D ress straps slip off shoulders, painted nails splay on hips. But look more closely at these girls, who are aged between eight and 13, and the picture becomes more complex. They look variously knowing, sophisticated, elegant, inelegant and uncertain. Some are playing mum. Some are playing A-lister.

They analysed images that were received over a period of one month. The images include both girls and boys — of different ages. The team also spoke to children about how they feel about the phenomena. Below are some observations from the study and some advice as to what you can do to keep your children safe. The number of reported cases is increasing.

She is working on the Australian Child Maltreatment Study ACMS , which is the first study to assess the prevalence of child maltreatment at a population level. Parents have many things to worry about. But online sexual abuse is increasing at an exponential rate. Last week, the Australian Federal Police announced it had busted an alleged child sex offender network, warning. Read more: Dark web: Study reveals how new offenders get involved in online paedophile communities.

Children, Sexuality and Sexualization pp Cite as. Higonnet, , cf. Sparrman, b.