Search results for ‘Subject term:"mental health problems"’ Sort:
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Child sexual abuse and psychological impairment in victims: results of an online study initiated by victims
- Authors:
- SCHAEFER Gerard A., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 21(3), 2012, pp.343-360.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Research in the area of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been rarely initiated, conceptualised, and conducted by victims themselves. This article describes a study conducted by the German victim-run support group MOGiS e.V. in order to add victims' perspectives to understanding of this topic. An aim of the study was to investigate how being affected by CSA directly or indirectly influences estimates of the prevalence of CSA. Another aim of was to determine the magnitude of symptoms of impaired psychosocial functioning among CSA victims. An online survey was completed by 502 participants over the period October 2009 to March 2010. The article reports on the: characteristics of victims of CSA; age at victimisation; nature of CSA; nonsexual abuse; perpetrator gender and age; perpetrator-victim relationship; legal action; feelings of guilt; and psychosocial impairment. The findings showed extensive impaired psychosocial functioning among CSA victims with a significant relationship between the severity of the experienced offense and the number of reported symptoms of psychosocial impairment. With respect to estimating the prevalence of CSA, affected participants estimated significantly higher rates compared to nonaffected participants. The results indicate that an intact social support system facilitates better health, especially when offered early on.
The effect of severe child sexual abuse and disclosure on mental health during adulthood
- Authors:
- O'LEARY Patrick, COOHEY Carol, EASTON Scott D.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 19(3), May 2010, pp.275-289.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between indicators of severe sexual abuse and mental health symptoms during adulthood and to determine whether telling someone the abuse had occurred during childhood moderates the relationship between severe abuse and mental health. A phone survey was conducted with 172 adults living in Victoria, Australia, who were sexually abused as children. The results suggested that disclosure of child sexual abuse during childhood may be important in understanding mental health symptoms during adulthood. Telling someone about the sexual abuse was related to a greater number of mental health symptoms, however discussing the sexual abuse within a year was related to fewer mental health symptoms. Regardless of whether the respondent told someone about the abuse or discussed it, three indicators of abuse severity were associated with more mental health symptoms: being injured, being abused by more than one person, and being abused by a biological relative. The authors discuss the study results and their implications.
Childhood abuse and recovery from major depression
- Authors:
- ZLOTNICK Caron, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Child Abuse and Neglect, 19(12), December 1995, pp.1513-1516.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Thirty-eight female inpatients with major depression were assessed for childhood abuse. History of abuse was examined in relation to recovery from a major depressive episode over a 12-month follow-up period. Forty-six percent of the women had a history of childhood abuse. Women without a history of abuse were 3.7 times more likely to have recovered by 12 months.
Childhood sexual abuse and mental health in adult life
- Authors:
- MULLEN Paul E., et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Psychiatry, 163, December 1993, pp.721-732.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Reports on research in New Zealand, which found a positive correlation between reporting abuse and greater levels of psychopathology on a range of measures. Childhood sexual abuse was more frequent in women from disrupted homes as well as those who had been exposed to inadequate parenting or physical abuse. The overlap between the possible effects of sexual abuse and the effects of the matrix of disadvantage from which it so often emerges were so considerable as to be felt to raise doubts about how often, in practice, it operates as an independent causal element. Lack of long-term impairment of many of those reporting childhood sexual abuse suggests that effects can only be understood in relationship with the context from which the abuse emerged.
Childhood sexual abuse in adolescents adjudicated for sexual offenses: mental health consequences and sexual offending behaviors
- Authors:
- MORAIS Hugo B., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Sexual Abuse a Journal of Research and Treatment, 30(1), 2018, pp.23-42.
