title: Child sexual abuse: very young perpetrators.
abstract: Three cases of child sexual abuse by child perpetrators are presented showing that sexual abuse of a child by a child may result in the victim becoming a perpetrator, thereby contributing to a potential reservoir of adolescent and adult perpetrators. Sexual play between children requires increased attention from caretakers to determine whether it is abusive, imitated from prior experience, and potentially transmissible to other children. Parents need to be informed, possibly through schools, that incidents of sexual interaction between children should be reported. To punish children for such behavior may protect the perpetrator and silence the victim(s).
authors.affiliation: University of Colorado School of Medicine.
authors.forename: H B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Cantwell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007179:Incest; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D012307:Risk Factors; D012725:Sexual Behavior