School-Based Child Abuse Prevention Programs

Abstract

Research done in the past has indicated that young people believe that child abuse prevention programmes implemented in schools are one of the most significant methods for preventing the abuse and neglect of children. In this research, young people who had survived child abuse were polled on how school-based programmes to prevent child abuse should be designed, as well as which programme components they consider to be most important. Thirteen Dutch young people who had been abused or neglected as children were asked to participate in semi-structured interviews on their experiences. “The interviews were guided by a literature study that was conducted beforehand and produced a list of twelve prospective programme components. All of the adolescents reached a consensus that child abuse prevention programmes conducted in schools are essential and have a good impact on children's knowledge of the issue of child abuse. Teaching children that they are never to blame for instances of child abuse was considered one of the most important components of school-based programmes. This was considered to be one of the most important components of school-based programmes, right alongside teaching children how to escape from threatening situations and to find help, increasing children's social and emotional skills, promoting child abuse related knowledge, recognising risky situations, and increasing children's self-esteem. In addition, the participants emphasised the need of providing children with afterschool care after a school-based programme had come to a close. In general, young people who have survived child abuse have strong opinions on the topics that should be included in school-based child abuse prevention programmes in order for these programmes to successfully prevent child abuse.