Part 3 GLOBAL ISSUES: HARASSMENT AND ABUSE RESEARCH

After the incidents in 1996, the sports world wanted a preventative
policy. Because this was the first time the problem had been studied in the
Dutch sports world, it was deemed necessary to research, for example, the
risk factors of SHAB in sports. After a literature study, Marianne Cense
formulated a temporary model on risk factors for SHAB in sports. 2 For this
model, non-sports theories on SHAB were important sources, such as ‘The
four preconditions for abuse’ by Finkelhor and ‘The Cycle of Offending’ by
Wolf. 3, 4 Existing sport-specific theories on SHAB from studies by
Brackenridge were also used in the model. 5-7
Because the theoretical model was based on non-sports studies,
Cense tested the efficacy of the temporal model by interviewing 16 (ex)athletes
who had experienced sexual abuse in their sport. The final
explanatory model is based on the results of the interviews. The model is
based on the idea that several sequential phases precede sexual abuse of
children and young adults. 8 These are:
1. motivation
2. overcoming internal inhibitions
3. overcoming external inhibitions
4. overcoming the athlete’s resistance.
Cense identified three different clusters of risk factors, those
associated with: the coach, the sport situation and the athlete. For each stage
the indicators for these three risk factors were described. The indicators are
the danger signals for each risk factor.
The temporal explanatory model was largely confirmed by the results
of the interviews and informed the final explanatory model for sexual abuse of
children and young adults in. Below are examples of indicators for each risk
factor (also described in 9 and 10 ).
Key findings
Risk factors: the coach
In order to abuse someone, the potential abuser must be motivated to
abuse (phase 1). If someone is strongly motivated to abuse this does not
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