Objective:
The deleterious psychological effects of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) have been extensively documented in the research literature. A limitation of this research, however, has been a reliance on overly restrictive and limiting measurements of CSA. Researchers have most commonly referred to discrete instances of rape and molestation; however, evidence suggests that sexual abuse in childhood can include a wide array of acts and that individual survivors can endure many of these.
Method:
This study employed latent class analysis to identify homogeneous groups of adult CSA survivors characterized by similar typologies of sexual trauma within a large sample of Danish, treatment-seeking survivors of CSA and incest (N = 454). In total, 18 separate contact and noncontact abuse acts were modeled. Furthermore, the association between abuse-related variables (victim gender, the age at which the abuse started, duration of abuse, and perpetrator of abuse) and the resultant CSA groups, or classes, was estimated.
Results:
Four homogeneous CSA groups were identified: an intercourse group, a high-verbal/low-contact group, a high-sexual-contact group, and a sexual-touch group. Some of the groups were distinguishable from others in terms of the frequency of the abuse and the type of perpetrator identified.
Conclusions:
The results show that “typologies” of CSA may provide a useful way to describe complex patterns of abuse while also facilitating future investigations of CSA outcome and treatment need.
Ireland ->
National College Ireland ->
Status = Published
Ireland ->
National College Ireland ->
Subject = B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion
Ireland ->
National College Ireland ->
Type = Article
Ireland ->
National College Ireland ->
Subject = B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion: Psychology
Ireland ->
National College Ireland ->
Subject = B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion: Psychology: Stress (Psychology): Post-traumatic stress disorder
Ireland ->
National College Ireland ->
Subject = B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion: Psychology: Stress (Psychology)
Philip Hyland,
Jamie Murphy,
Ask Elklit,
Siobhán Murphy,
Mark Shevlin