Forgetting of Trauma Cues in Adults Reporting Continuous or Recovered Memories of Childhood Sexual Abuse

According to betrayal trauma theory, adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) who were molested by their caretakers (e.g., a father) are especially likely to dissociate (“repress”) their memories of abuse. Testing college students, some reporting CSA, DePrince and Freyd (2004) found that those scoring high on a dissociation questionnaire exhibited memory deficits for trauma words when they viewed these words under divided-attention conditions. Replicating DePrince and Freyd's procedure, we tested for memory deficits for trauma words relative to neutral words in adults reporting either continuous or recovered memories of CSA versus adults denying a history of CSA. A memory deficit for trauma words under divided attention was expected in the recovered-memory group. Results were inconsistent with this prediction, as all three groups exhibited better recall of trauma words than neutral words, irrespective of encoding conditions.

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“Truth Serum” and “Recovered Memories” of Sexual Abuse: A Review of the Evidence

The Journal of Psychiatry & Law ◽

10.1177/009318539302100403 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 21 (4) ◽

pp. 447-471 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

August Piper

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Medical Literature ◽

Recovered Memory ◽

Recovered Memories ◽

The Mind

This article discusses the Amytal interview, which is sometimes believed to be useful to indicate deception, to reveal concealed contents of the mind, or to compel disclosure of those contents. The medical literature is reviewed to determine if the procedure reliably yields information valuable in legal evaluations of adults claiming recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse. The review finds that no investigator who had performed Amytal interviews endorsed them as a method of recovering accurate memories; rather, the literature repeatedly comments on several characteristics of these examinations that make them useless for this purpose. It is concluded that the Amytal interview has no legitimate use in recovered-memory cases.

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The Sexual Fantasies of Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors: A Rapid Review

Trauma Violence & Abuse ◽

10.1177/15248380211030487 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 152483802110304

Author(s):

Ateret Gewirtz-Meydan ◽

Eugenia Opuda

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Empirical Studies ◽

Adult Survivors ◽

Rapid Review ◽

Abuse Survivors ◽

Sexual Fantasies ◽

History Of ◽

The Impact ◽

Health Function

Although the association between childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and various aspects of sexual difficulties is well established, little is known about the association between CSA and adult sexual fantasies. The current rapid review searched for studies that reported on CSA and sexual fantasies through PubMed, PsycInfo, and Violence & Abuse Abstracts databases. Included in the review were empirical studies involving a population of adults who experienced CSA before the age of 18 and which reported on survivors’ sexual fantasies. The impact of CSA on adult sexual fantasies was found across three main dimensions: prevalence of sexual fantasies, content, and appraisal of the fantasies. Overall, 13 studies that addressed the sexual fantasies of survivors of CSA were identified. This review found an association between CSA and adult sexual fantasies, indicating that survivors of CSA are more likely to report: unrestricted sexual fantasies, more atypical sexual fantasies, more sexual fantasies that involve force, and more fantasies that include elements of sadomasochism, submissiveness, and dominance. Survivors of CSA also begin having sexual fantasies at a significantly earlier age and report their sexual fantasies as being significantly more intrusive than do nonabused subjects. When treating CSA survivors, therapists should acknowledge that a history of CSA can impact the survivors’ sexual fantasies. Further studies with adult survivors of CSA are needed to determine how these sexual fantasies develop subsequent to the abuse, how they are perceived by survivors, and what their effect is on survivors’ and their partners’ sexual health, function, and satisfaction.

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Recovered Memory Debate Revisited: Practice Implications for Mental Health Counselors

Journal of Mental Health Counseling ◽

10.17744/mehc.29.2.j0v2206152596157 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 29 (2) ◽

pp. 93-120 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

James Colangelo

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Memory Retrieval ◽

Treatment Protocol ◽

Mental Health Counselors ◽

Recovered Memory ◽

Negative Consequences ◽

Recovered Memories ◽

High Incidence

With the high incidence of childhood sexual abuse and the attendant serious negative consequences resulting from it clearly documented, there is a high probability that many mental health counselors will at some point in their career provide treatment to members of this population. Since memory retrieval is an integral part of the treatment protocol when working with such clients, it is imperative that clinicians have a good understanding of the controversy over recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse. This article revisits the controversy, provides a detailed discussion of the issues involved, and offers practice implications for mental health counselors.

