Pathways Model Of Child Sexual Abuse

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Child sexual abuse is a serious and treacherous offence. It is important to look at this crime because many cases of child abuse are under-reported, hence, the issue does not receive media publicity and individuals remain unaware about the seriousness of this crime and its implications on children and society. It is no doubt that child sexual abuse is a crime throughout the world. However, slight emphasis is given to the causes of this crime. The goal of this essay is to give an intricate understanding of child sexual abuse by discussing the Routine Activities Theory, Judgement Model of Cognitive Distortions and Pathways Model as possible theories that explain the crime. The essay will argue that the Pathways Model is an improved theory of …show more content…

He falsely believes that he has no control over his behaviour and that “it was God who allowed their sexual offending to happen.” (Ward, Gannon and Keown, 2006, p.332) The value associated with this theme is autonomy. Autonomy is the ability to self-regulate and control our desires. Sexual offenders lack this trait which is why they falsely believe they did not have control over themselves. The offenders justify their actions by saying they had no control or they were forced to commit crime because of their sexual desires. The second theme is called dangerous world in which the offender falsely believes that people are hostile and will inflict pain on them. The value associated with this belief is about safety, trust, and justice. The offender is protecting himself and looking for trustworthy individuals. Children are perceived as loving and trustworthy, so they easily become the target of sexual offense. In the third theme entitlement, the offender feels superior to the victim and tries to assert himself on his target to seek gratification. In the fourth theme, the offender sees children as sexual beings and falsely believes that they are “active seekers of sex.” (Ward, Gannon and Keown, 2006, p.334) The offenders justify their actions by saying that they were educating the child. The fifth theme is the nature of the harm where the offenders falsely believe that they are not harming the child by having sex with them because they believe sex is naturally good and there are other ways to harm a child, for example physical abuse. (Ward, Gannon and Keown, 2006,

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