Differentiating single and multiple victim child sexual abuse cases: a research note considering social disorganization theory.

This study examined the utility of social disorganization theory as an explanation for child sexual abuse with a focus on differentiating single and multiple victim cases. Drawing on 1,172 child sexual abuse cases (including 159 cases with multiple victims) in Orange County, Florida, from 2004 to 2006, the present study considered case characteristics and elements of social disorganization as potential predictors of child sexual abuse cases involving single and multiple victims. We found that social disorganization theory does not successfully predict the locations of multiple victim child sexual abuse incidents and is not useful for distinguishing between child sexual abuse incidents with single or multiple victims.