"This special volume of the Journal of Psychology & Human Sexuality about child sexuality is an exceptional event. Child sexuality is a rather neglected field in sex research. One might get a different impression, though, if one searches the scientific literature with ‘child sexual development’ as a search term. However, almost all references one will find deal either directly or indirectly with sexual abuse. There are very few papers about what one might call ‘normal child sexual behavior.’ It is hard to avoid the impression that the only way in which children figure in sexological research is as objects of sexual abuse. The child as a subject learning about sexuality and capable of experiencing sexual pleasures doesn’t seem to exist in scholarly papers." [mijn nadruk] (1)

"Why is there so little research into child sexuality? There are two related answers to this question. First of all, child sexuality is a very sensitive issue. If people, and parents in particular, are even willing to accept the idea that children have sexual feelings and desires, it is unlikely that they are willing to let their child participate in a study focussing on sexuality. The innocence of the child has to be protected and participation in research might injure that innocence. Children are supposed to develop their sexuality without any interference from outside. An unintended consequence of the discussions about sexual abuse might be that each interest in child sexuality, even that of researchers, is suspect."(1)

[Erg vervelend.]

Het andere probleem is uiteraard methodologisch. Het gaat hier over kinderen onder 12 jaar.

(5) Sexual Knowledge of Preschool Children [Renate Volbert]

"ABSTRACT. In an investigation of sexual knowledge, 147 children between the ages of 2 and 6 were interviewed. While children of all ages had knowledge of gender identity, genital differences, and sexual body parts, they demonstrated little understanding of pregnancy, birth, and procreation, and revealed almost no information on adult sexual behavior. Age differences for all investigated areas of knowledge were found. There was definite development among the ages studied in knowledge of pregnancy and birth, but only a slight increase for the areas of procreation and adult sexual behavior." [mijn nadruk] (5)

[Onderzoek in het belang van het idee "age-appropriate". ]

"However, several limitations must be emphasized: most work has focused on the development of gender identity and children’s understanding of pregnancy and birth, whereas only scant empirical research has been conducted on other aspects of child sexual knowledge. Only a few studies have explicitly investigated knowledge of adult sexual behavior, or children’s understanding of sexual abuse. Not only has little empirical research been conducted in this field, but most available studies are also quite dated. Access to sexually explicit material - such as pornographic videos and magazines - has by now become much more widespread. As a result, patterns of acquiring sexual knowledge may well have changed to some degree, since those children whose access to sexually explicit material is potentially easier than in earlier generations, may acquire more extensive sexual knowledge. Child knowledge on sexuality furthermore differs among cultures (e.g., Currier, 1981; Goldman & Goldman, 1982); results of existing studies are therefore applicable only within a cultural context similar to that in which the investigation was conducted. " [mijn nadruk] (6)

[Mooi, kritische opmerkingen. ]

"Knowledge of pregnancy and birth. Various studies show that children 4 to 7 years old possess very basic knowledge of pregnancy, namely of intrauterine growth, but only very little knowledge of birth, and almost no accurate knowledge of conception ..."(7)

[Niet zo gek.]

"The authors also showed that English-speaking children (from USA, Australia, and England) tended to provide realistic accounts of birth exit by 11 years, among Swedish children, the corresponding age was 9 years. More than one-third of the Swedish sample gave a realistic answer already at age 5."(9)

[Waaraan je ziet dat seksuele opvoeding wat dat betreft werkt. ]

"Children have rarely been interviewed on their knowledge of adult sexual behavior independent of the reproduction process. The abovementioned studies indicate that children around 9 begin to give notions about the sexual act when asked about procreation (although some children know about coitus before). In studies with preschool samples, some children demonstrated knowledge of sexual intercourse, but these responses were generally very vague. It is therefore questionable whether these children actually had detailed knowledge about it. In addition, studies have not yet investigated young children’s knowledge of other forms of adult sexual behavior." [mijn nadruk] (9-10)

