Early and late puberty pose a risk for many problems later in life. Various theories suggest that child sexual abuse victimization may either accelerate or delay the onset of puberty. This systematic literature review examines the relationship between child sexual abuse victimization and age of onset of puberty in girls. Fourteen scientific studies were included and analyzed. There is an association between child sexual abuse victimization and early age at menarche in girls, but there is insufficient evidence for an association with puberty onset in general. These findings may inform more effective prevention, identification, and assistance to victims of child sexual abuse.

In this article we will describe the implementation and development of youth courts in the Netherlands and tackle the most often expressed misconceptions about youth courts, among which the ones recently expressed in this journal. We will explain how the current model is based on scientific insights, eight years of practical experiences and taking into account critiques applying to the previous versions of youth courts.

In this contribution the authors describe their explorative research into the use of forced tattooing in human trafficking. They have spoken with eight professionals and with three victims that were forced into sexwork. Based on these interviews the researchers come to the conclusions that a lot of important questions remain open: the frequency of the use of tattoos and the circumstances under which this practice takes place. Nevertheless, the interviews with the victims demonstrate the serious impact of these tattoos on their wellbeing and further life course. Therefore, it is advised that professionals ask more questions about tattoos when they come into contact with victims of human trafficking.

The legal approach to prostitution in the Netherlands is relatively liberal, covering decriminalization of prostitution, pimping and maintaining a brothel or club. This goes along with a more repressive approach towards forced prostitution. Court decisions may provide insight into tactics used for bringing and keeping women in the sex industry, with the aim of earning more money. We investigated 50 Dutch court decisions, and identified seven categories of such tactics. In this article, we present and analyze these categories. Taking advantage of the women’s vulnerability features most prominent among these tactics, while actual violence is being used less often.