Avoidant coping as a mediator between self-reported sexual abuse and stress-related symptoms in adolescents

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated to what extent the more severe consequences of sexual trauma in adolescents are mediated by coping strategies. Furthermore, this study explored differences in symptoms, self-esteem and coping in a group that reported sexual abuse, in a group that reported another stressful experience, and in a group that reported no stressful episode until now. Method: Nine-hundred seventy adolescents aged 11–19 years were asked to complete self-report questionnaires assessing traumatic symptoms (Trauma Symptom Checklist, Briere, 1996); self-image (Self-Description Questionnaire II, Marsh, 1990) and coping (How I Cope Under Pressure Scale, Ayers, Sandler, West, & Roosa, 1996). Results: Seventy-two percent of the participants reported a lifetime prevalence of a stressful event. Participants who reported sexual abuse (10%) reported more traumatic symptoms and more avoidant coping strategies than the adolescents who reported another type of stressful event. Results revealed that avoidant coping is a mediator between sexual abuse and the severity of symptoms. Conclusions: Sexually abused adolescents exhibited more symptoms and used more avoidant coping strategies than adolescents in the other groups. Avoidant coping can be seen as a mediator between a sexual stressful event and the consequent stress-related symptoms. Results reveal the importance of assessment and consideration of coping strategies in prevention and in therapeutic interventions.