"The purpose of the present investigation (Volbert & Homburg, 1996) was to obtain currently valid information on what young children, ages 2 to 6, know about sexuality. We were especially interested in how the developmental progression in children’s sexual knowledge varied in different areas of sexuality."(11)

"The extent of knowledge of sexuality encountered here is very similar to that found in a relatively recent study by Gordon et al. (1990). The findings correspond on the whole to those described over the past three decades. One cannot therefore conclude that substantial changes have taken place during this period in the acquisition of sexual knowledge among preschoolers. Despite presently more readily available access to sexually explicit material, the children in the age group studied demonstrated practically no knowledge of the sexual behavior of adults. Now, as in years before, the great majority of the children in the age groups investigated apparently obtain initial sexual knowledge on the reproduction process, and gradually accumulate information on coitus and the sexual behavior of adults in this manner." [mijn nadruk] (21)

"It must be pointed out that this study — on the basis of its sample size alone - is not representative. It is also significant that a large share of the parents approached refused to allow their children to be interviewed. There is no information on the differences between parents who allowed their children to be interviewed and parents who refused such permission. A further difficulty is the fact that children under certain conditions may well possess more sexual knowledge than they reveal during the interviews. This possibility is especially great among the older of the questioned children, since embarrassment with respect to sexuality has already become more pronounced at their ages (cf. Rosenfeld et al., 1984; see also Gordon et al., 1990)."(24)

(27) Young Children’s Curiosity About Other People’s Genitals [Bettina Schuhrke]

"ABSTRACT. When children can satisfy their sexual curiosity and even when they are hindered in doing so, they learn something about specific aspects of sexuality, e.g., they construct a mental representation of their bodies and those of other people, including the sexual organs. An in-depth exploratory study on the process of body discovery has been conducted on 26 German children. In this article results are reported on children’s interest in other people’s genitals: their behavior, aspects of the situations in which the interest becomes manifest, and changes in interest from the second to the sixth year of life. Methods of data collection were observation by parents over the course of the second year of life and interviews with mothers at the beginning of the third and in the sixth year of life." [mijn nadruk] (27)

[Daar laat ik het bij. ]

(49) Studying Children’s Sexuality from the Child’s Perspective [Jany Rademakers, Marjoke Laan, Cees J. Straver

"ABSTRACT. In an exploratory study on body awareness and experiences with physical intimacy from children’s own perspective, 16 boys and 15 girls (age 8/9) were interviewed. Almost all children displayed a positive attitude towards intimate physical contact, especially cuddling. Half of the children didn’t report experiences regarding sexuality or physical intimacy with peers, while one third displayed an active interest in these, had their own experiences and were able to reflect on those. A few children had a negative or ambivalent attitude towards physical intimacy. Data were also collected from one of the parents of each child. Parents presented a more positive and permissive view of the situation at home regarding physical intimacy than children did." [mijn nadruk] (49)

"Sexuality and the normal sexual development of children under the age of 12 have long been neglected topics in scientific studies. As a result of this, theory, empirical data and methodological knowledge in this area remain scarce (Laan 1994, Van der Zanden 1992, Sandfort 1989, Constantine and Martinson 1981). This lack in knowledge about normal sexual behavior of children is felt even more strongly since child sexual abuse has become an important theme in debate, counselling and research in the past decade. Criteria about what was to be considered normal and abnormal had to be established, since abnormal sexual interest and behavior is regarded as an indication that a child had been abused." [mijn nadruk] (50)

[In essentie is dat allemaal normatief, zelfs als we de feiten hebben verzameld zijn dat feiten binnen een bepaalde normatieve context. ]

"The concepts of sexuality often used in studies with adults are generally of little use in research with children.(...) Body awareness, sexual responsiveness and aspects of intimacy have seldom been studied in this age group. Methodological problems also hamper this line of research. Observation and retrospective studies are the most frequently used methods to study childhood sexuality, but they have some obvious limitations. Addressing children directly is very difficult as well. Young children don’t have the verbal capacities to express themselves on these issues, and until age 7 or 8 boys and girls are not able to reflect on topics from a more abstract level. New instruments have to be developed, and questions about the validity and reliability of these instruments have to be faced." [mijn nadruk] (50)

