Child abuse prevention programs became prevalent in the late 1970s and 80s due to increased awareness of the occurrence of sexual abuse and the adverse effects such abuse has on children (Plummer, 1999). A proliferation of research publications on the topic, a few high-profile cases, and more media coverage facilitated this process and led to the recognition of the importance of providing children with tools that would help to prevent their victimization. Many early prevention programs were adapted from rape prevention programs for adult women. They focused primarily on teaching children to be wary of strangers and also implicitly placed responsibility on children for their own protection through the teaching of firm refusal techniques (e.g., ‘just say no’, ‘say no and go’) (Rimer & Prager, 2016; Sanderson, 2004).  In general, child abuse prevention programs have evolved away from solely focusing on these ideas to become more comprehensive in scope and to address more of the realities associated with abuse (e.g., the perpetrator is much more likely to be a family member or a known person than a stranger).

A number of key messages are addressed across prevention programs. Most of these are relevant for the prevention of abuse and include: emphasizing that the abuse is not the child’s fault; the perpetrator can be anyone, including someone who is known to the child; that there is secrecy involved in sexual abuse; and that the child should tell a trusted adult about what happened. Some messages have become outdated and there are significant concerns surrounding them. Examples of these include emphasizing the difference between “good” and “bad” touch and teaching the child to resist or refuse the abuse.

1) The teaching of refusal techniques

In an abusive situation, it may be very difficult for a child to resist the authority of an adult, especially when the adult is someone with whom the child trusts and has a relationship (Rimer & Prager, 2016; Sanderson, 2004). In fact, depending on the circumstances, actively resisting may be impossible and can lead to severe consequences for the child. For example, it may lead to an escalation of violence. Finally, putting the responsibility of resisting on the child can lead to self-blame and shame when they fail to prevent the abuse from happening. Educators teaching prevention programs to children need to emphasize that regardless of whether or not children can resist, the abuse is never their fault. Although all children have the right to say no and to refuse any form of abuse, it is important to let them know that in certain circumstances, it may be difficult or unsafe to resist and that this is okay. The important message is to get help from a trusted adult or to tell someone about what happened. As facilitators of child abuse prevention programs, individuals also need to familiarize themselves with the complexity of adult-child power dynamics and the powerful effect adult authority has on children.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

The PEP Talk programs focus on building healthy peer relationships and facilitating the establishment of safe personal boundaries. They recognize that it is not always realistic or safe for a child to resist abuse from an adult perpetrator. The key messages in these scenarios are for the child to get help from a trusted adult and that the child is not to be blamed when s/he is unable to resist.

2) Distinguishing between “good” touch and “bad” touch

Distinguishing between “good” touch and “bad” touch is a key component of many prevention programs (Rimer & Prager, 2016; Sanderson, 2004; Topping & Barron, 2009). This does not acknowledge the fact that some forms of child abuse do not involve touch at all. Labelling certain types of touch as being “bad” may impede disclosure as children may feel ashamed and internalize blame for not recognizing these types of touch as abuse. Furthermore, it is also difficult to concretely define what is “good” or “bad” touch. For example, would touch only be considered “bad” if it involved the genitals? This would not address the fact that some “good” touch may be used by perpetrators as part of the grooming process for abuse. Instead, emphasis should be placed on having children attend to how a touch makes them feel (e.g., paying attention to their ‘uh-oh’ feeling when a touch makes them feel bad or uncomfortable). It is also imperative to emphasize that there are no secrets around touch and that all kinds of touch can be talked about.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

In an abusive context, touch is often associated with secrecy. The key messages of the PEP Talk programs are that there are not secrets around touch and that all touch can be talked about. Children are encouraged to pay attention to how a touch makes them feel, to develop language around how to communicate these feelings, and on getting help from a trusted adult when a touch gives them an ‘uh-oh’ feeling and/or when they have been asked to keep a touch a secret.

