"Pay Attention! Pay Attention! Pay Attention!!!": The Pivotal Role of Educators and the Educational System as Experienced by Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse.

Educational institutions and educators are significant in children's lives, and they have a crucial role in implementing policies, practices, and sexual education to enhance children's safety. Such policies and practices should be based on the voices of CSA survivors. This study explored child sexual abuse (CSA) survivors' viewpoints on their past experiences with educators and the educational system. A qualitative thematic approach was used to analyze 61 written testimonies collected in 2020-2021 by the Israeli Independent Public Inquiry on CSA. Two interrelated themes arose: (1) CSA survivors' retrospective perspectives of educators and the educational system's responses to signs of their CSA, described as ranging from abusive to life-saving. Specifically, they shared three types of responses: (a) harmful and hurtful; (b) dismissive and ignoring; and (c) accepting and attending. (2) The second theme described the survivors' messages to educators to promote constructive change. The survivors conveyed expectations that educators should play a central role in CSA prevention, detection, and intervention and, specifically, the need for educators to receive professional training, provide beneficial sexual education, and identify and respond to CSA. The findings promoted moving beyond individual-level interventions to focus on improving educational institutional and organizational cultures related to CSA in both national and international contexts.

"Today, I Say It's Mine!": Professional Identity Construction among Jewish and Arab School Counselors Coping with CSA Disclosure in Israel.

School counselors play a crucial role in preventing, disclosing, and intervening in child sexual abuse cases (CSA) and in maintaining safe and protected school environments. However, research on their experiences coping with CSA remains limited. The purpose of the present study was to describe and analyze the coping experiences of Israeli Jewish and Arab school counselors with CSA disclosure, particularly the consequences for their processes of professional identity construction (the ongoing process through which they develop and refine their sense of self in their profession). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 Israeli Jewish and Arab school counselors working in elementary schools (grades 1-6) with significant experience in coping with CSA. Two themes surfaced, reflecting the counselors' professional identity construction: (1) Counselors' professional identity transformation following encounters with CSA among their students; (2) Integrating professional knowledge, attitudes, and engagement behaviors into professional identity. The findings describe a trajectory of transformation and professional development among the counselors, beginning with defining and refining their professional roles and followed by the integration of professional knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors into their professional routines. Arab counselors also highlighted specific sociocultural challenges within this process, relating to the gap between cultural values and role expectations. Implications for future research, policy, and practice are discussed.

'A kindergarten teacher must have 100 eyes and 100 ears!': Kindergarten teachers' experiences coping with child sexual abuse and problematic sexual behavior.

BACKGROUND: Child sexual abuse (CSA) and problematic sexual behavior (PSB) are worldwide phenomena that occur across all ages. Kindergarten teachers' proactive involvement can be crucial to the prevention, disclosure and intervention of CSA and PSB. However, research on their experiences of contending with CSA and PSB remains limited. OBJECTIVE: This study examines kindergarten teachers' experiences in Israel with the CSA and PSB of their students. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 31 teachers: 11 secular Jewish, seven religious Jewish, nine Druze Arab, and four Muslim Arab. METHODS: A qualitative analysis was conducted using the interview transcripts as data. RESULTS: The analysis revealed three themes illustrating teachers' professional transformations regarding their knowledge of these phenomena: 1) initial shock, uncertainty and sense of responsibility when exposed to CSA and PSB due to missing knowledge, 2) implementation of prevention and intervention strategies regarding CSA and PSB, and 3) embracing a social role to disseminate CSA and PSB knowledge. The findings indicated that the majority of the teachers went from overwhelming shock and fear due to a lack of knowledge in coping with CSA and PSB to a sense of responsibility as a community leader. CONCLUSIONS: The fragmentation of the Israeli education system isolates kindergartens, and the lack of training and education for the teachers left them alone when contending with the CSA and PSB of their students. Nevertheless, the participants exhibited remarkable agency and resourcefulness, gaining the necessary knowledge and acting as knowledge agents within their communities.

"We Need to Raise Awareness and Never Give Up": Israeli Druze and Muslim Arab Kindergarten Teachers' Proactivity When Facing the Sexual Abuse of Their Students.

