<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<sec>
<h3>Background</h3>
<p>Children with disabilities are at heightened risk of sexual violence compared to non-disabled peers.</p>
</sec>
<sec>
<h3>Objective</h3>
<p>We aimed to examine the associations between ten childhood disabilities and sexual victimization.</p>
</sec>
<sec>
<h3>Methods</h3>
<p>Data were drawn from the Danish Psychiatric Case Register, the Criminal Register, and other population-based registers. Children born between 1994 and 2001 (n=570,351) were followed until 18 years of age. Using logistic regression, the association between the disabilities and risk of sexual victimisation was estimated.</p>
</sec>
<sec>
<h3>Results</h3>
<p>We identified 8,860 cases of sexual victimization towards children and adolescents. In the fully adjusted models, children with a diagnosis of ADHD, speech disability and intellectual disability were at highest risk of sexual victimization. Children with comorbid disabilities were particularly vulnerable to sexual victimization.</p>
</sec>
<sec>
<h3>Conclusions</h3>
<p>We found that children with certain types of disability have a higher risk of sexual victimization. Our findings indicate that educational institutions and health care professionals should be aware of and have specialized training in, recognizing and assessing sexual victimization among children with disabilities.</p>
</sec>
</abstract>

Background
Children with disabilities are at heightened risk of sexual violence compared to non-disabled peers.


Objective
We aimed to examine the associations between ten childhood disabilities and sexual victimization.


Methods
Data were drawn from the Danish Psychiatric Case Register, the Criminal Register, and other population-based registers. Children born between 1994 and 2001 (n=570,351) were followed until 18 years of age. Using logistic regression, the association between the disabilities and risk of sexual victimisation was estimated.


Results
We identified 8,860 cases of sexual victimization towards children and adolescents. In the fully adjusted models, children with a diagnosis of ADHD, speech disability and intellectual disability were at highest risk of sexual victimization. Children with comorbid disabilities were particularly vulnerable to sexual victimization.


Conclusions
We found that children with certain types of disability have a higher risk of sexual victimization. Our findings indicate that educational institutions and health care professionals should be aware of and have specialized training in, recognizing and assessing sexual victimization among children with disabilities.

Sexual Violence against Children with Disabilities: A Danish National Birth Cohort Prospective Study

Scandinavian Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Background
Children with disabilities are at heightened risk of sexual violence compared to non-disabled peers.


Objective
We aimed to examine the...

Sexual Violence against Children with Disabilities: A Danish National Birth Cohort Prospective Study

Article Category: Research Article

Published Online: Dec 16, 2023

Page range: 143 - 149

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjcapp-2023-0015

Keywords
disabilities, children & adolescents, sexual violence, national birth cohort, prospective

© 2023 Ask Elklit et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Sexual Violence against Children with Disabilities: A Danish National Birth Cohort Prospective Study

Article Category: Research Article

Published Online: Dec 16, 2023

Page range: 143 - 149

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjcapp-2023-0015

Keywordsdisabilities, children & adolescents, sexual violence, national birth cohort, prospective

© 2023 Ask Elklit et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
disabilities, children & adolescents, sexual violence, national birth cohort, prospective