3) Developmental appropriateness

The developmental appropriateness of prevention program content and methods of delivery is critical to its effectiveness with children (Kenny, et al., 2008; Rimer & Prager, 2016; Sanderson, 2004; Scholes, et al., 2012; Topping & Barron, 2009). Program creators and facilitators must be educated about child development to ensure the materials developed and the modality of presentation are appropriate for children across the developmental spectrum (i.e., early childhood – middle childhood – late childhood – adolescence). For example, young children think in concrete terms and are not able, due to cognitive restrictions to think abstractly about concepts, whereas these abilities generally improve in later years. Without this awareness, there is a high risk of developing prevention program materials that are too difficult for young children to grasp.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

To ensure prevention program materials and delivery are developmentally appropriate, Boost has developed three programs for different age groups. The PEP Talk Primary program is designed for Grades 1 to 3 whereas the PEP Talk Junior program is for Grades 4 to 6 and the PEP Talk Intermediate program has been created for youth. The modality of delivery, program content, and language used in each program have been tailored to the age group at which the program is aimed.

4) Debunking the ‘stranger danger’ myth

Early prevention programs focused primarily on alerting children to the danger of being approached by a stranger and how to resist in those situations (Rimer & Prager, 2016; Sanderson, 2004). Children may also be confused by the concept of a ‘stranger’ and some associate the idea of a stranger with stereotypical characteristics of being male, looking ‘evil’, and wearing black. Overall, the ideas of a ‘stranger lurking in the park’ and/or ‘stranger danger’ do not apply in most cases of abuse as child abuse is perpetrated primarily by individuals known to the child (Ogrodnik, 2010; Paine & Hansen, 2002; Public Healthy Agency of Canada, 2008). Although many prevention programs today do not focus solely on warning children about strangers, it is imperative that they clearly convey the message that sometimes someone familiar to the child can still make them feel unsafe or uncomfortable and that they should get help from a trusted adult when this happens. Children may not recognize that it is okay to speak up about abuse perpetrated by someone they know, which can act as a barrier to disclosure (McAlinden, 2006; Paine & Hansen, 2002; Craven, et al., 2006). It is also important to recognize that in the case of child sexual abuse, the perpetrator often engages the child victim and individuals in their immediate social environment in a grooming process that makes detection of abuse and disclosure difficult. Prevention program facilitators, adults in caregiving roles for children, and children themselves (as developmentally appropriate) should be provided information about the grooming process.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

The PEP Talk programs do not place any emphasis on the idea of ‘stranger danger’ or on teaching children techniques for protecting themselves against strangers. All three PEP Talk programs recognize that abuse often occurs at the hands of perpetrators who are familiar to the children. It is emphasized that there are no secrets about touch and that even if someone familiar to children is asking them to keep a touch a secret, they should get help from a trusted adult. Children are encouraged to get help if anyone makes them feel unsafe or gives them the “uh-oh” feeling.

5) Healthy sexuality

Avoiding the discussion of sexuality can have significant negative consequences. Children who have little or no exposure to sex education may regard sexual touching to be acceptable and may be at increased risk due to sex offenders’ reported preferences for victims to be naïve and lacking in sexual knowledge (Elliot, et al., 1995; Kenny et al., 2008; Sanderson, 2004; Wurtele & Owens, 1997). When children are provided with developmentally appropriate sex education, this can help them communicate more effectively about experiences of abuse, such as inappropriate touching. Furthermore, positive discussions about one’s sexuality, including the accurate labelling of one’s genitalia, can help children develop healthy sexual identities and reduce potential negative feelings and embarrassment in the disclosure process.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

In the PEP Talk Intermediate program, healthy sexuality is discussed in the context of a healthy body image, the meaning of consent, healthy relationships, and establishing safe boundaries. For the PEP Talk Primary and PEP Talk Junior programs, information is provided to facilitators on how to incorporate sexuality into discussions and tips are also provided to caregivers on how to create an environment at home that is conducive and open to discussions about sexuality. For example, topics in these discussions can include identifying body parts and consent around touch. It is critical that program facilitators, educators, and caregivers work together to create an environment whereby children can learn about sexuality, feel safe to approach trusted adults about the topic, and can get help from them in a distressing event.