Kindergarten teachers are expected to lead the intervention process in cases of child sexual abuse (CSA) in their kindergarten. This study examines the proactive role of Druze and Muslim Arab kindergarten teachers in addressing and coping with the CSA of their kindergarten students in Israel. A qualitative thematic analysis was used to investigate the semi-structured interviews conducted with eight Druze Arab and six Muslim Arab kindergarten teachers. Three distinct themes were revealed. The first theme described the participants' fear and concern for their personal children and themselves when dealing with CSA incidents involving their students. The second and third themes described their proactive coping on two fronts: (1) inside their homes to protect their own children and (2) as educators within religious communities, using professional and religious principles to support CSA survivors and raise awareness among parents. The results emphasized the personal burden on kindergarten teachers coping with CSA in their kindergarten and, as mainly expressed by Druze kindergarten teachers, the contribution of religious values to CSA intervention and prevention processes among their students and communities. Thus, there is a need for comprehensive support that considers ethnic and religious characteristics and will be available to kindergarten teachers facing CSA in their kindergarten.

"We Try to Fix Things Quietly, and We Do Not Take Revenge": Christian Arab Teachers' Experiences Coping with Child Sexual Abuse Among Their Pupils in Israel.

Teachers are at the frontlines of the fight to identify and cope with child sexual abuse (CSA) among their pupils. Their methods of coping with CSA cases, both personally and professionally, are strongly influenced by their socio-cultural contexts and religious beliefs. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the experiences of Christian Arab teachers in Israel coping with the CSA of their pupils. Twelve Christian Arab elementary school teachers in Israel were recruited for the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and a qualitative thematic analysis was employed based on a descriptive phenomenological-psychological approach. Two key themes emerged from the analysis: (a) The teachers' intense emotional reactions regarding the CSA of their students and the empowerment some found in handling such difficult situations, and (b) The teachers' Christian beliefs and identity strongly affected their understanding of CSA and their approach to intervention. The findings indicated the dialectical position of the teachers' religio-cultural context, particularly the duality of the Christian value of forgiveness, a powerful resource for their coping, yet with adverse implications for children's vulnerability. This unique risk should inform training teachers regarding CSA matters. Teachers must also have systems that support them and allow them to reflectively examine their coping styles.

"I have a special prayer 'O Lord, open my lips'": Experiences of ultra-Orthodox educators after their students' disclosures of sexual abuse.

BACKGROUND: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a large-scale, worldwide phenomenon. However, research on educators' experiences with CSA in specific social, cultural or religious contexts is limited. OBJECTIVE: The current study is part of a larger qualitative research project examining Israeli educators' coping with CSA of their students in diverse cultural contexts. This study focused on Jewish ultra-Orthodox educators' perceptions and experiences of CSA disclosure and its impact on their professional and personal lives. Their perceptions of belonging to the ultra-Orthodox community were also explored. METHODS: Interviews were conducted with 28 ultra-Orthodox educators and analyzed using a thematic approach. RESULTS: The ultra-Orthodox educators perceived their roles on a continuum, from not being responsible to being fully responsible. They perceived the abused children as having negative behavior or as victims who deserved protection. Their personal lives were deeply affected, impacted by fear, disassociation or devotion to the mission of caring for these children. Finally, educators perceived the ultra-Orthodox community as fragile regarding CSA disclosure and emphasized the importance of encouraging culturally adaptive ways to conceptualize and address CSA. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the importance of ultra-Orthodox educators in identifying CSA and leading interventions. It also raises the need for training to combine reflective, cultural-based practice and support for the educator to maintain their wellbeing. Despite this community's uniqueness, the current findings may be relevant to professionals and policymakers regarding other closed and religious communities and diverse educational settings confronting CSA.

"One Day It Will Be Over, and You Will See Other Landscapes. . . You Are Not Alone": Adult Survivors' Messages to Children Undergoing Child Sexual Abuse.

Child sexual abuse (CSA) has received considerable attention from scholars, contributing to policy, intervention, and prevention efforts worldwide. However, survivors' involvement in this research is limited. This study was designed to delve into the messages of adult CSA survivors to abused children. In all, 371 written testimonies were provided to the Israeli Independent Public Inquiry on CSA by survivors from diverse communities in Israel. The Inquiry aimed to promote change in policies related to CSA. The testimonies were analyzed using the qualitative thematic analysis method. The results revealed five main messages emphasized by survivors to children experiencing CSA: (a) transferring the responsibility and guilt from children to perpetrators and society; (b) turning toward the light and continuing on; (c) disclosure is essential; (d) a happy life is possible; and (e) together we can survive. The discussion emphasizes how various systems in survivors' lives have profound impacts following the abuse. Although survivors were from diverse backgrounds, their messages to abused children were consistent. Through their messages to the children, the survivors emphasized their wish to transfer responsibility and guilt from children experiencing abuse to the society that is supposed to see, listen, protect, and validate. Implications for practice are discussed, focusing on the importance of making room for survivors' voices and experiences in the processes of shaping policies in the area of CSA. Moreover, the survivors' desire to be there for the children emphasized the urgent need to promote the perception of survivors as key stakeholders in the field of child abuse and to integrate their experiences and perceptions into the formal and informal systems for children.

