Female sexual abusers of children

In 1996, the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN) investigated more than two million reports alleging maltreatment of more than three million children. More than one million of these children were identified as victims of abuse. Of the one million children, 12% were sexually abused. The sexual abuse of children by women, primarily mothers, once thought to be so rare it could be ignored, constituted 25% (approximately 36 000 children) of the sexually abused victims. This statistic is thought to be underestimated due to the tendency of non-disclosure by victims. This paper examines the statistical data regarding sexual abuse by women, the psychological profiles of these women, how and why society excuses female abusers, the impact on the sexually abused children, and available treatments for the perpetrators. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.