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December 6, 1995, Vol 274, No. 21 >
ARTICLE | December 6, 1995

Nonsexual Assaults to the Genitals in the Youth Population FREE

David Finkelhor, PhD; Janis Wolak, JD
[+] Author Affiliations

Corresponding author: David Finkelhor, PhD, Family Research Laboratory, University of New Hampshire, 126 Horton Social Science Center, Durham, NH 03824.


JAMA. 1995;274(21):1692-1697. doi:10.1001/jama.1995.03530210046029
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Article
References

Objective.  —To assess the frequency with which youth suffer nonsexual assaults to the genitals and their context and consequences.

Design.  —Telephone survey with follow-up interview 1 year later.

Setting.  —General population of the United States living in households with telephones.

Participants.  —Random sample of 1042 boys and 958 girls aged 10 through 16 years.

Results.  —A nonsexual assault to the genitals was experienced by 9.2% of the boys and 1.0% of the girls in the year prior to the initial interview and 9.1% of the boys and 2.2% of the girls in the year prior to the follow-up interview. Among the boys, about a quarter of the assaults involved some injury, but only one in 50 needed medical attention. The most common assailants were same-aged peers. The assaults occurred in a variety of contexts including gang attacks, peer fighting, bullying, and some situations in which girls retaliated against the genitals of harassing boys. Boy victims of nonsexual genital assault had significantly higher levels of posttraumatic and depression symptomatology than boys without such assaults.

Conclusions.  —Nonsexual genital violence needs additional clinical and research attention. Youth should be educated about its possible consequences. Clinicians should ask about nonsexual genital violence when taking a history, particularly with youth who have experienced other kinds of assaults.(JAMA. 1995;274:1692-1697)

