Parental engagement in child sexual abuse prevention education in Hong Kong

Objective: This study examined three dimensions of parental engagement in Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) prevention education (knowledge, attitudes and practices) to determine whether increased knowledge and attitudes favouring CSA education led to increases in parental behaviours while controlling for multiple factors. Design: A random, digitally selected sample of 508 Hong Kong parents with at least one child in primary school answered a 47-question telephone survey designed by social workers and educators at a local community agency. Method: Parental knowledge and attitudes were measured by scales, scored from 5 to 25 each. Three variables measured parental practices: sex-related topics discussed with the referenced child, CSA-prevention learning methods and a weighted score of CSA-prevention discussions. Univariate tests and multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) were used to analyse the data. Results: A two-way MANCOVA indicated that attitudes were significantly associated with all the parental practices measured, while knowledge was correlated only with the covered sex-related topics. Parental gender and child gender revealed statistically significant differences in the results. Conclusion: To encourage parental engagement in CSA prevention, educators can empower parents to take on the roles of supporters, planners, implementers and collaborators to deliver sexual health education. Praxis-oriented topics such as ‘how to talk to children’ in a standardised CSA curriculum may improve parental participation and increase their motivation to become peer trainers.