The Stages of Sexual Grooming and How to Recognize It
Child sex abuse is often preceded by a meticulous process known as sexual grooming. This practice involves gaining the trust of a child—and possibly their family or caregivers—to establish a friendship or emotional connection. This process works toward getting the victim to lower their inhibitions and gradually create opportunities for sexually abusive situations.
This crime carries long-ranging harm to a child’s development that can last throughout their lifetime. One way to help combat this type of crime is by recognizing how sexual grooming takes place and how to identify it. In this article, we hope to share some of the stages of this harmful process that perpetrators use to gain access to and eventually sexually abuse a child.
The Stages of Child Sexual Grooming and Abuse
The reason a perpetrator of child sex abuse picks their target varies from case to case, but the process to gain access, earn the trust of the child and family, and then commit abuse is usually similar. Consider the different stages below that a potential victim may experience when being sexually groomed by a potential abuser.
Careful Selection of the Minor Target
Perpetrators have different reasons for choosing a child for their desires, but generally, these revolve around a desire, opportunity, and chance for success. It is not uncommon for them to pursue relationships with families through a variety of different organizations, such as:
- School athletic programs
- Churches
- Community childhood programs and activities
- Youth organizations
- Childcare
These avenues offer access to children, often put them in a position of authority, and provide an opportunity to build an emotional relationship with their intended victim.
Earning Trust to Access the Child Victim
It is not uncommon for sexual predators to have gainful professional employment in roles that make them a trusted adult. From volunteer youth mentors to teachers, these job roles frequently make the abuser an important resource to minors in their care. There may be instances where the perpetrator paints a child’s family members as adversaries when there is a disagreement in their household, all to curry favor and trust with their victim.
Becoming an Important Resource for the Victim
For many child sex abuse victims, their abusers initially filled a void in their life. Sexual grooming often includes convincing a minor that no one understands or appreciates them as the perpetrator does. This extra attention convinces the child to create a deeper relationship of trust, which includes secrecy about the new friendship.
Isolation of the Child
One of the more sinister aspects of child sexual grooming involves isolating the victim from other relationships. From just going on walks alone with the child to offers of car rides, the perpetrator will increase their time alone with their victim. This could also occur through social media and mobile text messages where the beginnings of suggestive conversations around sexual topics often happen.
Creating a Secret Relationship with the Child
In this phase of contact with a child victim, an abuser will begin to express the importance of hiding their relationship from other adults and family members. Many times a sexual predator will rely on scare tactics to accomplish this. Teens are especially sensitive to this because of their sensitivity to peer pressure and other’s opinions about them. Victims often believe a relationship is what they want with their abuser at this stage and will do anything possible to keep it protected from scrutiny.
Beginning Sexual Contact
After all of these previous steps in acquiring their child victim through grooming, the perpetrator will move on to the initiation of sexual contact. Initial introductions by the abuser of their sexual desire may start small, but gradually lead up to even more serious instances of abuse.
Typically, initial sexual advances include:
- Petting
- Kissing
- Casual touch
- Hugs
Perpetrators will also introduce pornography in hopes of encouraging sexual arousal in their victims, which could lead to more serious sexual abuse activities.
Controlling the Abuser–Victim Relationship
While a sexual predator is well aware that all of their actions throughout the grooming process are wrong, they will not relent once successfully gaining sexual contact with a child. Secrecy and the steps they take to protect it will increase significantly at this point. Perpetrators will twist their actions as a way to protect their victims when the reality is they are looking out for their own interests. This control could be in the form of gifts or threats, depending on the circumstances of the victim.
Warning Behaviors that Might Signal Sexual Grooming of a Child
Another critical aspect of recognizing sexual grooming behavior is being aware of key behaviors that sexual predators exhibit when targeting a child, which could include:
- Fixation on a child
- Regularly initiating time alone with their target
- Displaying favoritism of a particular child in a family
- Awarding a child special privileges that frequently create opportunities for private one-on-one contact
- Frequently buying gifts for a minor
Activities that may be sexually arousing to a predator that is part of the grooming process include:
- Taking inappropriate photos of the child in their underwear or other minimal clothing
- Purposely intruding while a child is toileting or asking the victim to watch them use the toilet
- Inappropriate tickling that leads to “accidental” contact with a child’s genitals
- Playing games or activities that require changing or removal of clothing
- Sharing sexually explicit stories, experiences, or jokes with the minor
- Commenting on a child’s physical development and puberty
- Using the excuse of sexual education to be sexually explicit with the child
Work with Experienced Orlando Child Sex Crime Attorneys
If you or a family member suspect a child is a victim of sexual grooming and/or abuse, it is critical to seek representation by an experienced Orlando sex crimes attorney immediately. With decades of experience in this sensitive area of criminal law, our team’s recognition as part of Florida Trend’s Legal Elite has demonstrated our commitment to representing our clients compassionately and tirelessly to get the justice they deserve.
Please contact one of our Board-Certified Criminal Trial Lawyers today for a free case review.
