Child sexuality is the sexual feelings, behaviors, and development of children.
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There are two major kinds of influence on the sexual development of children. These are the biological factors and the social and cultural factors.
Human sexual development is viewed as a primarily biological process that follows a model for healthy sexual development and is vulnerable to disturbance from or influence of a larger culture or by other means. This is the approach used most often in the medical study of child development.
Social and cultural factors strongly influence child sexual development. The terms normative or culturally appropriate behavior and non-normative or culturally inappropriate behavior express this.[1]
There are differences of opinion as to which of these factors defines sexuality or has the greatest influence on a child's sexual development and sexual behaviour.
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), in his 1905 work Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality, outlined a theory of psychosexual development with five distinct phases: the oral stage (0 - 1.5 years), the anal stage (1.5 - 3.5 years), the phallic stage (3.5 – 6 years) which culminates in the resolution of the Oedipus conflict, The Latency Phase (6–12 years of age), and the genital, or adult, stage. Freud's basic thesis was that early sexuality in children is polymorphous, that strong incestuous drives develop, and that the child must harness or sublimate these drives in order to develop a healthy sexual identity as an adult.[citation needed] Some of Freud's theories (such as penis envy) have been largely superseded, and many modern experts consider his work obsolete, and the core body of his work has never been entirely accepted by the scientific and medical communities.[citation needed]
Alfred Kinsey (1894-1956), in the Kinsey Reports (1948 and 1953), included research on the physical sexual response of children, including pre-pubescent children (though the main focus of the reports was adults). It has been stated that some of the data in his reports could not have been obtained without observation or participation in child sexual abuse, or through collaborations with child molesters.[2] In 2000, Swedish researcher IngBeth Larsson noted that "It is quite common for references still to cite Alfred Kinsey", due to the paucity of subsequent large-scale studies of children's sexual behavior.[1]
Empirical knowledge about child sexual behaviour is not usually gathered by direct interviews of children, (partly due to ethical considerations),[1] but rather by:
Although there are variations between individual children, children generally are curious about their bodies and those of others, and explore their bodies through explorative sex play,[7][8] such as 'doctor,' 'house,' or 'mom and dad'. Though the behaviour is at times misinterpreted, such games are generally considered to be normal in young children and not sexual in nature. Child sexuality is considered fundamentally different from adult sexual behavior, which is more goal-driven; and bodily penetration and oral-genital contact by a child are very uncommon,[9] and sometimes described as imitations of perceived adult behaviors.[10] However, such behaviour seems to be more common among children who have been sexually abused.[1]
Some activities are thought to be relatively harmless in certain cultures. In a 1997 study, Okami et al. found no association between childhood peer sexual experiences, including games involving masturbation, and later adjustment.[11] This study did not distinguish between those children who were involved in penetrative activities (of which the sample was too small to be measured) and children who were involved in other activities defined as sex play ("theme sex games such as 'doctor,' 'house,' or 'mom and dad'").
Children who have been the victim of child sexual abuse sometimes display overly sexualized behavior,[12][13] which may be defined as expressed behavior that is non-normative for the culture.
Typical symptomatic behaviors may include excessive or public masturbation, coercing, manipulating or tricking other children into non-consensual or unwanted sexual activities, sometimes defined as "child-on-child sexual abuse". Sexualized behavior is thought to constitute the best indication that a child has been sexually abused, although some victims do not exhibit abnormal behavior.[12]
Children who exhibit sexualized behavior may also have other behavioral problems, although factors other than sexual abuse may cause these problems.[13] Other symptoms of child sexual abuse may include manifestations of post-traumatic stress in younger children; fear, aggression, and nightmares in young school-age children; and depression in older children.[12]
The following sections describe typical culturally-normed behavior in most current developed Western societies.
The term early childhood may cover ages up to six, depending on the focus of the particular researcher or commentator. During this period:
A recent study in Sweden indicates that masturbation, in children of this age range, was observed by preschool staff, who observed incidence between 2% and 6% and reported by 14% of parents on a questionnaire that this was more common with boys than with girls. The observers generally "judged the masturbation to be associated with relaxation and desire on the part of the child." (pp. 17-19) [1]. Some researchers have suggested that child masturbation may be considered nonsexual if the child has not learned to associate it with sex.[15]
Early school age covers approximately ages five to seven.
Children become more aware of gender differences, and tend to choose same-sex friends and playmates, even disparaging the opposite sex. [16] Children may drop their close attachment to their opposite-sex parent and become more attached to their same-sex parent.[14]
During this time, children, especially girls, show increased awareness of social norms regarding sex, nudity, and privacy.[17] Children may use sexual terms to test adult reaction.[14] "Bathroom humor" (jokes and conversation relating to excretory functions), present in earlier stages, continues.[18]
Masturbation continues to be common.[14][18]
'Middle childhood' covers the ages from about six to nine, depending on the methodology and the behavior being studied,individual development varies considerably.
As this stage progresses, the choices of children picking same-sex friends becomes more marked and extending to disparagement of the opposite sex.[19]
Planned Parenthood in the USA recommends that pre-teen children should learn, among other things: [20]
In a survey of 796 undergraduates, 15% of females and 10% of males reported some form of sexual experience involving a sibling; most of these fell short of actual intercourse. Approximately one quarter of these experiences were described as abusive or exploitative.[21] Another study found the self-reported prevalence of preadolescent sibling sexual encounters as 5%.[22]
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