Usefulness of an Application-Based Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Program during Routine Activities and Use of Social Networking Services in Elementary Students in Japan

Abstract

Background: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a public health problem of epidemic proportions worldwide. Among children, the consequences of sexual violence on individual health are particularly numerous and often pervasive. Exposure to CSA appears to occur during early adolescence, with a peak incidence rate at age 12 years. In Japan, from 2012 to 2022, the increase in the number of children using smartphones resulted in an increase in the number of children victimized by crimes linked to social networking services (SNS), including child prostitution, child pornography, sexual assault, and rape, from 1,076 to 1,732.

Objective: The present study aimed at applying self-care theories to develop a child sexual abuse prevention program with an application (CSAP-A) and to evaluate its effects on self-protective attitudes during routine activities and use of social networking services (SNS) in elementary school students in Japan.

Methods: The study was performed to fifth-grade children at four elementary schools in Japan and used a pretest/posttest design. In the control group, an education by lecture with learning materials was introduced to four elementary schools in June 2022, and the presentation was given in July 2022. The control group was selected after obtaining assent from the children and consent from their guardians and school principals; the control group comprised 102 (43.4%) of the 235 fifth-grade children at the four elementary schools. In the intervention group, CSAP-A was introduced to four elementary schools in May and June 2023, and the intervention was performed in July 2023. The intervention group was selected after obtaining assent from the children and consent from their guardians and school principals; the intervention group comprised 96 (53.9%) of the 178 fifth-grade children at the four elementary schools. Participants completed a questionnaire before and after presentation of the information.

Results: A significant interaction was found between the pretest/ posttest and the CSAP-A group / the control group with respect to the total scores for self-protective attitudes during routine activities (F (1,391) = 4.68, p = 0.03). CSAP-A showed a tendency to improve the total scores for self-protective attitudes while using SNS (F (1,383) = 3.31, p = 0.06). In addition, the satisfaction with the way in which the information was presented was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group.

Conclusions:The results suggest that CSAP-A may be useful in helping elementary school children develop self-protective attitudes during routine activities and increase the satisfaction of learning about such attitudes.