PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Kirsten van Ham
AU  - Sanne van Delft
AU  - Sonja N Brilleslijper-Kater
AU  - Rick R van Rijn
AU  - Johannes B van Goudoever
AU  - Johanna H van der Lee
AU  - Arianne H Teeuw
TI  - Reactions of non-abused children aged 3–9 years to the Sexual Knowledge Picture Instrument: an interview-based study
AID  - 10.1136/bmjpo-2021-001128
DP  - 2021 Sep 01
TA  - BMJ Paediatrics Open
PG  - e001128
VI  - 5
IP  - 1
4099  - http://bmjpaedsopen.bmj.com/content/5/1/e001128.short
4100  - http://bmjpaedsopen.bmj.com/content/5/1/e001128.full
SO  - BMJ Paediatrics Open2021 Sep 01; 5
AB  - Background The Sexual Knowledge Picture Instrument (SKPI) is a child-friendly picture book that was developed as a diagnostic tool for sexual abuse in young children and is currently being validated. The aim of the current study was to explore the verbal and non-verbal reactions of non-abused Dutch children, aged 3–9 years, to the SKPI and to assess differences in reactions between genders and age groups.Methods and analysis Subject recruitment took place at preschools and primary schools. All children underwent a recorded video semi-structured interview with the SKPI. Interview recordings were scored by an independent rater who used scoring lists for verbal and non-verbal reactions. Non-parametric tests were used in statistical analyses.Results Of the 90 children (median age 5 years) participating in the study, most correctly named the genitals and their non-sexual functions. Only 34 showed an understanding of the picture depicting adult sexuality, with just one child describing a sexual function. Girls (n=45) gave more correct answers (median 87%) than boys (n=45, median 78%; p=0.006). Giggling was the most frequently observed non-verbal reaction, with a total of 186 instances in 54 children.Conclusion Non-abused children up to 9 years of age showed only limited knowledge of the sexual function of the genitals and hardly any insight into adult sexuality.Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available. All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as supplementary information. Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available. All study data will be stored according to Good Clinical Practice guidelines. Coded data from the subject scoring and questionnaires will be stored in the online study database from Castor Castor Electronic Data Capture. For privacy reasons, the video recordings will be stored in a separate, locked database on the Amsterdam UMC data server in which it can only be approached by the coordinating researcher and one of the local coinvestigators. The recordings will be erased 1 year after the study’s final analysis.