Dost test
The Dost test is a guideline used by many courts in the United States with criteria for assessing the lasciviousness of pictorial representations of the genital area of minors.
The Dost test consists of six considered factors, which together should serve to better assess the lasciviousness. Not all factors have to be given, nor do other factors have to be excluded. The factors in detail are:
- whether the focus of the pictorial representation is on the child's genital area,
- whether the depicted situation in which the child is depicted is set up in a sexually suggestive manner (for example in a location or in a pose that is generally associated with sexual activities),
- whether the child is depicted in an unnatural pose for their age or in inappropriate clothing,
- whether the child is fully or partially clothed or naked,
- whether the image suggests sexual shyness or willingness to engage in sexual activity and
- whether the image was created with the intention or should serve to trigger a sexual reaction in the viewer.
history
The set of criteria was developed primarily during a lawsuit against Robert S. Dost in the United States in 1996. Since then, the criteria compiled here have been widely used in the USA for assessing representations of minors in court proceedings. As a result, the catalog of criteria was also used out of court, for example by webmasters, to assess the legal conformity of content.
See also
- Miller test formulates criteria for assessing the profanity of speech content
supporting documents
- ↑ The Bloggers' FAQ on Adult Material: What is a "lascivious" image? In: Legal Guide for Bloggers. Electronic Frontier Foundation , accessed December 8, 2010 .