Sexual Abuse Treatment Research Articles

Conflicts and issues in the treatment of child sexual abuse.

Conflicts and issues in the treatment of child sexual abuse.

Conflicts and issues in the treatment of child sexual abuse.

Cet article s'attache a trouver des solutions dans les conflits qui opposent souvent les 3 systemes charges de s'occuper d'enfants apres des agressions sexuelles: les services sociaux, judiciaires et de sante mentale

Feminist-informed family therapy for the treatment of intrafamily child sexual abuse.

Feminist-informed family therapy for the treatment of intrafamily child sexual abuse.

Sexually abused and nonabused children's conceptions of personal body safety

This study compared characteristics of abused and nonabused children's conceptions about personal body safety. A projective type vignette describing a personal body safety violation was read to 25 abused children entering a treatment program in eastern Washington and 25 nonabused children matched on sex, age, and grade in school. The children were asked questions about the vignette incident, and responses were compared between the abused and nonabused children. Significant differences were obtained between abused and nonabused children's conceptions of personal body safety with regard to their definitions of sexual abuse, descriptions of violators, and perceptions of consequences for the violator. Few significant differences were observed regarding conceptions of the victim, and no differences were observed on responses to two control vignettes depicting violations of traffic and school safety rules. Comparisons are made between both abused and nonabused children's understandings of the phenomenon. In addition, suggestions are offered for incorporating this information into sexual abuse prevention and treatment programs as well as future research.

(Mis)understanding Cleveland: foundational issues and the sexual abuse of children.

The Cleveland case led to the widespread condemnation of a new system for the diagnosis, initial treatment, and management of child sexual abuse. The Butler-Sloss Report identifies what went wrong as resulting from poor organisational links among agencies and poor interpersonal skills among professionals. Without denying that these faults occurred, this paper claims that what happened in Cleveland did so primarily because those making policy ignored two foundational issues inherent in the problem of child abuse: the status of the child in society and hence the State's justification in intervening on her behalf, and the status of abuse and the abuser and the consequences of their medicalisation. Analysis of these foundational issues suggests what additional steps will need to be taken if we are to deal effectively with sexually abused children and their families.

Hypnosis in the Treatment of Victims of Sexual Abuse

The relevance of hypnosis to the treatment of sexual assault derives from two sources: the fact that hypnotic phenomena are mobilized spontaneously as defenses during assault, becoming part of the syndrome of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the usefulness of formal hypnosis in treating PTSD. The role of dissociative defenses during and after traumatic experiences is reviewed; an analogy between the major elements of formally-induced hypnosis--absorption, dissociation, and suggestibility, and the major elements of PTSD--is drawn. Special problems relevant to sexual assault in childhood are discussed, including extreme self-blame and a profound sense of personality fragmentation. Uses of hypnosis in the treatment of sexual assault victims are reviewed, with an emphasis on helping such patients restructure their memories of the experience, both by reviewing them with greater control over their physical sense of comfort and safety and by balancing painful memories with recognition of their efforts to protect themselves or someone else who was endangered. The use of a split-screen technique in hypnosis is described with a clinical example. Special considerations in such treatment, including the traumatic transference and forensic complications of such psychotherapeutic work, are enumerated.

Community-Based Treatment of the Incest Family

A child who has been sexually abused by her father faces a life blighted by self-inflicted dissociative disorders. This prospect can be avoided through treatment of the child and family members aimed at reconstructing the family into a healthy unit. This objective can be realized by the community-based approach of the Child Sexual Abuse Treatment Program, which integrates the interventions of the legal-judicial and human services personnel responsible for incest cases and augments traditional in-office therapy sessions with the peer support services of Parents United. This article also gave a brief description of ICEF's training project, in which clients and therapists jointly train legal, judicial, and human services personnel to work collaboratively toward family reconstruction in their interventions with incest victims and their families. A treatment and training manual that provides a much more thorough presentation of the CSATP and the training project is available from ICEF.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and the Treatment of Sexual Abuse

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and the Treatment of Sexual Abuse

Children's Conceptions of Personal Body Safety: A Comparison Across Ages

We investigated the developmental characteristics of normal children's conceptions about personal body safety. We read a projective vignette describing a personal body safety violation to 51 children in three developmentally distinct age groups (4- to 6 1/2-year-olds, 6 1/2 to 9 1/2-year-olds, and 9 1/2- to 12-year-olds) and asked the children questions about the vignette incident. The results indicated significant differences across age levels with regard to violations of personal body safety. In contrast, there was only one age-level difference in response to two control vignettes depicting violations of traffic and school safety rules. We discuss normal children's understanding and their current knowledge of personal body safety and offer suggestions for incorporating this information into sexual abuse prevention and treatment approaches.