"We were there all alone": Sexual abuse within the peer group in boarding schools in Israel - Retrospective perceptions of adult survivors.

BACKGROUND: Despite the extensive research on child sexual abuse and the alarming extent of the phenomenon among peers, certain perspectives are still missing. OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to explore the subjective experience of adult survivors of peer sexual abuse while in boarding school, which has rarely been explored. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: The present study included 15 adults who were sexually abused by their peers while attending boarding school. METHODS: The data were based on semi-structured in-depth interviews focused on the abuse story, disclosure, and the meaning of the boarding school context to the participants. The interviews were analyzed using the qualitative thematic analysis approach. RESULTS: The findings characterized the boarding school as lacking parental figures, lacking rule and regulation enforcement, and staff who were not able to deal effectively with sexual abuse cases. The relationships within the peer group in the boarding school were characterized by intense, although unspoken, intimacy and sexuality. As part of the group's socialization, breaking the rules was encouraged, including in the sexual realm. Furthermore, the boarding school was perceived as a space that maintained conservative patriarchal social structures that encouraged traditional gender perceptions. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the current study indicated the urgent need to advance both policy and practice in this area, for example, greater involvement of the boarding school staff in the lives of the adolescents and implementation of rules and regulations to create a safer climate for those who choose, or need, to live away from home.

Not a happy story. A love story: Professional perceptions of love in families with child sexual abuse in two US mid-Atlantic Child Advocacy Centers.

BACKGROUND: Although research on child sexual abuse (CSA) has greatly evolved, studies revealing survivors' conflicting feelings towards their perpetrators and family members are scarce. Professionals' perceptions of love in intrafamilial CSA are often overlooked. OBJECTIVE: The current study examined the perceptions of professionals working on CSA multidisciplinary teams (MDT). The research questions were: (1) How do professionals define love in families with CSA? (2) What are professionals' perceptions of parental love in families with CSA? (3) What are professionals' perceptions of love from the abused child towards their parents and siblings? (4) What are the differences between professionals' perceptions of love and those of the families they serve, and how do professionals deal with these different perceptions during interventions? METHOD: Five focus groups with a total of 34 child advocacy center (CAC) and MDT professionals from two CACs in the US mid-Atlantic region were conducted virtually and analyzed using a thematic approach. RESULTS: The findings indicated that professionals recognized parental love at the center of familial child sexual abuse (FCSA) cases and its range from benevolent and healthy to maladaptive, offensive love. Professionals also recognized the mechanisms enabling children's love for both offending and non-offending parents and complex expressions of love between siblings, even when one sibling sexually abused another. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the importance of promoting discourse on love in cases of intrafamilial CSA. Recognizing and embracing the complexity of love bonds may empower the abused child and support their need to believe in their parents' love.

What Can We Learn About the Others Present During Incidents of Child Abuse?: Key Lessons and Future Directions Based on a Scoping Review.

Child abuse (CA) is a global problem that has received attention from policymakers, researchers, and practitioners. The majority of studies have focused on the phenomenon's epidemiology and consequences, alongside groundbreaking writing on victims and perpetrators. The concept of others who are present during the abuse is understudied and underdeveloped, despite its vital importance in better understanding children's experiences as well as their disclosure. The current study was designed to spotlight the phenomenon of others' presence, beyond the victims and perpetrators, during child abuse incidents. The current literature review was guided by a scoping review strategy. The results revealed scant empirical data, with only 15 studies meeting the inclusion criteria of the study. The articles that met the inclusion criteria addressed other people's presence during CA incidents, were published in peer-reviewed journals, and were written in the English language. These articles' analyses addressed the relations of the survivors with these others, pointing mainly to two identities: accidental bystanders who are not familiar with the child and family members of the child. The results provided a glance into the process that accidental bystanders go through during the abuse and the meaning of their presence for those who are family members. The perceptions and experiences of the children themselves with respect to the presence of the others during the abuse are noticeably lacking. The key conclusion from the current scoping review pinpoints the urgent need to advance the empirical knowledge on the presence of others during incidents of child abuse, especially others who are familiar to the children and are a significant part of their lives. The conceptualization of this phenomenon has the potential to better adapt prevention and intervention efforts in the field of child abuse.

