This article was written by Kayelene Kerr from eSafeKids.
What does Disclosure mean?
Disclosure is the term used to describe the process by which a person conveys or attempts to convey that they are being or have been sexually abused. A more child friendly term is 'telling'.
Disclosure is often a process rather than a one-off incident. Victims will disclose in different ways to different people throughout their lives. Disclosures may be verbal (spoken words) or non-verbal (drawing, writing, behavioural changes, accidental or intentional, partial or complete.
Many victim-survivors do not disclose child sexual abuse until well into adulthood.
Learning from the experiences of victim-survivors supports us to understand the factors that prevent and assist a person disclosing.
The Royal Commission found, “Before disclosing child sexual abuse, victims will often weigh up the potential risks and benefits of telling others about the sexual abuse. Unsurprisingly, victims are less likely to disclose if they feel they won’t be believed, expect a negative reaction or response, or believe the disclosure will have negative consequences for them, their families or communities.”
“… many survivors who disclosed in childhood said that they made a number of smaller disclosures rather than a full disclosure of the abuse. They may have tested a potential recipient to see how they responded by ‘drip-feeding’ information, or may have limited a disclosure if they thought the person they were telling was not receptive or not coping with the disclosure.”
Research suggests that those experiencing intra-familial abuse (inside the family) are less likely to disclose than those experiencing extra-familial abuse (outside the family).
Of the 6875 people spoken to during the Royal Commissioner 57.4% first disclosed as an adult, 42.6% disclosed abuse when they were a child. Other research estimates 30 – 80% of victims do not intentionally disclose before adulthood.
Why victims may disclose abuse
People disclose for a range of reasons, including:
Wanting the abuse to stop
Preventing it from happening to others and/or
The burden of carrying the secrecy and shame becomes overwhelming.
Why victims may not disclose abuse
It's important to understand many children who are being/have been abused do not disclose their abuse until adulthood, if at all.
The Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse found:
20.6% of victim-survivors took between 20 and 29 years to disclose child sexual abuse.
55.7% of victim-survivors took more than 30 years to disclose sexual abuse.
Research suggests that those experiencing intra-familial abuse (inside the family) are less likely to disclose than those experiencing extra-familial abuse (outside the family).
There are many and varied reasons why people don't disclose abuse, these can include:
Shame, self blame and embarrassment
Feeling responsible for the abuse
Fear of not being believed
Fear of negative consequences
Believing abuse is 'normal'
Feeling isolated
Having no-one to disclose to
Fear of threatened or perceived violence
Fear of retribution
Anxiety over the confidentiality of their information
The perpetrators relationship to the victim (eg someone loved/trusted/respected in the family or community)
I’ve had many people over the years tell me they would disclose but only after their parents and/or grandparents had passed away, their shame was palpable and they didn’t want their loved ones to think they’d failed to protect them.
There are a range of barriers to disclosing so we must go beyond just educating children to recognise, respond and report child sexual abuse. We must not assume that children will disclose. As adults we also need to be aware of the dynamics of abuse, better understand grooming behaviours and also the physical and behavioural indicators of abuse.
It’s also important to note disclosure by a victim is one way that child sexual abuse is detected. Child sexual abuse may also be identified by:
The disclosure of another victim
A witness who sees the abuse or other evidence, such as a photos,
Physical evidence, sexually transmitted infections or pregnancy
Disclosure by the perpetrator
Other evidence, such as child sexual abuse and exploitation material.
No one noticed, no one heard
The UK report No one noticed, no one heard described the experiences of help-seeking by men and women who experienced abuse and violence in childhood and adolescence. This research highlighted the important role adults play in noticing the signs of abuse and hearing disclosures in all their forms.
The report found that 90% of young people had either a mixed (50%) or broadly negative (40%) experience of disclosure due to a range of factors including:
Receiving little emotional support
Initial disclosures being ignored
Accusations of lying
Poor communication
Disclosures being poorly handled or not linked
Disturbingly, the latest Australian Childhood Foundation report found:
1 in 3 Australians would not believe children if they disclosed that they were being abused.
1 in 5 lack the confidence to know what to do if they suspect that a child is being abused or neglected.
Conditions that encourage and support disclosure
Addressing child sexual abuse requires ongoing effort, as it involves not only raising awareness but also changing cultural attitudes, improving education, and strengthening systems of protection and support for children.
The conditions that encourage and support disclosure include:
A victims knowledge about sexual abuse
Supportive responses
Access to therapeutic support
Media coverage and publicity of child sexual abuse
Several years ago Labor Member for Macalister Melissa McMahon told Queensland parliament she had been "chased by demons" since being "repeatedly raped and abused" as a child and went on to say,
"I will recover loudly so others don’t die silently. I will talk about these things so maybe someone else won't wait 40 years to talk. I have a voice in here [in parliament] and I will use it to give a voice to those who aren't yet brave enough to."
The words every child should hear if they disclose abuse
Appropriate responses to disclosure are of critical importance. A negative response to disclosure can affect a victim’s willingness to disclose again, exacerbate the impacts of the abuse and/or allow it to continue. Failing to act on a disclosure may also put other children at risk of abuse.
