[Sexual abuse and negligence: same causes, same effects, same treatment?]

The issues surrounding sexual abuse and negligence are rarely examined in parallel by researchers and social workers. Based on a review of relevant literature and on a preliminary analysis of data collected during two surveys, the authors present in this article a comparison of these two subjects. In short, sexual abuse and negligence do not seem to differ fundamentally when it is a matter of establishing the state of health of victims once under the care of authorities and of choosing a type of psychosocial intervention. However, the researchers do look closely at very different risk factors when analyzing the family environment and the characteristics of the actors involved.