Table Of Contentebook
THE GUILFORD PRESS
Working With Children
With Sexual Behavior ProBlemS
Also from Eliana Gil
Books
Cultural Issues in Play Therapy
Eliana Gil and Athena A. Drewes, Editors
The Healing Power of Play:
Working with Abused Children
Eliana Gil
Helping Abused and Traumatized Children:
Integrating Directive and Nondirective Approaches
Eliana Gil
Play in Family Therapy
Eliana Gil
Treating Abused Adolescents
Eliana Gil
Working with Children to Heal Interpersonal Trauma:
The Power of Play
Eliana Gil
DVDs
Essentials of Play Therapy with Abused Children
Eliana Gil
Play Therapy for Severe Psychological Trauma
Eliana Gil
Working with Children
with Sexual Behavior
Problems
Eliana Gil
JEnnifEr a. Shaw
The Guilford Press
New York London
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gil, Eliana.
Working with children with sexual behavior problems / by Eliana Gil and
Jennifer A. Shaw.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4625-1197-6 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Psychosexual disorders in children. 2. Children and sex. 3. Children—Sexual
behavior. 4. Child sexual abuse. I. Shaw, Jennifer A. II. Title.
RJ506.P72G553 2013
618.92´8583—dc23
2013016494
To my big brother, Peter,
whose steady presence in my life
has been a source of stability, guidance, and comfort
—E. G.
To the children and families who invite me
to participate in their journey of repair and recovery;
I continue to be awed by your courage and resilience
and inspired by the trust and commitment
of your parents or caretakers,
who can see your behaviors as expressions of pain
and who respond to you with compassion and nurturance.
—J. A. S.
about the authors
Eliana Gil, PhD, is senior partner in a private group practice, the Gil
Institute for Trauma Recovery and Education in Fairfax, Virginia, which
provides therapy, consulting, and training services. She is also Director
of Starbright Training Institute for Child and Family Play Therapy in
northern Virginia, where she provides multiple-day trainings on family
play therapy and specialized therapy with youth (and their families) who
have experienced childhood trauma. Dr. Gil has worked in the field of
child abuse prevention and treatment for almost 40 years. In the last two
decades she has directed two child sexual abuse treatment programs in
northern Virginia (at Inova Kellar Center and Childhelp Children’s Cen-
ter of Virginia). She is a licensed marriage, family, and child counselor;
an approved marriage and family therapy supervisor; a registered play
therapist; and a registered play therapy supervisor. Dr. Gil also consults
and trains across the United States and is an adjunct faculty member
in Virginia Tech’s Marriage and Family Therapy Department. She has
served on the Board of Directors of the American Professional Society
on the Abuse of Children and the National Resource Center on Child
Sexual Abuse; she is also a former president of the Association for Play
Therapy. Dr. Gil is the author of The Healing Power of Play: Work-
ing with Abused Children; Play in Family Therapy; Treating Abused
Adolescents; Helping Abused and Traumatized Children: Integrating
Directive and Nondirective Approaches; and other acclaimed books and
video programs on child abuse and related topics. Many of her books
have been translated into other languages, including Spanish. Originally
from Guayaquil, Ecuador, Dr. Gil is bilingual and bicultural. She has
three grandchildren under the age of 6.
vii
viii about the authors
Jennifer A. Shaw, PsyD, is a founding partner of the Gil Institute for
Trauma Recovery and Education, and has worked in a number of clini-
cal settings and capacities in metropolitan Washington, D.C. She pro-
vides individual, family, and group therapy to children and adolescents
presenting with sexual behavior problems; with symptoms of depression,
anxiety, and adjustment problems; and with complex trauma. She has
been the coordinator of the specialized family-based program described
in this book, the Boundary Project, in two clinical settings—at Child-
help Children’s Center of Virginia and the Gil Institute for Trauma
Recovery and Education. Dr. Shaw has also acquired specialized train-
ing and certification in conducting psychosexual risk assessments and
treating sexual offending behaviors in adolescents and adults, and is cur-
rently working toward certification as a registered play therapist. She
provides trainings at the local, regional, and state level for professionals
who work with families of children with sexual behavior problems. Dr.
Shaw has coauthored two book chapters with Dr. Gil. Their latest col-
laboration is a children’s book entitled A Book for Kids about Private
Parts, Touching, Touching Problems, and Other Stuff.
