This review synthesises empirical studies from the past decade investigating child sexual abuse material (CSAM) production and distribution to gain insight into crime commission processes involved in these crimes. The findings highlight overlaps in risk factors for child sexual abuse and CSAM production and distribution, and possible unique risk factors specific to the latter. A substantial amount of CSAM is produced in family contexts, and there are different motivations and strategies for producing CSAM. Taken together, the findings provide important foundational information about the variety of crime commission processes involved in CSAM production and distribution, helping the development of effective prevention and intervention strategies for this increasingly prolific type of crime.
References
URLs correct as at February 2024
Beech AR, Parrett N, Ward T & Fisher D 2009. Assessing female sexual offenders’ motivations and cognitions: an exploratory study. Psychology, Crime & Law 15: 201–216
Bickart W, McLearen AM, Grady MD & Stoler K 2019. A descriptive study of psychosocial characteristics and offense patterns in females with online child pornography offenses. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 26: 295–311
Bissias G, Levine B, Liberatore M, Lynn B, Moore J, Wallach H & Wolak J 2016. Characterization of contact offenders and child exploitation material trafficking on five peer-to-peer networks. Child Abuse & Neglect 52: 185–199
Bouhours B & Broadhurst R 2011. On-line child sex offenders: Report on a sample of peer-to-peer offenders arrested between July 2010 – June 2011. Canberra: Australian National University
Broadhurst R 2019. Child sex abuse images and exploitation materials. In R Leukfeldt & TJ Holt (eds), Cybercrime: The human factor. London: Routledge
Burn J 2018. New technologies are worsening online child exploitation [television program]. Dateline. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/dateline/new-technologies-are-worsening-online-child-exploitation
Bursztein E, Clarke E, DeLaune M, Eliff DM, Hsu N, Olson L, Shehan J, Thakur M, Thomas K & Bright T 2019. Rethinking the detection of child sexual abuse imagery on the internet. In the World Wide Web Conference (pp 2601–2607). https://doi.org/10.1145/3308558.3313482
Clarke RV (ed) 1997. Situational crime prevention: Successful case studies. Albany, NY: Harrow and Heston
Clarke RV & Cornish DB 1985. Modeling offenders’ decision: A framework for research and policy. Crime and Justice 6: 147–185
Clevenger SL, Navarro JN & Jasinski JL 2016. A matter of low self-control? Exploring differences between child pornography possessors and child pornography producers/distributer using self-control theory. Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment 28: 555–571
Cornish DB 1994. The procedural analysis of offending and its relevance for situational prevention. In RV Clarke (ed), Crime prevention studies, vol 3. Monsey, NY: Criminal Justice Press
Cornish DB & Clarke RV (eds) 2017. The reasoning criminal: Rational choice perspectives on offending. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge
de Santisteban P, del Hoyo J, Alcázar-Córcoles MA & Gámez-Guadix M 2018. Progression, maintenance, and feedback of online child sexual grooming: A qualitative analysis of online predators. Child Abuse and Neglect 80: 203–215
de Santisteban P & Gámez-Guadix M 2018. Prevalence and risk factors among minors for online sexual solicitations and interactions with adults. Journal of Sex Research 55: 939–950
DeHart D, Dwyer G, Seto MC, Moran R, Letourneau E & Schwarz-Watts D 2017. Internet sexual solicitation of children: A proposed typology of offenders based on their chats, e-mails, and social network posts. Journal of Sexual Aggression 23: 77–89
Fortin F, Paquette S & Dupont B 2018. From online to offline sexual offending: Episodes and obstacles. Aggression and Violent Behaviour 39: 33–41
Gewirtz-Meydan A, Walsh W, Wolak J & Finkelhor D 2018. The complex experience of child pornography survivors. Child Abuse & Neglect 80: 238–248
Gibbs S 2018. Child abuse imagery found within bitcoin’s blockchain. The Guardian, 20 March. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/mar/20/child-abuse-imagery-bitcoin-blockchain-illegal-content
Holt TJ, Blevins KR & Burkert N 2010. Considering the pedophile subculture online. Sexual Abuse 22: 3–24
Krone T & Smith RG 2017. Trajectories in online child sexual exploitation offending in Australia. Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 524. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi524
