Sexual Assault Trials Handbook — The dynamics of child sexual abuse

R Shackel, “Understanding children’s medium for disclosing sexual abuse — a tool for overcoming potential misconceptions in the courtroom” (2009) 16(3) Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 379–393.

Complainants in child sexual assault trials are often questioned by the defence about disclosure of the alleged abuse. The defence will often ask the child how they disclosed the alleged sexual abuse including to whom the initial disclosure was made. Such questions are legitimate and directed towards testing the complainant’s allegations. Sometimes, such questions are used to impeach the complainant’s credibility. It is not uncommon in such instances for the defence to suggest that certain modes of disclosure are more consistent with having been sexually victimised and that a complainant who has disclosed otherwise is more likely to have fabricated the allegations of abuse. This paper reviews the findings of empirical research on who victims of child sexual abuse most commonly disclose their abuse to and by what means such disclosure is commonly made. This understanding is important to challenge misconceived views about how victims disclose child sexual abuse.

See also an abridged version of this article in R Shackel, “Overcoming misconceptions in the courtroom on how children disclose sexual abuse” (2011) 23(4) JOB 29.