The Impact of Group Therapy for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse*

1989 ◽  
Vol 34 (8) ◽  
pp. 753-758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia M. Carver ◽  
Carol Stalker ◽  
Elizabeth Stewart ◽  
Betsy Abraham
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Group Therapy ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Adult Survivors ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Psychiatric Symptomatology ◽  
Post Test ◽  
The Impact

This article reports on 95 women who were referred to an outpatient psychiatry clinic for group therapy for adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Criteria for exclusion in group therapy are outlined and the format of the group therapy is described. Those who completed the groups are compared to dropouts. The group's effectiveness was evaluated using measures of psychiatric symptomatology (SCL 90), depression (Zung Self-Report Depression Scale), and self-esteem (Texas Social Behaviour Inventory) with a pre/post test design. Clients' evaluation questionnaires were also used. Group therapy was found to be effective in reducing symptomatology and change was in the expected direction in terms of depression and self-esteem.

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

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.

scholarly journals Spaces of dissociation: the impact of childhood sexual abuse on the personal geographies of adult survivors

Area ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 206-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alette Willis ◽  
Seamus Prior ◽  
Siobhan Canavan
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Adult Survivors ◽  
The Impact

Special Considerations for Various Populations

2021 ◽  
pp. 73-94
Author(s):  
Amie R. Newins ◽  
Laura C. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Group Therapy ◽  
Sexual Minorities ◽  
Adult Survivors ◽  
Child And Adolescent ◽  
People Of Color ◽  
Male Survivors ◽  
The Military

While the recommendations provided throughout the book are meant to help clinicians work with survivors of sexual assault of various ages and backgrounds, working with some populations requires additional considerations. This chapter provides additional recommendations for working with survivors of sexual assault from various specific populations. In particular, recommendations are given for working with child and adolescent survivors; adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse; male survivors; survivors who identify as gender and sexual minorities; survivors who are Black, indigenous, and people of color; and survivors who are serving or have served in the military. Suggestions are also provided for clinicians who work in educational settings and those who provide group therapy.

The Moderating Impact of Social Support Following Childhood Sexual Abuse

1992 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Testa ◽  
Brenda A. Miller ◽  
William R. Downs ◽  
Denise Panek
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Treatment Group ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Comparison Group ◽  
Psychological Symptoms ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
The Impact

The role of social support in moderating the impact of childhood sexual abuse on adult psychological adjustment was examined. Subjects included 475 women, age 18-45, some of whom were currently receiving treatment, others who were not. Women in the treatment group were receiving therapy for either alcoholism, for being battered, or for mental health problems. The comparison group was drawn from two sources: a random household sample and a sample of women attending drinking driver classes. Among both groups, women who had been sexually abused exhibited more psychological symptoms and lower self-esteem compared to those who were not abused. Latency of disclosure of childhood sexual abuse had no impact on long-term consequences of the abuse for either the treatment or the comparison group. However, among women in the comparison group, those who experienced supportive reactions following disclosure of sexual abuse had fewer psychological symptoms and somewhat higher self-esteem relative to those who did not receive support. Social support had no apparent effect on the long-term adjustment of women in the treatment group. Possible explanations for this pattern and directions for future research are discussed.

scholarly journals Childhood sexual abuse and attachment: An intergenerational perspective

2010 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 407-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura E. Kwako ◽  
Jennie G. Noll ◽  
Frank W. Putnam ◽  
Penelope K. Trickett
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Risk Factor ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Adult Survivors ◽  
Negative Outcomes ◽  
Anxious Attachment ◽  
Longitudinal Sample ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Socioeconomic Risk

Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is a recognized risk factor for various negative outcomes in adult survivors and their offspring. We used the Dynamic-Maturational Model of attachment theory as a framework for exploring the impact of maternal CSA on children’s attachment relationships in the context of a longitudinal sample of adult survivors of CSA and non-abused comparison mothers and their children. Results indicated that children of CSA survivors were more likely to have extreme strategies of attachment than the children of non-abused mothers. However, because both groups were at socioeconomic risk, both were typified by anxious attachment. Explanations for findings and implications for children’s development are explored.

Effects of Trauma and Religiosity on Self-Esteem

2008 ◽  
Vol 102 (3) ◽  
pp. 779-790 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Reiland ◽  
Dean Lauterbach
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Physical Abuse ◽  
Childhood Abuse ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Religious Practices ◽  
Religious Service Attendance ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Exposure To Trauma

Self-esteem is often lower among persons who have experienced trauma, but religiosity may ameliorate these psychological effects. The purpose of this paper was to examine the relationships among religiosity, self-esteem, and childhood exposure to trauma, utilizing data from the National Comorbidity Survey, a large (N = 8,098) nationally representative population survey in the 48 contiguous states of the USA that assessed religious practices, self-esteem, and exposure to trauma. Exposure to trauma in childhood was assessed through self-report of presence or absence of childhood physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect. Religiosity was assessed as the sum of responses to 4 self-report items (religious service attendance, use of religion for comfort and guidance, and importance of religion). Self-esteem was assessed on 9 self-report items adapted from the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Analysis of variance compared scores for persons who reported exposure to childhood abuse and differed in the value they placed on various religious practices on self-esteem. Persons who reported physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect in childhood had significantly lower mean self-esteem than those who did not report these events. There was also a main effect for religiosity in a comparison of persons who reported childhood sexual abuse with those who reported none. The High Religiosity group had higher mean self-esteem than the Medium and Low Religiosity groups. There was a significant interaction as those who reported childhood sexual abuse had lower mean self-esteem than peers who reported none in the Low and Medium Religiosity groups. Mean self-esteem for those who reported childhood sexual abuse was comparable to that of those who reported none in the High Religiosity group.

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