Child Sexual Grooming of Catholic Clergy: A Comparison between Victims Allegedly Abused by Clergy with Single versus Multiple Victims

There is evidence that clergy who commit child sexual abuse (CSA) may utilize sexual grooming behaviors in the offense process consistent with a content-validated model (Sexual Grooming Model; SGM). Although research has examined differences in characteristics between clergy with single versus multiple CSA victims, little is known about how sexual grooming behaviors may vary between these groups. The present study utilized a large sample of alleged clergy sexual abuse incidents (n = 10,667) to examine the differences in reported sexual grooming behaviors for victims who experienced abuse by an individual who had a single (V-SVOs) or multiple (V-MVOs) victims. As part of a larger study, files of victim reports of CSA were reviewed from 195 dioceses/eparchies and 140 religious institutes in the United States; these data were analyzed based on behaviors in the SGM for the present study. Overall, the findings showed that the two groups (V-SVOs and V-MVOs) experienced similar tactics throughout the sexual grooming process outlined by the SGM. However, there were some differences for certain tactics within the gaining access and isolation, trust development, and desensitization to sexual contact and physical touch stages of sexual grooming. The implications for prevention, policy, and treatment, as well as future directions of research, are discussed.