"Because of the exploratory nature of the study and the focus on children’s own perspective, a qualitative study design was chosen. A sample of 15 girls and 16 boys were interviewed about body awareness and their experiences with physical intimacy. Because the children had to master verbal and reflexive skills to a certain degree and the developmental differences within the sample shouldn’t be too large, the decision was made to select only children of 8 and 9 years old. The children were contacted in the context of a routine school medical examination. In a semi-structured interview situation a female interviewer talked with the children about romping (as a non-intimate form of physical contact), cuddling and being in love. Furthermore the children were invited to mark on drawings of a same sex naked child’s body which parts they considered pleasant and which parts they found exciting. The children were also asked to tell stories on the basis of four drawings which portrayed scenes like playing doctor or having a bath with an adult. They were asked about their own experiences in this respect. All parts of the research instrument were pretested in this age group. The children were alone in the room with the interviewer. The interview was taped. Children were assured that the information they gave would be kept confidential. On average, the interviews took about 20 minutes. The data were analysed qualitatively. After a preliminary coding of the material, categories were made per theme on the basis of the content of the answers. The number of children whose answers fitted in these categories were counted.
Data were also collected from the parents of the children. During the time the child was interviewed, in another room, one of the parents of each child (26 mothers, 4 fathers, 1 refusal) filled out a structured questionnaire which contained questions about similar topics that were discussed with the children. Additionally, some questions were asked about their attitudes and behavior with respect to the sexual development of their children. The data of the parents as a group were compared to the data of the children." [mijn nadruk] (51-52)

[Interessante onderzoeksopzet. Toch vraag ik me altijd weer af hoe groot de invloed is van de sekse van de interviewer. Het zijn wel erg vaak vrouwen en dat wordt zelden verantwoord.]

"The children were very unanimous in their description of cuddling. Apart from one boy, who didn’t know what it was and after an explanation of the interviewer stated that he had never done such a thing, all other children (15 girls, 15 boys) mentioned hugging, kissing and sitting on someone’s lap. Almost all of them regarded cuddling as something positive, either because of the bodily sensations cuddling produces, or because of the feeling of safety it gives them. They express their feelings regarding cuddling as safe, nice, soft, cheerful, fun, kind and comforting." [mijn nadruk] (52-53)

"When the theme ‘being in love’ was introduced in the interview, the atmosphere often changed. The questions about this theme elicited some tension, which was evident in non-verbal signs like giggling, sighing and voice changes. The way children described being in love differed from the way they had described romping and cuddling. While these two themes were defined by the children in terms of active behavior, being in love is a state which elicits bodily sensations such as blushing and tickling feelings in your belly." [mijn nadruk] (53)

[Waarschijnlijk omdat dat raakt aan door de omgeving verboden zaken?]

"More than half of these 8- and 9-year old children (n = 18) say they are in love at the moment or have been in love before."(54)

"Though being in love is generally regarded as a positive experience, most of the children (n = 22) said they wouldn’t tell anyone when they’re in love. The reason they unanimously gave for this taciturnity is the fact other children and adults would tease them."(54)

[En vast nog meer.]

"In general, parents presented a more positive and permissive view of the situation at home with regard to physical intimacy than the children did: more romping, more cuddling, more bathing together. Children may sketch a less positive situation because they feel shame or embarrassment about these subjects. Even though the actual situation at home may be somewhat different, parents obviously regard being open, warm and permissive as the standard with regard to sex education and family relationships."(58)

[Waar speelde dit onderzoek? In de VS kan ik me zoiets niet voorstellen.]

