The Sexual Violence Research Podcast

S5E3 Preventing Harmful Sexual Behaviour Among Children

March 31
49 mins

Episode Description

When we think about who perpetrates sexual violence against children, we often picture adults. But, research suggests that a significant proportion of sexual harm against children is committed by other children and young people - and yet this remains an underresearched, underfunded, and frequently misunderstood area of sexual violence prevention.

In this episode, we explore what harmful sexual behaviour among children under the age of 18 looks like, what drives it, and why prevention efforts must focus not only on children at risk of experiencing harm, but also those at risk of causing it. We also look at promising approaches  - from school-based programmes to the role of technology, families, and wider systems - in preventing abuse before it happens. And we hear how practitioners strike a careful balance between responding appropriately to harm and avoiding the stigma and shame that can interfere with early intervention and support.

Your host is: Elizabeth Dartnall, Executive Director, Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI).

This episode’s guests are: 

  • Elizabeth Letourneau - Moore Family Professor, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Director, Moore Center for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse

  • Miguel Garcia Egido - Fund Chief at Safe Online

🎧 Listen to learn:

➡︎ What harmful sexual behaviour among children is

➡︎ How these behaviours differ from normal development➡︎ The key drivers and risk factors behind harmful sexual behaviours➡︎ What prevention approaches show promise

➡︎ How technology is shaping risks and solutions

🌍Sign up for the SVRI Forum 2026 here! 

📖Pre-Order Elizabeth’s book here

⚡Follow SVRI on Instagram.

🌐Check out the SVRI website.

🎥 Watch our film on YouTube.

💬 Connect with the SVRI svri@svri.org and our host, Ayesha Mago.

🎙️ An OG Podcasts Ltd production.

Resources:

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