Citation

Markwei U, Osei-Hwedie K. J. Child Sex. Abus. 2019; 28(4): 472-488.

Affiliation

Kofi Annan International Peace Keeping Training Centre , Accra , Ghana.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/10538712.2019.1581869

PMID

30862269

Abstract

Child sexual abuse is increasingly becoming an issue of concern in most societies across the globe, including Ghana. This is a phenomenological study that sought to describe the lived experiences of victims of child sexual abuse in Ghana, using the Ga community as a case study. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to identify 17 sexually abused children in the Ga Community. Using the interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), four main themes described the experiences of the victims: (a) forced sex (b) incest (c) joleying and (d) transactional sex. The findings illustrate the different circumstances in which children were sexually abused in the community studied. It also presents socio-cultural factors that normalizes the sexual abuse of children in the Ga Community. These findings underline the need for effective preventive programs and community interventions to protect children and support victims of child sexual abuse.

Language: en

Keywords

Child sexual abuse; Ga community; Ghana; incest