"There are both similarities and differences between children’s sexuality as presented in this study and adolescent or adult sexuality. It seems that the sensations and behaviors which accompany the feeling of being in love don’t change very much over the years. The confusion and uncertainty which the children describe is similar to the state of mind adolescents and adults are usually in when they’re in love. Also the body sensations, like blushing and tickling, are easily recognizable. Furthermore the combination of being in love with fantasizing is common in both children and older people.
Another similarity between children and adolescents is the way in which the sexual development process seems to take place. What is obvious from the interviews with these 8- and 9-year old children is that also in this younger age group different phases of development can be distinguished. There is a big difference between the children who don’t yet have an active interest arid own experiences in this area, and the children who do. The transition from one phase to the second is presumably stimulated by their cognitive ability to reflect on their own behavior. From this moment on sexual development more and more becomes an active social learning process, whereas experiences at a younger age are incorporated on a more intuitive and basic level.
A difference between children and adolescents and adults is that while older people seem to focus their sexual interest and behavior on specific body parts, such as bottom and genitals, children seem to have a less differentiated awareness of their body. Both with romping and cuddling they use their whole body, and sensations they feel are not limited to sexual parts." [mijn nadruk] (58-59)

(61) The Association of Sexual Behavior with Externalizing Behaviors in a Community Sample of Prepubertal Children [Heino F. L. Meyer-Bahlburg, Curtis Dolezal, David E. Sandberg]

[Een totaal zinloos afstandelijk psychologisch onderzoek waarin kinderen geen enkele stem krijgen. En weer eens op het vlak van problemen.]

(81) Reactions of Inner-City Boys and Their Mothers to Research Interviews About Sex [Lucia F. O’Sullivan, Heino F. L. Meyer-Bahlburg, Gail Wasserman]

"ABSTRACT. Our understanding of child sexuality is very unsatisfactory, in part because research in this area has progressed slowly due to concerns of parents, institutional review boards, school authorities, granting and community agents. Some members of these groups worry that this line of inquiry will have adverse consequences, such as causing distress in child participants or stimulating them to engage in sexual activities." [mijn nadruk] (81-82)

[Wat is nieuw? ]

"In essence, the study of child sexuality challenges a cherished belief in children’s fundamental asexuality and “innocence” (Craft, 1994; Jackson, 1990). According to Goldman (1994, p. 6) “Childhood itself is subject to even more social taboos where sexuality is concerned than is adolescence.”’ She believes that “‘strong taboos still operate to limit enquiry, public and private, by protest, political and institutional obstruction, and the exercise of moral censorship,” particularly in the realm of child sexuality. These “sexual taboos” serve to deny recognition of sexuality in children and young adolescents and protect youth from the “contamination” of sexual information. In line with this thinking, some school authorities and parents argue that talking to children about sex may distress younger children, “put ideas into innocent heads,”’ and prompt or condone sexual behavior in adolescents (Lenderyou, 1994; Thomson, 1994). School authorities restrict access to children for research and educational purposes to accommodate those parents who feel that discussions with children about sex are inappropriate (Kirby, 1992). In their cross-national study of children’s sexual cognition, Goldman and Goldman (1982) experienced the most problems conducting their research in the United States, especially with regard to convincing school administrators and principals to provide access to schools, obtaining consent from parents, and gaining approval of their research measures.
However, studies of child sexuality are typically held up much earlier than the data collection phase of the research process. Problems frequently arise in the proposal stage. Institutional review boards " [mijn nadruk] (83)

[Uiteraard vooral in de VS. Inderdaad: taboes, normatieve beelden van kinderen. Tegen alle feiten in uiteraard, zoals ook weer blijkt uit dit onderzoek. Een open deur wat mij betreft. ]

(105) Sexual Behavior in Dutch and Belgian Children as Observed by Their Mothers [Theo G. M. Sandfort, Peggy T. Cohen-Kettenis]