Female Adolescent Sex Offenders: A Neglected Treatment Group

Female Adolescent Sex Offenders: A Neglected Treatment Group

Women's responses to sexual abuse in intimate relationships.

One hundred ninety-three women having serious problems in an intimate relationship with a man were recruited by newspaper advertisement to participate in this study. Of the 97 battered women, 44.3% also were being sexually abused. Sexual abuse was inversely correlated with body image and self-esteem scores and positively related to danger of homicide, even when severity and frequency of violence were controlled for. Assessment and interventions for sexual abuse are necessary in all women's health settings, especially if a woman is battered.

A comparison of sexually abused and nonsexually abused children's behavioral responses to anatomically correct dolls.

Groups of 16 girls referred for evaluation and treatment of sexual abuse and 16 nonreferred girls between the ages of 5 and 8 years were compared on aggression, avoidance, private parts reference, and freeplay over two conditions: playing alone with anatomically correct dolls and telling a story about the dolls to an adult. Results indicated that sexually abused children displayed more sexually oriented behavior when alone but more avoidance of the dolls when interacting with an adult.

The S.A.T.P.: The psychodynamic treatment of child sexual abuse∗

∗The Toronto Sexual Abuse Treatment Project (SATP) in Metro Children's Aid Society (CAS) is a treatment program for victims of sexual abuse and their families including the offenders, created and f...

Process and outcome: evaluation of the sexual abuse treatment project

Process and outcome: evaluation of the sexual abuse treatment project

Characteristics of child sexual abuse treatment programs

Within the professional community, a vast number of sexual abuse treatment programs have emerged to meet the needs of victims and their families. Significant variations among these programs can be observed due to differences in philosophy, system context, client focus, problem definition, and the treatment strategy adopted. Unfortunately, little comparative information is available regarding the operation of different programs and, more importantly, their relative treatment effectiveness. This article presents the findings from a nationwide survey of 553 sexual abuse treatment programs. The survey focused on program context, client, and service characteristics. Overall it was found that most programs are affiliated with a larger public or private agency, focus on treating victims, and rely on a combination of individual, family, dyad, and group therapy approaches.

Group Therapy Techniques for Work with Child Sexual Abuse Victims

Group therapy techniques used by the Washington University Child Guidance Center's Child Sexual Abuse Treatment Team are described for clinicians working with child sexual abuse victims. Activities and tasks used to promote the therapeutic process are presented, broken down into three age groups: preschoolers, latency age children, and teenagers. The intent is to disseminate ideas found to be useful in the treatmcnt process.

Group Treatment of Sexual Abuse Among Women with Eating Disorders

Group Treatment of Sexual Abuse Among Women with Eating Disorders

Molestation and the onset of puberty: Data from 365 adults molested as children

This study examines whether molestation is most likely to occur before or after the onset of puberty and also whether molestation is likely to be a one-time occurrence or last for a long time. The study analyzed intake interviews from 365 adults molested as children (AMACs). The AMACs were entering treatment at the Child Sexual Abuse Treatment Program, San Jose, CA. This paper presents data on the age of onset and end of the molestation and the duration of the molestation in years. For this sample, the average age of onset was 7.5; the average age at the end of the molestation was 13. The overwhelming majority of molestations lasted one year or more. We discuss results in the context of past studies and suggest areas for further research.

The rape exam: beyond the hospital emergency room.

Data from 31 Florida post-rape examination sites reveal a number of dilemmas associated with rape exams. The sites include regular hospital ERs (N = 25), specialized sexual assault treatment centers (SATCs) on hospital grounds (N = 2), a nonhospital-based SATC, a proprietary OB/GYN clinic, a medical examiner's office, and a law enforcement crime lab. Open-ended interviews indicate that major problems with hospitals as exam sites stem from physicians' dislike of the exam and physician and hospital fears of legal and court entanglements. Prosecutors (and judges) are a major obstacle to nonphysician examiners. A challenge to rethink the post-rape exam, including where and by whom it is performed, is posed.

Children's Conceptions of Sexual Abuse

We investigated the developmental characteristics of normal children's conceptions about sexual abuse. A projective-type vignette describing an abusive incident was read to children in two age groups: 5 to 7 years and 10 to 12 years. The children were asked a standard list of questions about the abusive incident depicted in the vignette, and their responses were compared across sex and age. The results indicate minimal sex differences but significant differences between age groups with regard to conceptualizations of sexual abuse. Comparisons are made between children's understanding and current knowledge o f the phenomenon, and suggestions are offered for incorporating this information into sexual abuse prevention and treatment programs for children.