Preventing Child Sexual Abuse in Iran: Mothers Teaching Body Safety to Their Sons

Parents play important roles in protecting their children from child sexual abuse (CSA). In Iran, mothers have been shown to effectively improve and maintain female children’s protective behaviors and knowledge regarding CSA. This study aimed to determine the effect of personal safety education for mothers in Gorgan (northeastern Iran) on their sons’ knowledge and skills for the prevention of CSA.

This clinical trial was conducted in 2019 on 46 preschool-aged boys and their mothers. Eligible subjects were recruited by systematic random sampling from two health centers in Gorgan. Boys were pretested using Persian versions of the Personal Safety Questionnaire and ’What If’ Situations Test and then randomly assigned to either an education group (mother-taught program) or a control group. Mothers assigned to the education group participated in a 2-hour training session and were given the Body Safety Training workbook to teach their sons during the following week. Two days after the training by their mothers, boys in both groups were post tested and also followed up one month later. Data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 16) by using repeated-measures ANOVA, general estimation equation, Mann-Whitney U test, and Fisher’s exact test.

Children taught by their mothers demonstrated significant increases in the mean scores of knowledge (P=0.001), total safety skills (P<0.001), and appropriate-touch recognition (P=0.005). These increases were maintained at the one-month follow-up. Children in both groups recognized almost all inappropriate-touch requests correctly at all three time periods (P=0.99).

Educated mothers effectively taught their young sons skills and knowledge to protect from CSA, and these gains were maintained for one month. Although all participants were able to recognize inappropriate-touch requests, boys did not recognize that requests to touch the genitals are appropriate for health or hygiene purposes until they were educated by their mothers. In Iran, parents teach children that any touching or looking at their private parts by anyone is forbidden.