Criminological Perspective of Child Abuse

348 Words2 Pages
The crime that I have chosen to discuss; which has occurred in the past week in my area is one of extreme victimization with a distinct abstract and etiological theory; Child abuse. There is no, one common definition for child sexual abuse. However, one ideological system of abstract perception, with regards to a central characteristic, is that of a dominant position of the adult, which allows him/her to primarily force or coerce a child into a sexual activity. This act of brutality cannot be directly verified or measured; therefore classified as an abstract theory with the idea of etiology; understanding and explaining the behaviour of the individual; in this case the offender. Children and adolescents, regardless of their race, gender, culture or economic status appear to be at approximately equal risk for sexual victimization. Statistics show that girls are the gender most subjected to sexual abuse. However, studies have shown that boys, and later, men are more inclined not to report their victimization; perhaps for reason of societal pressure to be proud of their sexual activity (regardless of how unwanted this may have been at the time) proving this crime to be categorized under the abstract theory. So how do we understand the behaviour of an abuser? It is a common place to attach labels to criminals in an attempt to explain and better understand their behaviour through describing them as possessing a certain characteristic trait. There is a varied finding on who exactly commits child sexual abuse, but the most common finding that is present in the majority of child abuse cases is that sexual offenders are predominantly family members or are closely regarded or known by the child. People who sexually abuse suffer from emotional immaturity, low self-esteem, an inability to see harm in their actions and lack the knowledge to control their impulses. Often
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