Sexual abuse occurs when a person forces a child to have any form of sexual contact or makes a child perform sexual acts. Sexual abuse may involve touching private parts (clothed or unclothed), penetration using an object, forced sexual acts between children, or making the child view, read or participate in pornography. These acts are abuse even when the offenders say they were gentle and did not hurt the child.

Sexual abuse is also known as molestation and exploitation. Sexual molestation does not always mean sexual intercourse. Sometimes older children molest young or smaller children. Sexual acts between children become molestation when one child uses coercion, force, or violence to get other children to do the acts. Young molesters should be reported to social services so they can receive help.

Sexual molestation is overwhelming to children, especially when an adult is involved. Most children are taught to trust adults. They tend to believe what adults tell them is true rather than rely on their own feeling. This trust of adults can work against them in two ways: of the molester tells them what is being done is okay, they may doubt their own feelings that it is not; and if a parent’s initial reaction to the child’s molestation report is “This can’t be true,” the child may wonder if his or her own feelings are mistaken. Children almost never tell about abuse “to create problems.” More often, they fear that telling will make people angry at them. It is extremely difficult for children to report abuse.