Co-creating youth-informed policy responses to online grooming: Bridging research and participation
Project status
Finished
Description
The Research England-funded project ‘Co-creating Youth-Informed Policy Responses to Online Grooming: Bridging Research and Participation’ exposes the stylistic modus operandi of online groomers and what to look for, by revealing their use of implicit manipulation tactics relying essentially on conventional, discursive politeness strategies. The project also aims to educate and raise awareness around online grooming and online harms more generally. Online harm is an epidemic, and it is one of the many inequitable experiences affecting women and girls: 81% of recorded victims of online grooming are girls (NSPCC, 2024), 99% of deepfake intimate image abuse depicts women (Ofcom, 2026), which makes online harm a gender-based cyber-crime. Technology-enabled violence against women and girls is a ‘global emergency’ (Sadiq Khan, 2026).
Our research engages young people in co-shaping practical, impactful outputs to inform investigative practice and prevention strategy. The research is grounded in the ‘Participation as Protection’ principle, and it aligns with national priorities to embed victim-survivor voices in investigative practice. Common efforts towards tackling Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (OCSEA) and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) ought to be reflective of young people’s realities and young people's voices.
The study is a collaboration between CRELLA and SYLRC, as it connects language, power, and social justice. It facilitates knowledge exchange between academics in Applied Linguistics and Social Research, youth advisors - the Young Researchers' Advisory Panel, and criminal justice stakeholders: law enforcement, policy, safeguarding, and tech professionals. Together we explore how academic insights can inform real-world frontline strategies to
(1) detect and prevent online grooming and other types of OCSEA, and
(2) encourage the reporting of OCSEA offences.
The project is based on previous research in the ‘polite grooming’ strategies commonly used by online child sexual perpetrators to deceive and manipulate children and young people (Pienczykowski and Madella, 2025). In our paper, we show and argue that these tactics contribute to the adultification of the child-victim and likely lead to responsibility reversal, self-blame, and reluctance to report OCSEA offences.
The 5 main linguistic tactics identified as 'polite grooming' strategies are:
•Boosting the child's self-esteem through praise and compliments, insisting on the maturity of the child
•Pretending to be the vulnerable one
•Presenting an idealised version and impression of self
•Making a sexually explicit comment followed by a mitigating, 'LOL - I like you' tactic
•Using the inclusive you-and-I 'we' for identity merge and 'you' for stance attribution
The paper has generated attention from the wider community. It was showcased in episode 16 of A Perspective on Crime, Shane Tanner's podcast exploring contemporary research in criminology. Tune in - the podcast is available on all platforms.
Our research engages young people in co-shaping practical, impactful outputs to inform investigative practice and prevention strategy. The research is grounded in the ‘Participation as Protection’ principle, and it aligns with national priorities to embed victim-survivor voices in investigative practice. Common efforts towards tackling Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (OCSEA) and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) ought to be reflective of young people’s realities and young people's voices.
The study is a collaboration between CRELLA and SYLRC, as it connects language, power, and social justice. It facilitates knowledge exchange between academics in Applied Linguistics and Social Research, youth advisors - the Young Researchers' Advisory Panel, and criminal justice stakeholders: law enforcement, policy, safeguarding, and tech professionals. Together we explore how academic insights can inform real-world frontline strategies to
(1) detect and prevent online grooming and other types of OCSEA, and
(2) encourage the reporting of OCSEA offences.
The project is based on previous research in the ‘polite grooming’ strategies commonly used by online child sexual perpetrators to deceive and manipulate children and young people (Pienczykowski and Madella, 2025). In our paper, we show and argue that these tactics contribute to the adultification of the child-victim and likely lead to responsibility reversal, self-blame, and reluctance to report OCSEA offences.
The 5 main linguistic tactics identified as 'polite grooming' strategies are:
•Boosting the child's self-esteem through praise and compliments, insisting on the maturity of the child
•Pretending to be the vulnerable one
•Presenting an idealised version and impression of self
•Making a sexually explicit comment followed by a mitigating, 'LOL - I like you' tactic
•Using the inclusive you-and-I 'we' for identity merge and 'you' for stance attribution
The paper has generated attention from the wider community. It was showcased in episode 16 of A Perspective on Crime, Shane Tanner's podcast exploring contemporary research in criminology. Tune in - the podcast is available on all platforms.
Project Information
Project Type
Research