The Queensland University Centre for Justice will host a free online forum on Wednesday, 1 July from 12-1pm AEST, ‘Understanding and responding to female perpetrated child sexual abuse: What can be learned from listening to women who sexually abuse children?’. Professor Kelly Richards and Dr Bricklyn Priebe from the ANZSOC Understanding, Preventing and Responding to Sexual Violence and Abuse Thematic Group will present their research from working with women who have caused sexual harm.
The event is online and free to attend. More information and registration here.
Kelly Richards, co-convenor of the ANZSOC Understanding, Preventing and Responding to Sexual Violence and Abuse Thematic Group provided us with an insight around the drivers for this event.
What is the purpose of this event, how has it come about and what do you hope this event will achieve?
While most research into people who sexually offend focuses on males, recent scholarship by members of the ANZSOC “Understanding, Preventing and Responding to Sexual Violence and Abuse” Thematic Group has investigated women who cause sexual harm. As this topic is rarely studied, we believe it is important to inform policy-makers and practitioners working in the field of sexual violence prevention and treatment about this cohort.
What are some key outcomes, initiatives or activities you’re hoping to develop from this event?
We are aiming to inform industry professionals such as law enforcement, courts, corrections, health workers, child safety advocates and therapeutic treatment providers about the causes of female-perpetrates child sexual abuse and what can be done to prevent and respond to it.
Are there current trends or challenges in this particular area of research (female perpetrated child sexual abuse) that you’re keen for this event to highlight and explore?
As women form only a minority of perpetrators, prevention and treatment strategies have been designed for men. This means they may not be suitable or effective for women who cause sexual harm. This event will position women who have caused sexual harm as sources of knowledge about what drove their offending and how it might have been prevented.
Kelly, as a current co-convenor of the ANZSOC ‘Understanding, Preventing and Responding to Sexual Violence’ Thematic Group, what do you hope this group will achieve within ANZSOC and the broader criminology community?
We are keen to bring together scholars from across Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand who focus on sexual harm so we can have a greater impact on policy and practice.
