Children with Sexual Behavior Issues

Jane F. Gilgun, PhD, LICSWSchool of Social Work

University of Minnesota, Twin Citiesjgilgun@umn.edu

http://ssw.che.umn.edu\faculty\jgilgun.htmDay 1

June 19, 2007

Topics

• A Continuum of Child Sexual Behaviors• Typologies of Children with Sexual

Behavior Issues• Risks and Protective Processes Related to

Children’s Sexual Behavior Issues• Family Issues Related to Children’s Sexual

Behaviors • Emotion Regulation and Trauma

Children’s Sexual Behaviors

• Begin in womb

• Continue over the life course

Children’s Sexual Behaviors

• Sex in US culture

– Taboo

– Fascinating

– Linked to violence

– Rarely life-enhancing

A Continuum of Child Sexual Behaviors

• Developmentally Appropriate

• Inappropriate but Easily Correctable

• Inappropriate and Problematic

– Origin not known

– Abuse-reactive

• Sexually manipulative

• Sexually abusive

Harborview Medical Center Clinical Typology of Problematic

Child Sexual Behaviors

• Precocious

• Inappropriate

• Coercive

Source: Berliner, L, O. Manaois, & C. Monastersky (1986). Child sexual behavior disturbance: An assessment and treatment model. Seattle, WA: Harborview Medical Center.

A Continuum of Problematic Child Sexual Behaviors

• Sexually Inappropriate

• Sexually Intrusive

• Sexually Aggressive

Source: Bonner, Walker, & Berliner (2004)

Johnson’s Clinical Typologyof Child Sexual Behaviors

• Natural and Healthy

• Of Concern

• Seek Professional Help

Source: Johnson, Toni Cavanagh (n.d.). Understanding children’s sexual behaviors: What’s natural and healthy. www.TCavJohn.com

Johnson’s Clinical Continuum of Child Sexual Behaviors

• Natural and healthy

• Sexually reactive

• Children who molest

Source: Johnson, Toni Cavanagh (n.d.). Understanding children’s sexual behaviors: What’s natural and healthy. www.TCavJohn.com

Johnson’s Clinical Continuum of Child Sexual Behaviors

• Natural and healthy

• Sexually reactive

• Children who molest

Source: Johnson, Toni Cavanagh (n.d.). Understanding children’s sexual behaviors: What’s natural and healthy. www.TCavJohn.com

A Clinical Continuum of Sexualized Behaviors

Normal Sexual Sexually Extensive Mutual Children

Exploration Reactive Sexual Behaviors Who Molest

Source: Gil & Johnson (1993)

A Typology of Children with Problematic Sexual Behaviors

• Angry

• Anxious

• Hollow

• Disassociated

• Emotionally Disorganized

Risks & Protective Factors Related to Children’s

Sexual Behavior Issues

• Assess child, family, and other ecologies

– Identify risks

– Identify competencies and resources

Risks & Protective FactorsRelated to Children’s

Sexual Behavior Issues

• Assess child, family, and other ecologies

• Identify risks

• Identify competencies and resources

• How can treatment build on protective processes to manage risks?

Family Issues Related to Children’s Sexual Behaviors

• Low Risks/High Protective Factors

• High Risks/High Protective Factors

• High Risks/Low Protective Factors

Emotion Regulation & Trauma

• Emotion Regulation: Capacities to modulate emotional responses in a range of situations

• Trauma: life events that overwhelm everyday coping capacities

Regulation & Dysregulation

• Occurs across systems

• Related to

– Styles of attachment

– Internalized working models

– Gender

– Genes

Trauma• An event that overwhelms everyday

coping capacities

• Persistent re-experiencing of the event

• Persistent avoidance of situations associated with trauma and/or numbing of general responsiveness

• Physiological arousal

The Effects of Protective Factors

on Human Functioning After Trauma Jane Gilgun, Ph.D., LICSW

emotion

cognition

memory

sympathetic nervous system

Time

From LeDoux (1996)