This Issue contains selected papers presented at a University of Calgary workshop on research and therapy In the field of child sexual abuse, which explains why so many of the contributors are from the academic and professional community in Calgary. In recent years, Calgary has become a leading centre in the humane and integrated treatment of victims of child sexual abuse, and their families. A well-coordinated and well-funded child protection system in Calgary and the surrounding rural area works in collaboration with police, crown prosecutors, and therapists. Long-term therapy for victims, their families, and offenders is contracted out to a variety of agencies. One of these practices, the humanistic mode of therapy, was described by Anderson and Mayes (1982) in a previous issue of this journal. Another model, described in the present issue by Robbie Babins-Wagner, practices a modified form of family systems therapy. There are a half dozen different agencies in Calgary operating on different theoretical assumptions, and accepting different kinds of referral. In this pluralistic model, it is assumed that the best fit can usually be made between client need and therapeutic system.

One of the problems in organizing a system of therapy for both victims and their abusers is the unpredictability of judges: there is no guarantee that a man who pleads guilty to sexual assault upon his child will receive a short sentence in a provincial prison, or a suspended sentence, which would allow therapy to be ongoing. We know from the work of Stephens and his colleagues (published in this issue) that a man is most likely to be brought to trial, and to be found guilty, if he admits the offence. And only a minority of cases in which social workers are certain that sexual abuse has taken place, result in the prosecution of the assumed offender. Non-prosecution is most likely when the offender denies the action.

An interesting model of practice has emerged from Hinton in Northern Alberta (Bagley, 1988). Here a single judge has evolved a system which encourages maximum cooperation by offenders. The offender will be charged, but will not be brought to trtal until after a period of mandated therapy for the victim. If the man cooperates in this therapy, and apologizes to his victim, he will receive only a two-year suspended sentence. External evaluation of this program indicates that a suspended sentence is more effective in deterring any further offence than probation. The reason why this excellent cooperation between judges and treatment agencies cannot be deployed in larger cities such as Edmonton or Calgary is because there are diverse and conflicting opinions amongst judges themselves about what kind of charging and sentencing might be appropriate. It Is likely that some offenders might risk a lengthy prison term by denying the offence (and causing further harm to their victim) when they know that admission is likely to result, in say, a three-year custodial term. Other things being equal, the more punitive society is towards offenders, the more likely it is that offenders will deny their actions. There is clearly a need for both federal and provincial action in this area to initiate reform. The federal government has made a number of important legal changes in response to the Badgley and Rogers’ recommendations (see the review article in this issue); but more needs to be done in this legal domain.

Finally, it is obvious that prevention is better than cure. Helping young children to recognize the signs of abuse, to avoid it, and to report it as soon as it begins, is an excellent strategy, and Lesley Tutty’s article in this issue provides important information and analysis in this regard. And, it is possible also to recognize and treat young males in residential child and youth care, who have experienced prior sexual abuse, and are in danger of moving into the victim-to-abuser cycle, as Bagley and Shewchuk-Dann, Baird, and Orr stress in this issue.

REFERENCES

Anderson, C., & Mayes, P. (1982). Treating family sexual abuse: The humanistic approach. Journal of Child and Youth Care, 1(2), 31-46.

Bagley, C. (1988). Integrated treatment of child sexual abuse. The Advocate: Journal of the Alberta Association of Social Workers, 13(4), 1-4.