REFERENCES

1 +
Finkelhor D.  Current information on the scope and nature of child sexual abuse. Future Child . 1994;;4:31-53.
2 +
Bays J, Jenny C.  Genital and anal conditions confused with child sexual abuse trauma. AJDC . 1990;;144:1319-1322.
3 +
Bays J, Chadwick D.  Medical diagnosis of the sexually abused child. Child Abuse Negl . 1993;;17:91-110.
4 +
Finkel MA.  Anogenital trauma in sexually abused children. Pediatrics . 1989;;84:317-322.
5 +
Herman-Giddens ME, Frothingham TE.  Prepubertal female genitalia: examination for evidence of sexual abuse. Pediatrics . 1987;;80:203-208.
6 +
Hobbs CJ, Wynne JM.  Sexual abuse of English boys and girls: the importance of anal examination. Child Abuse Negl . 1989;;13:195-210.
7 +
Kerns DL, Ritter ML.  Medical findings in child sexual abuse cases with perpetrator confessions. AJDC . 1992;;146:494. Abstract.
8 +
McCann J, Voris J, Simon M.  Genital injuries resulting from sexual abuse: a longitudinal study. Pediatrics . 1992;;89:307-317.
9 +
Muram D.  Child sexual abuse: relationship between sexual acts and genital findings. Child Abuse Negl . 1989;;13:211-216.
10 +
Rimza ME, Niggemann EH.  Medical evaluation on sexually abused children: a review of 311 cases. Pediatrics . 1982;;69:8-14.
11 +
Spencer MJ, Dunklee P.  Sexual abuse of boys. Pediatrics . 1986;;78:133-137.
12 +
Evans C, Eder D.  No exit: processes of social isloation in the middle school. J Contemp Ethnogr . 1993;;22:139-170.
13 +
Fine GA. Little League Baseball and Preadolescent Culture . Chicago, Ill: University of Chicago Press; 1987;.
14 +
Slosberg EJ, Ludwig S, Duckett J, Mauro AE.  Penile trauma as a sign of child abuse. AJDC . 1978;; 132:719-721.
15 +
Johnson CF, Showers J.  Injury variables in child abuse. Child Abuse Negl . 1985;;9:207-215.
16 +
Herman-Giddens ME, Berson NL.  Harmful genital care practices in children. JAMA . 1989;;261: 577-579.
17 +
Merritt K, Ornstein P.  Children's memory for a salient medical procedure: implications for testimony. Pediatrics . 1994;;94:17-23.
18 +
Finkelhor D, Dziuba-Leatherman J.  Children as victims of violence: a national survey. Pediatrics . 1994;;94:413-420.
19 +
Finkelhor D, Asdigian N, Dziuba-Leatherman J.  The effectiveness of victimization prevention instruction: an evaluation of children's responses to actual threats and assaults. Child Abuse Negl . 1995;; 19:137-149.
20 +
Weeks MF, Kulka RA, Lessler JT, Whitmore RW.  Personal versus telephone surveys from collecting household health data at the local level. Am J Public Health . 1983;;73:1389-1394.
21 +
Bajos N, Spira A, Ducot B, Messiah A.  Analysis of sexual behavior in France (ACSF): a comparison between two modes of investigation: telephone survey and face-to-face survey. AIDS . 1992;;6:315-323.
22 +
Bermack E.  Effects of telephone and face-to-face communication on rated extent of self-disclosure by female college students. Psychol Rep . 1989;; 65:259-267.
23 +
Czaja R.  Asking sensitive behavioral questions in telephone interviews. Int Q Commun Health Educ . 1987;;8:23-32.
24 +
Marin G, Marin B.  A comparison of three interviewing approaches for studying sensitive topics with Hispanics. Hispanic J Behav Sci . 1989;;11: 330-340.
25 +
Potts MK, Daniels M, Burnam A, Wells K.  A structured interview version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale: evidence of reliability and versatility of administration. J Psychiatr Res . 1990;; 24:335-350.
26 +
Wells K, Burnam M, Leake B, Robbins L.  Agreement between face-to-face and telephone-administered versions of the depression section of the NIMH Diagnostic Interview Schedule. J Psychiatr Res . 1988;;22:207-220.
27 +
Bureau of Justice Statistics. Criminal Victimization in the United States, 1992 . Washington, DC: US Dept of Justice; 1994;.
28 +
Hausman AJ, Spivak H, Prothrow-Stith D, Roeber J.  Pattern of teen exposure to a community-based violence prevention project. J Adolesc Health . 1992;;13:668-675.
29 +
Stewart WF, Linet MS, Celentano DD.  Migraine headaches and panic attacks. Psychosom Med . 1989;;51:559-569.
30 +
Foa EB, Riggs DS, Dancu CV, Rothbaum BO.  Reliability and validity of a brief instrument for assessing post-traumatic stress disorder. J Traum Stress . 1993;;6:459-473.
31 +
Shaffer D, Fisher P, Dulcan D, et al. National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children: Version 2.3 (DISC 2.3) . New York, NY: New York State Psychiatric Institute; 1992;.
32 +
Boney-McCoy S, Finkelhor D.  The psychosocial impact of violent victimization on a national youth sample. J Consult Clin Psychol . 1995;;63:726-736.
33 +
Morrison LJ.  The battering syndrome: a poor record of detection in the emergency department. J Emerg Med . 1988;;6:521-526.
34 +
Groth NA. Men Who Rape . New York, NY: Plenum Press Inc; 1979;.
35 +
Harley J, Kaufhold M, Reece R. Non-accidental injuries to the male genitalia. In: Program and abstracts of the San Diego Conference on Responding to Child Maltreatment; January 26,1995; San Diego, Calif.

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Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature

Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal

1 +
Finkelhor D.  Current information on the scope and nature of child sexual abuse. Future Child . 1994;;4:31-53.
2 +
Bays J, Jenny C.  Genital and anal conditions confused with child sexual abuse trauma. AJDC . 1990;;144:1319-1322.
3 +
Bays J, Chadwick D.  Medical diagnosis of the sexually abused child. Child Abuse Negl . 1993;;17:91-110.
4 +
Finkel MA.  Anogenital trauma in sexually abused children. Pediatrics . 1989;;84:317-322.
5 +
Herman-Giddens ME, Frothingham TE.  Prepubertal female genitalia: examination for evidence of sexual abuse. Pediatrics . 1987;;80:203-208.
6 +
Hobbs CJ, Wynne JM.  Sexual abuse of English boys and girls: the importance of anal examination. Child Abuse Negl . 1989;;13:195-210.
7 +
Kerns DL, Ritter ML.  Medical findings in child sexual abuse cases with perpetrator confessions. AJDC . 1992;;146:494. Abstract.
8 +
McCann J, Voris J, Simon M.  Genital injuries resulting from sexual abuse: a longitudinal study. Pediatrics . 1992;;89:307-317.
9 +
Muram D.  Child sexual abuse: relationship between sexual acts and genital findings. Child Abuse Negl . 1989;;13:211-216.
10 +
Rimza ME, Niggemann EH.  Medical evaluation on sexually abused children: a review of 311 cases. Pediatrics . 1982;;69:8-14.
11 +
Spencer MJ, Dunklee P.  Sexual abuse of boys. Pediatrics . 1986;;78:133-137.
12 +
Evans C, Eder D.  No exit: processes of social isloation in the middle school. J Contemp Ethnogr . 1993;;22:139-170.
13 +
Fine GA. Little League Baseball and Preadolescent Culture . Chicago, Ill: University of Chicago Press; 1987;.
14 +
Slosberg EJ, Ludwig S, Duckett J, Mauro AE.  Penile trauma as a sign of child abuse. AJDC . 1978;; 132:719-721.
15 +
Johnson CF, Showers J.  Injury variables in child abuse. Child Abuse Negl . 1985;;9:207-215.
16 +
Herman-Giddens ME, Berson NL.  Harmful genital care practices in children. JAMA . 1989;;261: 577-579.
17 +
Merritt K, Ornstein P.  Children's memory for a salient medical procedure: implications for testimony. Pediatrics . 1994;;94:17-23.
18 +
Finkelhor D, Dziuba-Leatherman J.  Children as victims of violence: a national survey. Pediatrics . 1994;;94:413-420.
19 +
Finkelhor D, Asdigian N, Dziuba-Leatherman J.  The effectiveness of victimization prevention instruction: an evaluation of children's responses to actual threats and assaults. Child Abuse Negl . 1995;; 19:137-149.
20 +
Weeks MF, Kulka RA, Lessler JT, Whitmore RW.  Personal versus telephone surveys from collecting household health data at the local level. Am J Public Health . 1983;;73:1389-1394.
21 +
Bajos N, Spira A, Ducot B, Messiah A.  Analysis of sexual behavior in France (ACSF): a comparison between two modes of investigation: telephone survey and face-to-face survey. AIDS . 1992;;6:315-323.
22 +
Bermack E.  Effects of telephone and face-to-face communication on rated extent of self-disclosure by female college students. Psychol Rep . 1989;; 65:259-267.
23 +
Czaja R.  Asking sensitive behavioral questions in telephone interviews. Int Q Commun Health Educ . 1987;;8:23-32.
24 +
Marin G, Marin B.  A comparison of three interviewing approaches for studying sensitive topics with Hispanics. Hispanic J Behav Sci . 1989;;11: 330-340.
25 +
Potts MK, Daniels M, Burnam A, Wells K.  A structured interview version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale: evidence of reliability and versatility of administration. J Psychiatr Res . 1990;; 24:335-350.
26 +
Wells K, Burnam M, Leake B, Robbins L.  Agreement between face-to-face and telephone-administered versions of the depression section of the NIMH Diagnostic Interview Schedule. J Psychiatr Res . 1988;;22:207-220.
27 +
Bureau of Justice Statistics. Criminal Victimization in the United States, 1992 . Washington, DC: US Dept of Justice; 1994;.
28 +
Hausman AJ, Spivak H, Prothrow-Stith D, Roeber J.  Pattern of teen exposure to a community-based violence prevention project. J Adolesc Health . 1992;;13:668-675.
29 +
Stewart WF, Linet MS, Celentano DD.  Migraine headaches and panic attacks. Psychosom Med . 1989;;51:559-569.
30 +
Foa EB, Riggs DS, Dancu CV, Rothbaum BO.  Reliability and validity of a brief instrument for assessing post-traumatic stress disorder. J Traum Stress . 1993;;6:459-473.
31 +
Shaffer D, Fisher P, Dulcan D, et al. National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children: Version 2.3 (DISC 2.3) . New York, NY: New York State Psychiatric Institute; 1992;.
32 +
Boney-McCoy S, Finkelhor D.  The psychosocial impact of violent victimization on a national youth sample. J Consult Clin Psychol . 1995;;63:726-736.
33 +
Morrison LJ.  The battering syndrome: a poor record of detection in the emergency department. J Emerg Med . 1988;;6:521-526.
34 +
Groth NA. Men Who Rape . New York, NY: Plenum Press Inc; 1979;.
35 +
Harley J, Kaufhold M, Reece R. Non-accidental injuries to the male genitalia. In: Program and abstracts of the San Diego Conference on Responding to Child Maltreatment; January 26,1995; San Diego, Calif.

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