Abourjaily Ella, Guastaferro Kate, McElwee Kassidy, Connell Christian M
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Global Public Health, New York University, New York, NY, United States of America.
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network, Social Science Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2025 Jan 16;20(1):e0314459. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0314459. eCollection 2025.
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a significant public health concern, and there is a lack of universal, evidence-based primary prevention interventions that extend beyond a focus solely on children. Parents remain a consistently underutilized target for primary prevention efforts aimed at mitigating CSA despite their unique relationship and close proximity to their children. CSA risk is not confined to any specific demographic, and its effects on affected children are well-documented, significantly impacting numerous dimensions of their wellbeing. Thus, there is a clear and urgent need to address this gap in prevention strategies.
This study will use a quasi-experimental design (target N = 412) to examine potential gains in CSA-related awareness and intentions to use protective behaviors among parents who participate in a universal parent-focused CSA prevention workshop, Smarter Parents. Safer Kids., compared to those who do not. Participants in both the control (n = 206) and experimental group (n = 206) will complete 3 survey assessments: Survey 0 (baseline), Survey 1 (1-month), and Survey 2 (3-month follow-up). The experimental group will participate in a Smarter Parents. Safer Kids. workshop between the Surveys 0 and 1. We will use data collected from the baseline to measure potential mediators of CSA-related awareness and intention to use protective and preventive behaviors. In adjacent efforts to enhance the curriculum's reach with future dissemination and implementation, we will also explore the impact of recruitment materials and strategies on parental engagement.
Results of this study will advance efforts to implement parent-focused CSA prevention with a universal audience.
儿童性虐待（CSA）是一个重大的公共卫生问题，目前缺乏超越单纯关注儿童的普遍适用的、基于证据的一级预防干预措施。尽管父母与子女有着独特的关系且距离很近，但在旨在减轻儿童性虐待的一级预防工作中，他们一直是未得到充分利用的目标群体。儿童性虐待风险并不局限于任何特定人群，其对受影响儿童的影响已有充分记录，对他们幸福的多个方面产生了重大影响。因此，迫切需要填补预防策略中的这一空白。
本研究将采用准实验设计（目标样本量N = 412），以检验参与以父母为重点的普遍适用的儿童性虐待预防工作坊“更明智的父母，更安全的孩子”的父母与未参与者相比，在与儿童性虐待相关的意识以及使用保护行为的意愿方面的潜在提升。对照组（n = 206）和实验组（n = 206）的参与者都将完成3次调查评估：调查0（基线）、调查1（1个月后）和调查2（3个月随访）。实验组将在调查0和调查1之间参加“更明智的父母，更安全的孩子”工作坊。我们将使用从基线收集的数据来衡量与儿童性虐待相关的意识以及使用保护和预防行为意愿的潜在中介因素。在为未来的传播和实施扩大课程覆盖范围的相关工作中，我们还将探索招募材料和策略对父母参与度的影响。
本研究结果将推动针对广大受众实施以父母为重点的儿童性虐待预防工作。
