Knowledge and awareness regarding child sexual abuse myths and offenders among future nurses and forensic scientists:...

Child abuse and neglect are frequently underreported despite their association with significant morbidity and mortality. Identifying child sexual abuse remains challenging for healthcare professionals, and insufficient knowledge and awareness may contribute to its underrecognition.

The primary aim of this study was to compare nursing and forensic sciences students in terms of their acceptance of child sexual abuse myths and their knowledge and awareness regarding perpetrators of child sexual abuse. The secondary aim was to examine whether these outcomes differed according to students' previous educational exposure, academic year, sex, and previous exposure to abuse or neglect.

The study included 367 students, comprising 271 nursing students and 96 forensic sciences students. Differences in child sexual abuse myth acceptance and knowledge and awareness regarding perpetrators were examined between the two disciplines and according to selected student characteristics.

Significant differences were observed between the two disciplines. Nursing students demonstrated higher levels of child sexual abuse myth acceptance, whereas forensic sciences students exhibited greater knowledge and awareness regarding perpetrators. Male students showed higher myth acceptance in both disciplines, while lower knowledge and awareness scores were more pronounced among male nursing students.

The findings highlight differences in child sexual abuse myth acceptance and perpetrator-related knowledge and awareness between nursing and forensic sciences students. Discipline-specific educational strategies may help reduce myth acceptance and improve awareness among future healthcare and forensic professionals. Further studies using comparable methodologies across different geographical regions and countries are recommended.