Sexual Cognitions in Victims of Childhood and Adolescence/Adulthood Sexual Abuse

AbstractThis study explored the relationship between 1) child sexual abuse (CSA), adolescent/adult sexual abuse (AASA), and both (CSA+AASA), and 2) the frequency of positive and negative sexual cognitions according to their content –intimate, exploratory, dominance, submission, and impersonal– in men and women. We also analyzed the severity of the sexual contact of individuals who had experienced AASA. We assessed a Spanish sample of 228 men and 333 women, aged between 18 and 50 years old. In the sample, 341 individuals reported having experienced some type of sexual victimization (victims group), while 220 individuals reported no victimization (non-victims group). Overall, sexual victims reported a higher frequency of positive sexual cognitions compared to non-victims, particularly when they had experienced CSA+AASA and the severity of the sexual contact was greater. Men and women who had experienced abuse reported a higher frequency of exploratory cognitions (p < .01). Male victims reported more cognitions of submission (p < .01), whereas female victims reported more cognitions of dominance (p < .05), which indicates lack of congruence with traditional gender roles. Finally, only intimate cognitions (p < .001) were experienced as negative by male victims. We discuss the relevance of the findings for therapeutic interventions with sexual abuse victims.

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Prevalence and Characteristics of Sexual Violence in the Netherlands, the Risk of Revictimization and Pregnancy: Results From a National Population Survey

Violence and Victims ◽

10.1891/0886-6708.27.4.592 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 27 (4) ◽

pp. 592-608 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

Stans de Haas ◽

Willy van Berlo ◽

Floor Bakker ◽

Ine Vanwesenbeeck

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Sexual Violence ◽

Population Survey ◽

Rape Victims ◽

Male Victims ◽

Men And Women ◽

Female Victims ◽

Body Of Knowledge ◽

International Body ◽

Experienced Adult

Prevalence figures on sexual violence among a representative sample of both men and women were not yet available for the Netherlands. The aim of this study, therefore, was to investigate the prevalence of sexual violence in the Netherlands and to add these figures to the international body of knowledge. Experiences of sexual violence during lifetime, before the age of 16 and in the year before the start of the study were measured. In addition, types of sexual violence were examined, as were the characteristics of the perpetrators. Lastly, revictimization and pregnancy as a result of rape experiences among the victims were investigated. Data were generated from a population survey on sexual health. The sample consisted of more than 6,000 men and women between the age of 15 and 70 years old. Prevalence rates as high as 21% for men and 56% for women were found. Fifty percent of the female victims and 30% of the male victims of child sexual abuse had experienced adult victimization. Of the female rape victims, 7% became pregnant as a consequence of rape. In the Netherlands, as elsewhere, the prevention of sexual violence should be prioritized.

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Sexual abuse during childhood and adolescence among Nicaraguan men and women: a population-based anonymous survey

Child Abuse & Neglect ◽

10.1016/s0145-2134(00)00215-5 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 24 (12) ◽

pp. 1579-1589 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Ann Olsson ◽

Mary Ellsberg ◽

Staffan Berglund ◽

Andrés Herrera ◽

Elmer Zelaya ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Population Based ◽

Childhood And Adolescence ◽

Men And Women

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The Prevalence and Patterns of Childhood Sexual Abuse and Victim-Perpetrator Relationship among a Sample of University Students

South African Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1177/008124630103100404 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 31 (4) ◽

pp. 32-37 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

S. N. Madu

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

University Students ◽

Undergraduate Students ◽

Male Victims ◽

Female Victims ◽

Self Rating ◽

The North ◽

The University

This is an investigation into the prevalence and patterns of child sexual abuse and victim-perpetrator relationship among a sample of university students. 722 undergraduate students of psychology at the University of the North, South Africa, filled in a retrospective self-rating questionnaire in a classroom setting. The questionnaire asked childhood sexual forms of abuse, victim-perpetrator relationships and self-rating of childhood. Result shows an overall (N=649) child sexual abuse prevalence rate of 25.6%; 21.7% for males (N=244), 23.7% for females (N=465). 18.2% were kissed sexually, 13.6% were touched sexually, 8.7% were victims of oral/anal/vaginal intercourse. Most of the perpetrators are people known to the victims. Many victims (83% of the male victims and 68.2% of the female victims) perceived themselves as not sexually abused during childhood; and most rated their childhood as either “average” (41.3% of the female victims and 48.9% of the male victims) or as “very happy” (41.3% of the female victims and 40.4% of the male victims). The author calls for more research, publicity, and campaigns against childhood sexual abuse in the Northern Province.

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The Double Standard Toward Female and Male Victims of Non-consensual Dissemination of Intimate Images

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/08862605211050109 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 088626052110501

Author(s):

Liza Zvi

Keyword(s):

Sexual Violence ◽

Gender Stereotypes ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Psychological Research ◽

Double Standard ◽

Male Victims ◽

Female Victims ◽

Traditional Gender Roles ◽

Legal Sanctions ◽

Negative Feelings

Non-consensual dissemination of intimate images (NCII) is a growing problem of sexual violence with grave consequences for victims. However, despite recent criminalization and civil and legal sanctions, there is reason to suspect that the majority of NCII cases remain unreported. The reasons for that may be similar to the ones accounting for under-reporting in cases of physical sexual violence and are tied to society’s attitude toward victims. Being a relatively new form of violence, psychological research on perceptions of NCII victims and offenders is scarce. The purpose of the present study was to extend the current knowledge by comparing perceptions toward female and male victims of NCII, while manipulating the victim’s role in producing the intimate material. Drawing on rape research, it was hypothesized that gender stereotypes interact with victims’ sex and behavior to influence the way victims are perceived. Five-hundred and thirty-nine male and female students were presented with a scenario depicting an NCII offense in which the intimate material was either self-generated by the victim (selfies) or stealth-taken by the victim’s ex-intimate partner. Victim and offender sex were also manipulated. The findings indicate a differential treatment toward female and male victims of NCII, depending on their role in the taking of the intimate images. More blaming was attributed toward a female victim whose intimate images were self-taken, in comparison to all other research conditions, and negative feelings toward her were the highest as well. These blame attributions, as well as negative feelings toward female victims, were particularly high on the side of male participants. The findings are interpreted as reflecting perceptions of traditional gender roles and a double standard toward female and male sexual behavior.

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