Krone T, Smith RG, Cartwright J, Hutchings A, Tomison A & Napier S 2017. Online child sexual exploitation offenders: A study of Australian law enforcement data. Report to the Criminology Research Advisory Council. CRG 58/12–13. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology https://www.aic.gov.au/crg/reports/crg-5812-13
Leclerc B 2017. Boosting crime scene investigations capabilities through crime script analysis. In Q Rossy, D Décary-Hétu, O Delemont & M Mulone (eds), Routledge handbook of forensic criminology. Routledge
Leclerc B 2016. Script analysis. In R Wortley and M Townsley (eds), Environmental criminology and crime analysis, 2nd edition (pp 119–141). Routledge
Leclerc B & Cale J 2015. Adult sex offenders in youth-oriented institutions: Evidence on sexual victimisation experiences of offenders and their offending patterns. Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 497. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi497
Leclerc B & Wortley R (eds) 2014. Cognition and crime: Offender decision making and script analyses. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge
Lussier P & Cale J 2013. Beyond sexual recidivism: A review of the sexual criminal career parameters of adult sex offenders. Aggression and Violent Behavior 18: 445–457
Maxim DJA, Orlando SM, Skinner KL & Broadhurst RG 2016. Online child exploitation material: Trends and emerging issues. Canberra: Australian National University Cybercrime Observatory and Office of the Children’s e-Safety Commissioner
McManus MA, Long ML, Alison L & Almond L 2015. Factors associated with contact child sexual abuse in a sample of indecent image offenders. Journal of Sexual Aggression 21: 368–384
Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, Altman DG & PRISMA Group 2009. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement. PLoS Med 6(7): e1000097. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed1000097
Prat S, Bertsch I, Chudzik L & Réveillère C 2014. Women convicted of a sexual offence, including child pornography production: Two case reports. Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine 23: 22–24
Quayle E, Allegro S, Hutton L, Sheath M & Lööf L 2014. Rapid skill acquisition and online sexual grooming of children. Computers in Human Behavior 39: 268–275
Reid JA 2016. Entrapment and enmeshment schemes used by sex traffickers. Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment 28: 491–511
Schulz A, Bergen E, Schuhmann P, Hoyer J & Santtila P 2016. Online sexual solicitation of minors: How often and between whom does it occur? Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 53: 165–188
Seigfried-Spellar KC 2014. Distinguishing the viewers, downloaders, and exchangers of internet child pornography by individual differences: Preliminary findings. Digital Investigation 11: 252–260
Seto M, Buckman C, Dwyer RG & Quayle E 2018. Production and active trading of child sexual exploitation images depicting identified victims. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. https://www.missingkids.org/content/dam/missingkids/pdfs/ncmec-analysis/Production and Active Trading of CSAM_FullReport_FINAL.pdf
Sheehan V & Sullivan J 2010. A qualitative analysis of child sex offenders involved in the manufacture of indecent images of children. Journal of Sexual Aggression 16: 143–167
Shelton J, Eakin J, Hoffer T, Muirhead Y & Owens J 2016. Online child sexual exploitation: An investigative analysis of offender characteristics and offending behavior. Aggression and Violent Behavior 30: 15–23
Westlake BG & Bouchard M 2016. Liking and hyperlinking: Community detection in online child sexual exploitation networks. Social Science Research 59: 23–36
Westlake BG, Bouchard M & Girodat A 2017. How obvious is it? The content of child sexual exploitation websites. Deviant Behavior 38: 282–293
Whittle HC, Hamilton-Giachritsis CE & Beech AR 2015. A comparison of victim and offender perspectives of grooming and sexual abuse. Deviant Behavior 36: 539–564
Wolak J & Finkelhor D 2013. Are crimes by online predators different from crimes by sex offenders who know youth in-person? Journal of Adolescent Health 53: 736–741
Wolak J, Finkelhor D & Mitchell K 2011. Child pornography possessors: Trends in offender and case characteristics. Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment 23: 22–42
Wolak J, Finkelhor D, Mitchell K & Jones LM 2011. Arrests for child pornography production: Data at two time points from a national sample of U.S. law enforcement agencies. Child Maltreatment 16: 184–195
Wortley R & Smallbone S 2012. Internet child pornography: Causes, investigation, and prevention. Santa Barbara: Praeger/ABC-CLIO