Child abuse can have profound and lasting impacts. The complex trauma experienced by victims can affect all aspects of their life and future generations. Your response to a child or young person's disclosure of abuse can be central to their ongoing safety and recovery from the trauma of abuse.
Your reaction may affect whether the victim-survivor makes future disclosures and can also affect the severity of psychological symptoms. I distinctly remember a victim-survivor survivor telling me that the abuse was one thing, not being believed by her mum almost destroyed her.
Above all else these are the words a child, young person and adult should hear if they disclose abuse:
Thank you for telling me
I’m sorry this happened to you
It’s not your fault
I believe you
I will help you
How can I support you
Visit the eSafeKids Members' Community and download this poster. The rear of the poster provides further information about reporting child abuse. Consider displaying the poster in your school staff room or organisation so people can learn the script.
What you can do to be supportive if someone discloses abuse
If a child discloses abuse to you it’s important you follow your organisations policy and procedures, and your mandatory and non-mandatory reporting obligations.
Move to a suitable location, free from distraction.
Give the child or young person your full attention.
Try to maintain a calm appearance.
Don't be afraid of saying the "wrong" thing.
Be patient. Accept the child or young person will disclose only what is comfortable and recognise the bravery/strength of the child for talking about something that is difficult.
Reassure the child or young person it is right to tell.
Let the child or young person take their time.
Let the child or young person use their own words.
If you require further information don’t ask leading questions. Use an open question, "Tell me more about …" "Explain that ..." "Describe ..."
Don't make promises you can't keep.
Tell the child or young person what you plan to do next.
Make notes about the conversation as soon as you can.
Do not confront the perpetrator.
Mandatory and Non-Mandatory Reporting Requirements
In Australia, state and territory governments are responsible for receiving reports of suspected child abuse and neglect from members of the public. Anyone who suspects, on reasonable grounds, that a child or young person is at risk of being abused and/or neglected should report it to the reporting authority in their state or territory. Mandatory and Non-Mandatory reporting requirements vary throughout Australian states and territories.
For information about mandatory reporting requirements including who is mandated to report visit this website.
Prevention Education
Persistence is a valuable life skill, and in the context of child safety and child abuse prevention it’s essential. It is likely a child will have to tell more than one adult before they are listened to, believed and assisted. So we should teach children to persist in asking for help if they’re feeling unsafe or not getting the help or support they need. “If you’re ever feeling unsafe, keep on telling and talking until you’re feeling safe again.
Primary School Children
Within the school context, whole school approaches that are continuous, sequential and integrated into the curriculum are most valuable.
Child friendly books can support educators teaching protective behaviours and child abuse prevention education that aligns with the Western Australian Curriculum, Australian Curriculum, Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) and National Quality Framework: National Quality Standards (NQS).
You'll find a range of books on the eSafeKids website.
Secondary Age Young People
The Royal Commission identified a barrier to disclose is not understanding sex, sexual abuse and boundaries. I believe there remains a critical need for sexual abuse prevention education to be delivered to secondary school age young people.
In 2011 The Hon Peter Blaxell commenced a Special Inquiry ‘St Andrew’s Hostel Katanning: How the system and society failed our children’. The Blaxell Inquiry highlighted that historically, the teaching has been poor in the area of sex education and protective behaviours, specifically stating it has been:
“... of a very low quality and usually limited to the occasional warnings of the “stranger danger” variety. The standard stereotype of child molesters being old men in raincoats sidling up to the school yard was very misleading for children."
Learn more about Talking About Sexual Abuse here.
You'll find the Royal Commission Final Report here.
To learn more about eSafeKids workshops and training visit our services page.
To view our wide range of child friendly resources visit our online shop.
Join the free eSafeKids online Members' Community. It has been created to support and inspire you in your home, school, organisation and/or community setting.
About The Author
Kayelene Kerr is recognised as one of Western Australia’s most experienced specialist providers of Protective Behaviours, Body Safety, Cyber Safety, Digital Wellness and Pornography education workshops. Kayelene is passionate about the prevention of child abuse and sexual exploitation, drawing on over 27 years’ experience of study and law enforcement, investigating sexual crimes, including technology facilitated crimes. Kayelene delivers engaging and sought after prevention education workshops to educate, equip and empower children and young people, and to help support parents, carers, educators and other professionals. Kayelene believes protecting children from harm is a shared responsibility and everyone can play a role in the care, safety and protection of children. Kayelene aims to inspire the trusted adults in children’s lives to tackle sometimes challenging topics.
About eSafeKids
eSafeKids strives to reduce and prevent harm through proactive prevention education, supporting and inspiring parents, carers, educators and other professionals to talk with children, young people and vulnerable adults about protective behaviours, body safety, cyber safety, digital wellness and pornography. eSafeKids is based in Perth, Western Australia.
eSafeKids provides books and resources to teach children about social and emotional intelligence, resilience, empathy, gender equality, consent, body safety, protective behaviours, cyber safety, digital wellness, media literacy, puberty and pornography.
eSafeKids books can support educators teaching protective behaviours and child abuse prevention education that aligns with the Western Australian Curriculum, Australian Curriculum, Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) and National Quality Framework: National Quality Standards (NQS).