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The Poole et al. (1995) Surveys of Therapists: Misinterpretations by Both Sides of the Recovered Memories Controversy

The Journal of Psychiatry & Law ◽

10.1177/009318539802600305 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 26 (3) ◽

pp. 383-399 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

D. Stephen Lindsay ◽

Debra A. Poole

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Recovered Memory ◽

Recovered Memories ◽

Beliefs And Practices

Olio (1996) critically reviewed an article by Poole, Lindsay, Memon, and Bull (1995) that reported surveys of clinicians' beliefs and practices regarding their clients' memories of childhood sexual abuse. Olio's article made several apt points that correctly identified limitations on the kinds of conclusions that can be drawn from the Poole et al. data, but it also made several erroneous claims. Some of these errors have been repeated in articles citing Olio by Pope (1996, 1997) and Brown (1998). In this commentary we respond to those of Olio's criticisms with which we disagree, next briefly comment on limitations of the Poole et al. data, and then turn to a more general discussion of ways in which the Poole et al. data have sometimes been misinterpreted by both sides of the controversy regarding recovered-memory experiences.

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Recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse: a concise social history of the phenomenon, and the key psychological concepts relevant to understanding the disputes concerning such claims

Journal of Clinical Forensic Medicine ◽

10.1016/s1353-1131(96)90010-3 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 73-79 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

B Tully

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Social History ◽

Recovered Memories ◽

History Of ◽

Psychological Concepts

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Strengthening Vicarious Resilience in Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse: A Narrative Approach to Couples Therapy

The Family Journal ◽

10.1177/1066480719894938 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 15-24

Author(s):

Charity Francis Laughlin ◽

Kaitlyn A. Rusca

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Adverse Effects ◽

Couples Therapy ◽

Couple System ◽

Adult Survivors ◽

Individual Factor ◽

Relational Support ◽

History Of ◽

Vicarious Resilience

Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is correlated with numerous adverse effects, both intrapersonal and interpersonal. Couples where one or more partners is a CSA survivor often report problems in social/relational adjustment, emotional expressiveness, revictimization, low relationship satisfaction and stability, and sexual dysfunction. Despite the adverse effects of CSA, some individuals with a history of CSA retain typical levels of functioning, and data from studies of resilience in CSA survivors suggest the importance of social and relational support for favorable outcomes. Resilience is not only an individual factor but also a social, ecological process, and research on vicarious resilience in therapist–client relationships suggests that resilience can be transmitted across relationship systems through a combination of witnessing resilience stories and beliefs about the possibility of resilience and its transmission. We suggest that in romantic partnerships (including nonheteronormative configurations) where one or more partners has a history of CSA, narrative couples therapy is well suited to address the systemic impacts of trauma and resilience by facilitating the transmission of each partner’s resilience to the other. Two narrative interventions, mapping and definitional ceremonies, are suggested to facilitate the transmission of resilience within the couple system through the sharing and witnessing of each other’s subjugated resilience narratives, thereby promoting a re-authored preferred identity based on acceptance, strength, and agency rather than shame, avoidance, and interpersonal difficulty.

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Wading through the Muddy Waters of Recovered Memory

Families in Society The Journal of Contemporary Social Services ◽

10.1177/104438949507600804 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 76 (8) ◽

pp. 478-489 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Susan P. Robbins

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽

Social Workers ◽

Recent Literature ◽

Recovered Memory ◽

Recovered Memories ◽

Running Away ◽

New Findings ◽

Common Response

The author reviews the professional debate about recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse and addresses conceptual errors, unwarranted assumptions, and factual inaccuracies in Benatar's essay “Running Away from Sexual Abuse: Denial Revisited” in the May 1995 Families in Society. Despite the fact that many therapists believe that repression or dissociation is a common response to childhood sexual abuse, little support for this idea is found in scientific studies. The author reviews the recent literature in this area and cautions social workers to avoid getting caught in the extreme polemics of this debate. Although it is important to be open to new findings in this area, we must be able to distinguish between conjecture and fact.

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