THE EXPERIENCE OF SPECIAL TESTIMONY FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS VICTIMS OF SEXUAL ABUSE

Abstract

Public policies have been developed to assist children and adolescents who are witnesses or victims of different types of abuse. Among them, the Protected Listening Law implemented in Brazil the special testimony (ST), which is a welcoming way of listening to victims in hearing and which aims to protect against re-victimization. This exploratory-descriptive qualitative research aimed to understand how adolescent girls who were victims of sexual abuse, who went through mental health care understood their experience of being heard by the ST. Seven adolescent girls aged 12 to 17 years participated in the study. Interviews and information from medical records were used for data collection. A thematic analysis of the findings was carried out and two themes were obtained: experience with the ST and #takethetip. The appreciation of the data identified that the girls had negative expectations about the ST and felt anxiety, fear and sadness before it occurred. After the beginning of the hearing, they became calmer and at the end, they felt relieved. Despite the discomfort of speaking, they understand that it is important, including encouraging other adolescents to participate in the ST. Finally, they indicate that it is not necessary to change how the ST is organized. It is understood, therefore, that the assistance of specialized technicians and the organization of the courtroom are related to the process of relieving the anxiety of the participants throughout the ST, since it is not necessary to change the way the ST is organized.