The Overall Goals of Forensic Intervention Steps

Professionals who intervene in Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) cases can easily get caught up (and even overwhelmed) in the daily complex tasks of their agency activities. However, it may be useful, at times, to stop and ask oneself about the overall purpose of intervention in CSA cases. Reflecting on this issue may lead to some thoughts about how to go about our tasks with a clearer view toward matching our daily decisions with broader goals.

Many people may assume that the primary goal of forensic steps (legal, or court-related) in CSA cases is to convict and incarcerate the offender(s). But is that the ultimate purpose?

Being Clear on Mutually Shared Goals

Arresting, convicting, and/or incarcerating offenders are actually steps leading toward goals. It is suggested that what various professional disciplines all have in common are broader goals. In general, all of the primary disciplines involved hope to:

• Stop future sexual abuse by the same perpetrator of a child who is identified as a victim
• Intervene with the child and family to reduce the probability of re-victimization of the child by future perpetrators
• Prevent "secondary victimization" to the child by the system
• Reduce the probability that the perpetrator will victimize other children in the future
• Promote healthy ways for families to interact and healthy ways for children to form relationships with others
• Prevent other future behavioral/emotional/lifestyle problems associated with a CSA history such as; substance abuse, joining in exploitative adult relationships, criminal lifestyles, mental health problems, raising children who become abused etc., etc.

These general overall goals could be perceived in an even more general manner that we are trying to accomplish healthier and safer relationships for children, and prevent further exploitation or harm.

Unfortunately, most victims and family members will not take all the steps they need in order to accomplish healthier and safer relationships without intervention from professionals. The natural tendency for people, faced with the overwhelming news of sexual abuse of a child, is to use avoidance and denial to make the problem seem simpler and emotionally farther removed.

Research and experience also tell us that without effective professional intervention, CSA victims tend to be re-victimized, victims tend to have future mental health problems, and some victims become perpetrators of various crimes (Briere, J. & Runtz, M., 1990). Therefore, we are justified in the generally shared belief that we should intervene and follow through whether the family asks for this help or not.

Another reason to involve the legal system is the reality that victims, offenders, and families of victims tend not to change in the direction we think is best simply by following our good advice. Effective intervention requires a more sophisticated approach than simply offering good advice and expecting people to follow through with our recommendations (Murdoch, B., & Lewis, S., 1992). Effective intervention may also require different decisions about what to do with some individuals than decisions about what to do with other individuals.