Review of Sexual Abuse Against Children Perpetrators and Forms of Sexual Abuse : A Literature Review

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-571-3_13How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Child sexual abuse; perpetrators; forms of abuse

Abstract

Child sexual abuse is a serious global issue and represents one of the most harmful forms of violence against children. As the next generation, children’s physical, psychological, and social well-being is essential; thus, any threat to their welfare directly impacts their overall quality of life. Sexual abuse not only destroys a child’s future but also constitutes a multidimensional problem that affects families, communities, and public health systems. This study aims to examine child sexual abuse with a specific focus on identifying perpetrators and the various forms of abuse. A literature review was conducted by searching articles published between 2021 and 2025 in reputable international journals indexed in ScienceDirect, PubMed, and ProQuest. The search strategy used specific keywords related to child sexual abuse. The findings indicate that perpetrators are not limited to strangers; rather, the most concerning cases involve individuals within the child’s immediate environment, such as family members, teachers, and community figures. Various forms of abuse were identified, ranging from non-contact acts such as exposure and verbal harassment to severe physical abuse including rape, which can result in long-term trauma. The review highlights that effective prevention requires a multilevel approach involving intrapersonal factors (knowledge, threat perception, and children’s readiness), interpersonal factors (parent and teacher support), and community factors (school policies and safe social environments). Therefore, a comprehensive model of child reproductive health promotion—one that is culturally relevant and rooted in strong social support—is urgently needed to strengthen children’s ability to recognize and prevent sexual abuse. This review is expected to provide a foundation for developing evidence-based interventions and stronger preventive policies at the family, school, and community levels.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Elvika Fit Ari Shanti
AU  - Endang Sutisna Sulaeman
AU  - Anik Lestari
AU  - Aditya Nanda Priyatama
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/06
TI  - Review of Sexual Abuse Against Children Perpetrators and Forms of Sexual Abuse : A Literature Review
BT  - Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Multidisciplinary Studies 2025 (ICOMSI 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 157
EP  - 165
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-571-3_13
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-571-3_13
ID  - Shanti2026
ER  -