Research on the Sexual Exploitation of Boys: Findings, ethical considerations and methodological challenges
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) guarantees that children have the right to live free from all types of violence. The sexual exploitation of children is a grave violation of children’s rights with devastating long-term consequences. Research on this subject is growing. However, most of it centers on girls, neglecting the needs, experiences, and perspectives of boys as well as youth who identify outside the gender binary. Expanding the scope of this research is a critical step in ensuring that all children’s rights can be protected.
Eleison’s Executive Director collaborated with UNICEF to write a literature review pertaining to research on the sexual exploitation of boys. The literature review examines: (1) the magnitude, causes, risk factors and consequences of the sexual exploitation of boys and (2) ethical and methodological challenges that pervade research on this topic. Eligible studies included quantitative and qualitative research published in English from 1999 to March 2020.
