sibling incest and consent

[Jennifer Guimond <jguimond@xxxxxxx>]

The consent issue in sibling incest can be pretty fuzzy when the
siblings in question are close in age and no obvious coercion is
present.  My reading of the literature suggests that sexual contact
between siblings can be classified in three ways:

1.  age-appropriate sexual play and exploration by children of similar
age.
2.  sexual abuse in which one child clearly has more power than the
other due to age, status in the family, physical strength, etc.
3.  consensual age-inappropriate sexual contact such as an 11-year-old
and 12-year-old having consensual sexual intercourse.

The first two scenarios have been studied, but the third scenario is
less understood.  The third scenario involves sexual contact that is not
age-appropriate exploration but is also not coercive.  When researchers
study sexual abuse, they use a 5 year age difference between the victim
and the perpetrator as a criteria for sexual abuse.  Thus, many cases of
sibling incest (as well as incest with cousins) may be overlooked.

I find the topic fascinating and I would love to exchange e-mail and
share references with anyone else on the list.

Jennifer Guimond