Abstract
BackgroundSexual violence against children is increasing at an alarming rate in South Africa. In 2010 the South African Police Service (SAPS) reported 21 538 rape cases of children under 18 years. In the North-West province (NWP) 5039 incidents of rape cases were reported in 2009. Mothers often experience emotional pain following child sexual abuse disclosure. It is seldom acknowledged that these mothers experience trauma and need support, post disclosure. The researcher has no known evidence of research conducted on the experiences of these mothers in NWP.ObjectiveThe objective of the study was to explore and describe the experiences of mothers of sexually abused children post disclosure of the abuse.MethodThe research design was qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual. Purposive sampling was used to select mothers of sexually abused children aged 23 to 59 years whose children ranged from 0 to 16 years. Permission to conduct the study was sought from the Provincial Department of Health and informed consent was obtained from the mothers. Interviews were conducted with a sample of n = 17 until data saturation. Data were collected through in-depth interviews using a voice recorder and field notes to enhance triangulation. Tesch’s method of open coding was used to analyse data.ResultsFindings indicated that mothers experienced emotional pain post sexual abuse. They expressed shock, anger and guilt for not noticing the abuse. They showed significant depression as a result of lack of support by stakeholders.ConclusionMothers experienced secondary trauma that poses social and psychological challenges with far-reaching implications.
Highlights
According to Kisanga et al (2012:1) child sexual abuse (CSA) is an international public health problem that has spread to a number of countries needing collective measurers
Other studies in Asia state that physical sexual abuse ranged from 1.7% in Hong Kong to 11.6% in the Pacific Islands, whilst in Cambodia it ranged from 1.2% to 1.7%, and 1% in Thailand (United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund [UNICEF] 2010:1)
Mothers of sexually abused children (SAC) suffer secondary trauma immediately when they became aware of CSA disclosure
Summary
According to Kisanga et al (2012:1) child sexual abuse (CSA) is an international public health problem that has spread to a number of countries needing collective measurers. According to UNICEF (2010) the Zimbabwean police reported that CSA continues to increase. The report further indicated that during the week ending 25 September 2012 the cases rose to 81 from 65 the previous week. This indicates the prevalence of this problem. In 2010 the South African Police Service (SAPS) reported 21 538 rape cases of children under 18 years. Mothers often experience emotional pain following child sexual abuse disclosure.
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