ABSTRACT
Parents have an undeniable role in preventing child sexual abuse (CSA) as a growing global problem. To enhance parents’ ability to educate their children, this study aimed to determine the knowledge, attitude and practice of parents of preschool children regarding CSA prevention in Gorgan City. This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 620 parents of preschool children, using a random sampling method. Data were collected using a demographic form and a Persian version of the ‘Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Questionnaire regarding CSA prevention’. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS 16.0 software. A p-value of < 0.05 was considered significant. The results showed that 62.5% of mothers and 65.1% of fathers had a good level of knowledge about CSA prevention. Also, 85.9% of mothers and 84.3% of fathers had a positive attitude towards CSA prevention education. In terms of performance, 79.35% of mothers and 70.41% of fathers demonstrated effective performance in CSA prevention education. The mean practice score of mothers (5.55 ± 1.17) in CSA prevention was significantly higher than that of fathers (4.92 ± 1.52) (p < 0.001). Despite the lack of formal CSA prevention education in the country, the results showed that more than half of mothers and fathers had good knowledge and performance in CSA prevention. However, fathers had less practice than mothers. Given the positive attitude of the majority of parents towards CSA prevention education for children, it is recommended to plan for educational coverage of a larger percentage of parents, especially fathers.