Development of a Research Portfolio for the Primary Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse: Building the Evidence Base...

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a preventable public health problem affecting millions of children annually. While many strategies exist that show promise for preventing CSA perpetration, very few programs and policies have been rigorously evaluated. To address this gap and build the evidence base of what works to prevent CSA, the Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established an extramural research portfolio focused on rigorous outcome evaluations of primary prevention programs and policies to determine effectiveness in preventing CSA. Currently, the research portfolio funds nine ongoing studies evaluating primary prevention strategies implemented across multiple settings, including online, in schools, in youth-serving organizations, and within larger communities. This paper describes the development of DVP's innovative CSA prevention research portfolio, provides an overview of its research priorities and currently funded projects, and illustrates how this research seeks to expand the evidence base for effective CSA prevention approaches and move the field toward implementation and dissemination of policies, programs, and practices to prevent CSA before it occurs.