‘I had no choice’: adult neutralisation of online sexual engagement with children
Article
Bradbury, P., Bleakley, P. and Martellozzo, E. 2024. ‘I had no choice’: adult neutralisation of online sexual engagement with children. Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-024-09645-2
Type | Article |
---|---|
Title | ‘I had no choice’: adult neutralisation of online sexual engagement with children |
Authors | Bradbury, P., Bleakley, P. and Martellozzo, E. |
Abstract | This study explores sexual contact between adults and minors on live internet chat websites like Omegle using the five-point framework of neutralisation to better understand how this behaviour is justified and rationalised by adult participants in such acts. A thematic content analysis was performed based on a sample of 100 requests for advice posted by anonymous users on two open-source platforms from legal professionals. These requests were all from unidentifiable adults. The key themes identified were ‘denial and minimisation of responsibility’, ‘the motivated poster’, ‘awareness of behaviour’, ‘child sexual abuse (CSA)’, and ‘content moderation and censorship’. The results highlight several processes of blame-shifting and neutralisation that are commonly used by adults when describing incidences of sexual contact with minors on Omegle. It enhances our understanding of sexual interactions occurring on live chat platforms, including those that are harmful and illegal, and presents opportunities for proactive intervention and moderation. |
Keywords | Online child sexual abuse; Social media; Cyberflashing; Neutralisation; Disinhibition |
Sustainable Development Goals | 16 Peace, justice and strong institutions |
Middlesex University Theme | Health & Wellbeing |
Research Group | Centre for Abuse and Trauma Studies (CATS) |
Publisher | Springer |
Journal | Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology |
ISSN | 0882-0783 |
Electronic | 1936-6469 |
Publication dates | |
Online | 15 Feb 2024 |
Publication process dates | |
Accepted | 19 Jan 2024 |
Deposited | 14 Nov 2024 |
Output status | Published |
Publisher's version | License File Access Level Open |
Copyright Statement | This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-024-09645-2 |
Language | English |
https://repository.mdx.ac.uk/item/193qqx
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