Characterization of sexual and gender-based violence against children in the field of public health

Abstract

Objective: To characterize the conceptualization of the phenomenon of sexual and gender-based violence against children in the field of collective health. Methods: Through an integrative review, we consulted the Virtual Health Library (VHL) database from 2018 to 2022, using descriptors relevant to sexual and gender-based violence in childhood and public health. To organize and manage the data, tables were used. And, for qualitative analysis, we have the support of Nvivo software. Results: 185 articles were identified and 23 works were selected for the final analysis sample, in Portuguese, English and Spanish. The majority comprise magazine articles, qualitative studies and studies carried out in Brazil. The selected works brought definitions about gender and sexual violence (sexual crime, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation), preponderating the concept of the World Health Organization (WHO) of 2002, marked by power relations and inequality, focused on the submission of the child, mostly against girls. Final considerations: The findings portray the multicausal bias of the concepts of violence, from a perspective of the health-disease process, as well as a serious and growing global health problem, which is expressed under multiple attributes.