"ABSTRACT. Mothers’ observations (N = 670) of child sexual behavior have been collected using an adapted version of the Child Sexual Behavior Inventory as developed by Friedrich et al. (1991). The ages of the boys (N = 351) and girls (N = 319) observed range from 0 to 11 years. The results show that there is a lot of variance in the frequency with which specific sexual behaviors are observed. The occurrence of specific behaviors varies with age. While some behaviors are observed more frequently as the child gets older, others are observed less frequently. Boys and girls only differ in a few behaviors. The finding that the behavioral items form an internally consistent scale suggests that there is a general tendency to show sexually related behaviors, which is more or less strongly present in children, which might be a precursor of differential levels of sexual desires in adults." [mijn nadruk] (105)

"A search of the scientific literature on child sexuality shows that a lot of research has been done in the past decades. A closer look at this literature indicates, however, that most of these studies-if not all-focus on child sexual abuse. In the current sexological discourse the child only seems to figure as a subject of abuse. This state of affairs implies that our knowledge of child sexuality is very one-sided. Empirical data about normal sexual development in children are scarce.
The focus on abuse and its consequences limits our understanding of the way children sexually develop and the meaning of their experiences for later functioning as sexual partners in intimate relationships." [mijn nadruk] (106)

[Dat is een duidelijke stelling. En dan hebben we het nog maar niet over alle ondoordachte waarden en normen waarop dat onderzoek zich baseert. Wel jammer dat dit onderzoek van Sandfort ea alleen vrouwen ondervraagt, alsof moeders alles van hun kinderen zien en weten en vaders niets.]

"The mothers reported in total about 351 boys and 319 girls (respectively 52% and 48%). The ages of the children ranged from 0 to 11 years. Most children, 72%, were between 2 and 6 years old, while 19% were between 6 and 11 years. The mean age was almost 4 years. The boys and girls reported upon did not differ in age."(108)

"There were almost no differences between the mothers regarding the observations of the various sexual behaviors in their children. Although not high, there are two significant correlations. Firstly, it seemed that in families that show higher levels of physical intimacy and are more open towards nudity, mothers observe more sexual behavior in their child (r = .12, p < .01). Secondly, mothers who hold more permissive attitudes towards sexuality also observed higher levels of sexual behavior in their children (r = .18, p < .001). Both characteristics, nature of physical intimacy at home and sexual permissiveness were related as well (r = .26, p > .001)."(110)

[Dat ligt nogal voor de hand. ]

(117) Cultural Differences in Sexual Behavior: 2-6 Year Old Dutch and American Children [William N. Friedrich, Theo G. M. Sandfort, Jacqueline Oostveen, Peggy T. Cohen-Kettenis]

"ABSTRACT. Three samples, one American (N = 500) and two from the Netherlands (N = 460, N = 297) of 2-6 year old children, screened for the absence of sexual abuse, were assessed with 25 items derived from the Child Sexual Behavior Inventory (Friedrich et al. 1992). Considerable differences existed between the three groups across a number of the behaviors rated, with a persisting tendency for the parents of the children from the Netherlands to report higher rates of sexual behavior. Family nudity was related to sexual behavior in all three samples. Although the studies used an equivalent questionnaire and all three of the samples are predominantly middle class, the observed differences can be explained by methodological factors such as sample composition and the way data have been collected. The observed differences might, however, also reflect actual differences, and can be understood as resulting from cultural differences in sexual socialization. More rigorous research is needed to assess which explanation is most valid."

"Avoidance (rigid versus flexible) (Hofstede, 1991). They differ, though, substantively on the fourth dimension: Masculinity/Femininity (tough versus tender), the United States being a more masculine and the Netherlands being a more feminine society. Masculine and feminine societies differ with respect to general values, relationships between men and women, child rearing practices, the organization of work, as well as national policies. Masculine and feminine societies also differ regarding sexuality, the latter generally being more permissive (Hofstede, 1998). That the Netherlands has a more permissive sexual climate than the United States has also been documented in the World Values Studies (Van den Akker, Halman & De Moor, 1994), " [mijn nadruk] (119)

[De woorden religie, christelijk, conservatief worden blijkbaar vermeden.]