"The most shocking thing was that I didn't respond to the abuse": The peritraumatic responses and transitions as conveyed by survivors of continuous child sexual abuse.

BACKGROUND: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a worldwide phenomenon with ongoing and far-reaching consequences for millions of children worldwide. It is a consensus among researchers that continuous CSA represents a unique challenge. OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to explore the peritraumatic responses of survivors of continuous CSA as described in their written narratives of abuse. The transitions between the peritraumatic responses will also be examined, highlighting the unique context of continuous CSA. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Written narratives of CSA were recruited via an advertisement in the media inviting CSA survivors to share their stories of abuse on an anonymous online platform. The data collection was carried out under the Israeli Independent Public Inquiry on CSA. METHODS: A qualitative thematic analysis was applied to 32 richly written accounts of abuse. RESULTS: Three peritraumatic responses were identified: the adaptive response, hinting, and attempts to fight and flight. Transitions between these responses were described by the survivors and addressed the heavy load of the abuse, realization of the abuse, fear of consequences and the central role of the survivor's environment. CONCLUSIONS: The current study provides a unique platform for the exploration of peritraumatic responses in continuous CSA. Alongside the identification of three peritraumatic responses described by the survivors, the current study provides an initial glance into transitions between peritraumatic responses. This insight strengthens the developing notion that peritraumatic responses in the unique context of CSA are a top-down process, often shaped by various contexts and multidimensional dynamics in the children's lives.

"I don't fit into any category": Adult perspectives on the dynamics of past sexual acts between siblings in Jewish Orthodox society.

BACKGROUND: 'Harmful sexual sibling behavior' is a term used in this study to refer to childhood sexual behaviors, including abuse (SSA), that are inconsistent with the category of age-appropriate curiosity. Although SSA may be the most prevalent and longest-lasting form of intrafamilial sexual abuse, it is the least reported, studied, and treated. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to deepen our understanding of the sexual characteristics and dynamics of such behavior, as perceived by those involved. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Twenty adults from the Orthodox community in Israel, who experienced sexual interactions with one or more of their siblings, were recruited as participants. METHODS: This qualitative, constructivist, grounded-theory study was based on semi-structured interviews with 20 adults. RESULTS: Four types of sexual dynamics were revealed: an "abusive dynamic," "mutual relations," "sexual routine," and "incidental," with the latter stemming from a new understanding that deepens our knowledge of the subject. The participants discussed the broad, long-term consequences and life-long psychological implications of each dynamic and the coexistence of these dynamics. The results also reveal two cultural dimensions of the participants' perception of the sexual acts: "lack of sexual knowledge" and "the perception that all religious prohibitions are of equal severity." CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight the importance of adapting interventions to the siblings' perceptions and avoiding treatment that exacerbates their complex situation. We employ the concepts of dynamics and dimension in describing the phenomenon rather than continuum. The study also highlights the importance of understanding relevant religious-cultural factors.

School principals coping with child sexual abuse in their schools.

BACKGROUND: Schools serve a central role in prevention, disclosure and intervention in cases of child sexual abuse (CSA). As school principals often face CSA cases in their daily work, they may hold the key to making social change on this front. However, research on principals' experiences of contending with CSA remains limited. OBJECTIVE: The current study is part of a larger qualitative research project examining various Israeli educators' coping with CSA among their students in diverse cultural contexts. In this study, we specifically focused on principals. The research questions were: (1) What are the unique ways in which school principals cope with cases of CSA during their course of daily work? (2) Do their cultural contexts and cultural affiliations shape their coping, and if so, how? METHODS: In-depth interviews were conducted with 25 principals from multiple cultural groups (secular, religious and ultra-Orthodox Jews, and Arab-Muslims), which were analyzed using a thematic approach. RESULTS: The findings indicated that principals demonstrate three types of coping strategies in response to encounters with CSA in the course of their work: they may act as "navigators" (exclusively responsible); "sharers" (rely on teamwork); or "balancers" (negotiating between cultural and legal demands). Furthermore, two contextual factors affected their construction of coping: ongoing professional experience in cases of CSA and personal experiences, including being a CSA survivor. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the importance of principals in identifying and leading interventions for CSA cases. It also raises the need for training to combine reflective, experience-based practice alongside evidence-informed practice.

