ESTD Conference 2017

Title:  Child abuse & Neglect : Challenges for therapy, Prevention & Justice

November 9 – 11, 2017

Berne, Switzerland

https://www.estd.org/fr/node/310

Child abuse & neglect, sexual abuse: a challenge for therapy, prevention & justice

Despite an increasing awareness of the devastating and often long-lasting negative effects of child abuse and neglect, as well as sexual violence against adults, the majority of cases are not reported, and those which are reported are often not prosecuted. This poses a serious problem for societies in general, and therapy, prevention and justice in particular.

Several reasons have been found for the low reporting and conviction rates. For example:

• Victims are afraid not to be believed and respected by relatives, therapists, counsellors, police and/or justice, and therefore decide to remain silent.
• Prejudicial myths and misinformation about sexual violence in many professions, including therapy and justice, interfere with state-of-the-art therapies and investigations.

• The length of time that the criminal justice process can take and the ordeal it poses for victims leads to high attrition rates.
• Lack of sufficient evidence or perpetrators who cannot be found and identified, prevent convictions and the protection of  other potential future victims.
• The victims sometimes do not cooperate sufficiently with the investigative authorities or are unable to cooperate adequately due to mental illnesses, especially (complex) posttraumatic disorders from previous traumatic events.
• In practice, the experiences of victims during juridical and police cooperation and therapy depend largely on the victims’ encounter throughout their interaction with these specialists, and how they interact and cooperate with each other. 

While abuse and neglect are a serious problem for therapy, prevention and justice, specialists in these fields have not had the opportunity yet to meet and discuss these issues at international conferences.