6) Better teacher/facilitator training and active caregiver involvement

Teachers generally have the most contact with children outside of the home environment and it is imperative that they receive appropriate training with regards to delivering prevention programs and responding to disclosures of abuse (Sanderson, 2004; Scholes, et al., 2012; Topping & Barron, 2009). Most importantly, teachers and all individuals in education and/or caregiving roles need to be aware of their legal duty to report any type of suspected child abuse. Furthermore, they need adequate knowledge about the effects of child abuse, possible indicators of abuse, and how to respond to disclosures to ensure that they are playing an effective role in the prevention and intervention of abuse. Although teachers may have knowledge and experience in classroom management, they require more specialist information and training to facilitate prevention programs and to respond appropriately to children who may turn to them when seeking help from abuse.

Caregiver involvement has also been found to facilitate effectiveness of prevention programs (Kenny, et al., 2008; Plummer, 1999; Sanderson, 2004; Scholes, et al., 2012; Topping & Barron, 2009). Like educators, it is also necessary to provide caregivers with appropriate information and tools to help them effectively support children in the prevention and intervention of abuse. For example, caregivers need to be informed about indicators of abuse and need to know how to respond to all types of indicators and disclosures. Caregivers can also be provided with advice on how to establish a supportive environment for children to approach them with discussions about difficult topics.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

The facilitator guides for all three PEP Talk programs have been designed to ensure facilitators are provided with the most recent and comprehensive information around how to deliver the prevention program, including important details on the duty to report and how to respond in the event of disclosure or suspicions of abuse. Research on the effects of child abuse and on the importance of each theme for prevention from the PEP Talk Primary and PEP Talk Junior programs are also provided to give facilitators an appropriate context for delivering the programs. Facilitators are also encouraged to explore other valuable resources relating to the topic of child abuse that will be helpful when generally working with children. They can be found here on the Boost CYAC Learning Centre website. 

The facilitator guides also include resources for caregivers on how to talk to children about sexuality and on why such discussions are important in child abuse prevention efforts. Furthermore, letter templates are provided to allow for effective communication between facilitators and caregivers regarding the purpose and importance of delivering the prevention programs. If caregivers are interested in more information on what the Boost CYAC Learning Centre does for children, they can find more information here.

7) Addressing diversity

Aside from ensuring that prevention program content is developmentally appropriate, it is also important that programs also address specific populations of children. For example, some of these considerations include children with different needs, gender differences that need to be addressed in prevention messages, and making sure that content is culturally responsive to a diversity of children. It is important to recognize that a ‘one program fits all’ model would restrict access for a lot of children; a key component of the effectiveness of prevention programs is to ensure that it is appropriate for its specific audiences.

How PEP Talk programs address this:

Suggestions on how to adapt an activity to accommodate for specific populations of children have been provided for each theme.
Effective Components of Prevention Programs
Throughout the years, researchers have conducted a number of meta-analyses on the effectiveness of child abuse prevention programs, with the majority of the programs assessed targeting child sexual abuse. In general, there is some evidence supporting the effectiveness of prevention programs (Rudolph & Zimmer-Gembeck, 2016; Walsh, et al., 2015; Finkelhor, 2009; Topping & Barron, 2009; Finkelhor, 2007; Davis & Gidycz, 2000). There are a number of components that have been identified to be associated with effective programs and these are outlined in more detail in the table below. For example, programs that are developmentally appropriate, promote active participation in the form of modelling and rehearsal, and involve three or more sessions have been identified with better outcomes in terms of children learning key prevention concepts. Standardized evaluations of prevention programs should also be regularly conducted to assess their relevance and effectiveness.