Rigorously Evaluating Programs and Policies to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Problematic Sexual Behavior among Youth

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) is soliciting investigator-initiated research proposals to rigorously evaluate programs and policies for their impact on primary prevention of child sexual abuse (CSA) and/or problematic sexual behavior (PSB) among youth. For the purposes of this NOFO, CSA is defined as sexual victimization during childhood (younger than 18 years of age) perpetrated by an adult. PSB is defined as sexual behaviors among children (under 18 years of age) that are not developmentally appropriate and have the potential to cause harm to the child or children involved (including behaviors that are unintentionally harmful or inappropriate as well as behaviors intended to cause harm). Research funded under this announcement will strengthen the evidence base for primary prevention of CSA and PSB. Applicants must propose to rigorously evaluate a program or policy for primary prevention of CSA or PSB that addresses one of the following three research priorities: (1) Programs or policies with potential for the primary prevention of CSA or PSB, with an emphasis on approaches addressing community, societal, or structural conditions; (2) Programs or policies focused on primary prevention of CSA or PSB in digital spaces (e.g., downloading or possession of illegal images of children, non-consensual image sharing, use of digital spaces for commercial sexual exploitation or trafficking of children); or (3) Organizational policy approaches focused on primary prevention of CSA or PSB in youth-serving organizations (e.g., community centers, youth development organizations, juvenile residential care facilities, faith-based organizations, group foster care).