Pereda Noemí, Tamarit Josep M, Suárez-Soto Elizabeth
Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
Studies of Law and Political Science, Open University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain.
J Child Sex Abus. 2025 Oct;34(7):757-775. doi: 10.1080/10538712.2025.2541104. Epub 2025 Jul 30.
Research on the prevalence of child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church has been limited in Europe. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and characteristics of religious-related sexual abuse in a broad sample of the Spanish population, placing it within the broader context of sexual violence against children and adolescents.
Among the survey respondents, 52.3% were women ( = 4,188) and 47.7% were men ( = 3,825). Participants ranged in age from 18 to 100 years ( = 51.5, = 17.6), with the majority ( = 7,154; 89.5%) born in Spain.
The results indicated that 11.7% of respondents were victims of child sexual abuse, with a higher prevalence among women (8.6%) compared to men (3.1%). A total of 1.1% of respondents reported having experienced religious-related sexual abuse, primarily in religious educational institutions or churches, with 0.6% identifying a Catholic clergyman as the perpetrator. The majority of ecclesiastical abuse involved physical contact, and in many cases, the abuse was recurrent. Victims of religious-related abuse reported more significant spiritual consequences compared to those abused in other contexts.
The findings highlight patterns of sexual abuse similar to those observed in other countries, with a notable prevalence of abuse in male Catholic schools during the Franco dictatorship era.
在欧洲，针对天主教会内儿童性虐待患病率的研究有限。本研究旨在估计西班牙广大人群中与宗教相关的性虐待的患病率及特征，并将其置于针对儿童和青少年性暴力这一更广泛背景中。
在调查对象中，52.3%为女性（n = 4188），47.7%为男性（n = 3825）。参与者年龄在18岁至100岁之间（M = 51.5，SD = 17.6），大多数（n = 7154；89.5%）出生于西班牙。
结果表明，11.7%的受访者曾是儿童性虐待的受害者，女性患病率（8.6%）高于男性（3.1%）。共有1.1%的受访者报告曾经历与宗教相关的性虐待，主要发生在宗教教育机构或教堂，0.6%的人指出犯罪者是天主教神职人员。大多数教会性虐待涉及身体接触，而且在许多情况下，虐待是反复发生的。与在其他环境中遭受虐待的受害者相比，与宗教相关虐待的受害者报告的精神后果更为严重。
研究结果凸显了与其他国家类似的性虐待模式，在佛朗哥独裁统治时期，男性天主教学校中存在显著的虐待现象。
