“Also, culture and cultural norms can play an important role in how one understands and resolves child sexual victimization (Fontes and Plummer, 2010; Marsella, Johnson, Watson, & Grycznski, 2008).”

“…memories and how they are used to communicate with adults as well as how situations involving human interaction are remembered (Cacuci et al., 2021; Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Hope et al., 2022; Nelson & Fivush, 2004; Qi & Roberts, 2018; Wang, 2004, 2011, 2021; Wang & Ross, 2005, as well as others).”

“Haredi society is in constant interaction with the secular environment (Fass & Lazar, 2011), and seeking assistance from professionals outside their community is more legitimate than in the past (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“In other cases, family members may be at least somewhat aware of the abuse, but may prioritize family preservation for reasons specific to the family’s socioeconomic status, ethnic background, or cultural and religious values (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“…blamed due to their attire and behavior, mirroring the assumption that “good” girls might not be abused, which reflects the gender struggle model (Fontes & Plummer, 2010) and international research, such as that from Kenya, the United Kingdom, and the United States (Ayala, Kotary, & Hetz,…”

“Most of our collective knowledge on childhood disclosures of IV has focused on sexual violence, with a limited few studies focused on child sexual IV in the sporting environment (Fontes and Plummer 2010; Gillard et al. 2022; Parent 2011).”

“They note that by understanding specific cultural features of a group, we could overcome various barriers in tackling CSA, such as CSA disclosure (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Korbin, 2002).”

“As responses to CSA disclosure have been found to vary according to culture (Fontes & Plummer, 2010), this is important information to consider in understanding contextual factors in siblings’ experiences.”

“Fontes and Plummer (2010) suggest that blaming karma for child abuse stigmatizes victims and their families. They cite Luo (2000) work with Chinese collegeeducated rape survivors, arguing that the desire to end a vicious karmic cycle, rather than extend it into the next lifetime, deters families from prosecuting.”

“; Fontes & Plummer, 2010, p. 497).”

“notions of family dishonour linked to girls losing their virginity, or blaming of girls for inviting abuse) (219, 220).”

“In several cultures, girls or women who are not virgins are considered “unmarriagable,” hence the significance of an “intact hymen” to some parents (see Fontes & Plummer, 2010 , for a review of cultural issues relevant to CSA disclosures).”

“As a result, many children never disclose the abuse or they disclose later in life when they are older (Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Different cultures understand sexuality, including sexual abuse, in different ways (Fontes, Cruz, & Tabachnick, 2001; Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Reid, Reddock, & Nickenig, 2014; Thoburn, Chand, & Procter, 2005).”

“Irrespective of these serious outcomes, most victims of CSA do not report their abuse to the law enforcement agencies due to cultural beliefs and practices (Boakye, 2009; Böhm, 2017; Bridgewater, 2016; Fontes & Plummer, 2010).”

“Studies suggest that Hispanic communities are more inclined to blame the victims of sexual abuse and that Hispanic victims report greater psychological distress.(32) Latinos’ cultural constructs of family attachments (familismo) and respect (respeto) for authority figures suggest that it may be especially difficult fo…”

“Attending to the specific elements raised by the participants (God, prohibition, and stigma), in addition to other elements in the literature (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Tishelman & Fontes, 2017), will allow a more context competent approach to support children’s disclosure of sexual abuse.”

“…a perpetrator from one’s family when they financially provide for the family), religious background (e.g., shame related to intrafamilial CSA; Fontes & Plummer, 2010), and other systemic factors should be taken into account when the possibility of CSA disclosure is addressed in the context…”

“For Jews, there is the fear that the reporting of CSA will be used against the Jewish community (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Neustein & Lesher, 2008).”

“…include considering CSA as a taboo topic, lacking trust that the potential disclosure recipient will respond appropriately, and experiencing negative emotions such as shame, guilt, and embarrassment (Alaggia et al., 2019; Collin-Vézina et al., 2015; Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Jensen et al., 2005).”

“The myths that an abused child becomes an abuser or the stigma of homosexuality also contribute to the maintenance of secrecy (Fontes & Plummer, 2010; Leach et al., 2016).”