"If you don't send me five other pictures I am going to post the photo online": A qualitative analysis of experiences of survivors of sextortion.

In this study, we explored survivors' experience with sextortion (threats to expose sexual images to coerce victims to provide additional pictures, sex, or other favors). We conducted in-depth telephone interviews with 48 adults aged 18 to 25 who had been targets of sextortion. Nearly half of participants were minors at the time of the sextortion incident. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis, which resulted in four major dimensions. The dimensions identified were the emotional connections between victims and perpetrators, the nature of the threats, societal responses, and integrating the sextortion into their life stories. The findings emphasized the multidimensional nature of this phenomenon. There was a wide range of emotional connections, from brief connections to close intimate relationships or strong friendships. Some threats remained unfulfilled, while other were carried out. Some threats were one-time and some lasted for years. Societal responses were central in participants' narratives, with most participants actually turning to their peers and parents for support. Many expressed thankfulness for the opportunity to tell their story during the interviews. For the majority of participants sextortion was perceived as a central event in their lives, one that changed them forever. Listening to the voices of survivors helps professionals understand these harmful situations.

Lover, Mentor, or Exploiter: Retrospective Perspectives of the Older Person Following Sexual Relationships with Adults During Adolescence.

Sexual relationships between an adolescent and an older person are considered controversial and in many countries are conceptualized under the legal definition of statutory relationship/rape. Despite the consensus regarding their potential negative implications, little is known about how adolescents perceive and construct them. To address this lacuna, the current exploratory study examined how individuals who have experienced sexual relationships with an adult while growing up perceived the older person and the meaning they ascribed to the age gap (M age gap, 7.78 years; range, 2-18 years). A qualitative thematic methodology was incorporated in analyzing in-depth semi-structured interviews with 28 individuals (M age, 29.89 years) who had experienced sexual relationships with an (at least 2 years) older person during adolescence (M age, 14.78 years). Participants described five different perceptions of the older persons: romantic partner; sexual partner; authority figure; complex/unstable figure; and exploiter. Subsequent analysis, focusing on the role participants assigned to age when describing these different images of older persons, shed additional light on their subjective perceptions; namely, for each image, age had a particular meaning. This paper may contribute to the understanding of individuals' experiences of sexual relationships with an older person by emphasizing the complexity of such relationships, as reflected in the participants' construction of the older person's image, potentially providing important information that can inform best practice for professionals working with this population. Findings highlight the need to address diversity and ambiguity rather than the uniform dichotomy that characterizes the legal framing of automatically constructing these relationships as statutory. Further implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.

Child Sexual Abuse by Religious Authority Figures in Germany and Israel: The Experiences and Perceptions of Adult Survivors.

The current study is based on an in-depth thematic analysis of 20 interviews with German and Israeli adult survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA) by religious authority figures (RAF). This paper aims to explore survivors' experiences within the Jewish ultra-Orthodox and Christian communities, as well as to draw comparisons between the abusive structures and disclosure in these two contexts. The results point to the complexity of CSA by RAF, which is embedded in the survivors' perceptions of themselves as emotionally and cognitively captured by the perpetrators who are a symbol of a parent or God and faith. The participants expressed great concern regarding disclosing the abuse against the backdrop of familial, cultural, and community inhibitors, such as fear of social stigmatization, inability to recognize the abuse, and the taboo of sexuality discourse. The survivors' traumatic experiences were intensified in light of negative social responses to disclosure and encounters with insensitive officials. A comparison of the cultures revealed differences regarding the nature of community life and educational institutions, which may have shaped the disclosure and recognition of the abuse. The study highlights the importance of comparative follow-up studies related to this phenomenon in order to examine its universal and unique cultural contexts.

Trapped in a Maze: Arab Teachers in Israel Facing Child Sexual Abuse Among Their Pupils.

Cultural contexts are formative of and fundamental to how individuals understand, conceptualize, and act within a context of violence. Conceptually and methodologically, however, research from a culturally informed perspective on the experiences of teachers contending with the violence of child sexual abuse (CSA) in particular is broadly limited. As educators frequently confront cases of CSA in their everyday work, their ability to promote detection, disclosure intervention, and especially prevention gives them the potential to be agents of social change; however, while their responsibilities are critical, they are simultaneously members of their communities and cultures, and their interactions are bound by these dynamics. The purpose of the study is to analyze the experiences of Arab teachers in Israel who confront CSA in their everyday work. The findings are based on qualitative thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with 30 female Arab teachers working within the Arab school system in Israel. Results indicate that when facing CSA, the teachers experience an ongoing conflict between their cultural and professional codes, trapping them in a maze of intertwining and oppositional demands. On the one hand, they are constrained by the norm of protecting the honor and maintaining the status and reputation of those involved, including themselves; on the other hand, as empathetic professionals, they desire to aid their pupils. While the participants do not accept the status quo, they are effectively at a loss as to how to change it. In order find a way out of their entrapment in coping with CSA among their pupils, the only currently available path is to act as a lone hero; there is, however, the potential to foster the development of a secondary culture within the school to inaugurate cultural change in coping with CSA. Implications for future research, policy, and practice are discussed.

"Yes, My Uncle, I'll Do Whatever You Say": Experiences of Israeli Muslim Arab Children During Forensic Interviews Following Child Sexual Abuse.

Children from Arab society in Israel have been overlooked in previous studies and efforts in the area of forensic interviews. The current study provides an in-depth thematic analysis of 30 forensic interviews with Israeli Muslim Arab children following child sexual abuse (CSA), all conducted by Arab forensic interviewers. In multicultural Israeli society, Muslim Arabs make up 18% of the population. In addition to the religious and cultural difference, this minority is involved in an ongoing conflict with the majority Jewish society in Israel and tends to have low trust of government authorities. This background necessarily affects the area of forensic interviews with children. The research explores the unique encounter between maltreated children from Israeli Muslim Arab society and forensic interviewers, highlighting its particular characteristics and challenges. Data analysis revealed a central theme of a clash of worlds. The forensic interviewers, although hailing from a similar background as the children, followed best practices developed in western societies. The children, on the other hand, faced enormous conflict in addressing CSA terminology and complying with the requirements of the forensic world in ways that are forbidden to the them in their own. Moreover, having been educated to accept the authority of adults unquestioningly, the children were torn between the difficulty of disclosing the abuse to someone outside the family, and the obligation to communicate candidly with the adult interviewer as required in the forensic context. The findings highlight the urgent need to reform the services these children receive and to dedicate future efforts to further assessment of cultural context and its impact on maltreated children, particularly in the forensic context.

Public Attitudes Toward Institutional Child Sexual Abuse in Israel: The Case of Malka Leifer.

This study examined Israeli public perceptions of institutional child sexual abuse (CSA) in the Malka Leifer case. Leifer is a Jewish ultra-Orthodox former Melbourne school principal who is wanted in Australia on CSA charges, after fleeing to Israel. Based on a qualitative analysis of 2,451 reader comments retrieved from four Israeli news websites and six public Facebook pages, the findings indicated diverse attitudes toward the alleged perpetrator, the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, state authorities, and victims. All parties involved were criticized, but less so the victims. Criticisms included sociopolitical and gender stereotypes, and demonic attributions. Positive comments were directed at all involved, even the alleged perpetrator, and especially the victims. The results demonstrate the need to better understand CSA portrayals in cyberspace, as they affect both public and policymaker attitudes, and the importance of fighting prejudicial discourse about the ultra-Orthodox community, especially in light of its changing attitudes regarding CSA.

"A Little Bit of Light Dispels a Lot of Darkness": Online Disclosure of Child Sexual Abuse by Authority Figures in the Ultraorthodox Jewish Community in Israel.

Social media sites such as Facebook have become popular platforms for promoting public awareness of sexual abuse by encouraging user engagement around this issue. There is, therefore, currently emerging research on the functions and implications of social media as a platform for sexual abuse disclosure. However, as yet, no study has examined this phenomenon specifically through a religious-cultural lens. This study explores perceptions of, barriers to, and motives underlying online disclosure of child sexual abuse (CSA) by religious authority figures (RAFs) in ultraorthodox Jewish society in Israel. The data were gleaned from the popular Facebook page of a nonprofit devoted to raising awareness of CSA in the ultraorthodox community. The analysis was based on admins' posts, anonymous and nonanonymous survivors' shares, users' comments, and in-depth interviews of eight page users. The findings suggest a culture-oriented model of online CSA disclosure (OCSAD), identifying four primary factors (safety, benefit, relevance, and legitimacy) that, weighed against cultural barriers, influence the decision to engage in online CSA disclosure. This context-informed understanding highlights the importance of social media as an alternative platform for CSA disclosure in an isolated but changing cultural arena such as the ultraorthodox community in Israel. The theoretical model is of international interest for its conceptualization of the unique characteristics and perceptions of OCSAD within religious-cultural contexts.