- Publisher:
- Sage
The current study examined the effects of child sexua abuse (CSA) on 498 male adolescents adjudicated for sexual offences who represent the small portion of CSA survivors who engage in sexual offences. The prevalence of internalising symptoms, parental attachment difficulties, specific sexual offending behaviours, and risk for sexually offending were compared among participants with and without a history of CSA. Results indicated that participants with a history of CSA were more likely to be diagnosed with major depression and posttraumatic stress disorder than those who did not report a history of CSA. A history of CSA was also positively correlated with risk for sexually offending and with specific offense patterns and consensual sexual behaviours. No significant differences emerged on parental attachment difficulties. These results highlight that adolescents adjudicated for sexual offences with a history of CSA present with differences in sexual and psychological functioning as well as markedly different offending patterns when compared with those without a CSA history. Clinical implications and future directions are discussed. (Edited publisher abstract)
Language use and PTSD symptoms: content analyses of allegations of child sexual abuse
- Authors:
- MIRAGOLI Sarah, PROCACCIA Rossella, Di BLASIO Paola
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice, 14(5), 2014, pp.355-382.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia
The objective of this article is to understand how traumatised children report traumatic narratives. This study aims to explore the mediating effects of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms on the relationship between child age and narrative characteristics in the allegations of child sexual abuse. Some characteristics of traumatic narratives were analysed in a group of 58 victims of sexual abuse (M = 10; SD = 3.5 years), including 29 children (50%) with all the symptoms of PTSD. Results were consistent with a model of PTSD symptoms as a mediator of the relationship between age and sensory impressions, emotional nodes, and cognitive distancing. (Publisher abstract)
Suicide attempts among men with histories of child sexual abuse: examining abuse severity, mental health, and masculine norms
- Authors:
- EASTON Scott D., RENNER Lynette M., O'LEARY Patrick
- Journal article citation:
- Child Abuse and Neglect, 37(6), 2013, pp.380-387.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Survey data gathered from a purposive sample of 487 men who were sexually abused during childhood were used to examine the relationship between abuse severity, mental health, masculine norms and recent suicide . The age of the sample ranged from 19 to 84 years. Recent suicide attempts served as the dependent variable in the study. Self-reported measures of sexual abuse severity, child physical abuse, mental health, masculine norms, and demographic information (age, race) represented the independent variables. The results from logistic regression modeling found that five variables – duration of the sexual abuse, use of force during the sexual abuse, high conformity to masculine norms, level of depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation – increased the odds of a suicide attempt in the past 12 months. To improve mental health services for men with histories of child sexual abuse, mental health practitioners should incorporate sexual abuse severity, current mental health, and adherence to masculine norms into assessment and treatment planning. (Edited publisher abstract)
Characteristics of childhood sexual abuse in lesbians and heterosexual women
- Authors:
- WILSNACK Sharon C., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Child Abuse and Neglect, 36(3), 2012, pp.260-265.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Drawing on data from the 2001 US National Study of Health and Life Experiences of Women and the 2001 Chicago Life Experiences of Women study (both longitudinal studies), researchers investigated whether lesbians report more severe childhood sexual abuse than heterosexual women. Data in both of the studies came from face-to-face interviews conducted by trained female interviewers. The article briefly describes the background to the study and its methodology and results. It reports on findings, covering demographic characteristics, childhood sexual abuse prevalence and severity, perpetrators, and self-perceived childhood sexual abuse. It concludes that the findings suggest that childhood sexual abuse is not only more prevalent among lesbians than among heterosexual women, but also more severe, and notes that these factors may contribute to lesbians' increased risk of depression, psychological distress and substance abuse.
Childhood adversities and adult psychopathology in the WHO World Mental Health Surveys
- Authors:
- Ronald C. Kessler, et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Psychiatry, 197(5), November 2010, pp.378-385.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
The association between childhood adversity and adult mental problems is well known. To date, however, most research has focused on single childhood adversities predicting single disorders. This paper investigated joint associations of 12 childhood adversities with first onset of 20 DSM-IV disorders in World Mental Health (WMH) surveys in 21 countries. Surveys of 51,945 adults assessed childhood adversities and lifetime DSM-IV disorders with the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). Findings revealed that childhood adversities associated with maladaptive family functioning, such as parental mental illness, child abuse, or neglect, were the strongest predictors of disorders. Co-occurring childhood adversities associated with maladaptive family functioning had significant predictive associations and little specificity across disorders. Childhood adversities were seen to account for almost 30% of all disorders across countries. The paper concluded that childhood adversities have strong associations with all classes of disorders at all life-course stages in all groups of WMH countries.
Psychiatric evaluation of sexual abuse cases: a clinical representative sample from Turkey
- Authors:
- FIS Nese Perdahli, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 32(10), October 2010, pp.1285-1290.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
This research examined the characteristics of childhood sexual abuse cases referred for psychiatric evaluation in a university hospital in Turkey. Eighty three child sexual abuse cases referred between 2006 and 2010 were included. Findings indicated that two thirds of the victims were girls, and three quarters of the perpetrators were familiar. The most common type, 44%, of sexual abuse encountered was genital contact without penetration. All of the strangers were reported to legal authorities within 3 months whereas 77% were reported when offenders were familiar. Forty percent of the cases involving offending family members needed additional evaluation by social services, as opposed to 11% of cases with offenders who were not family members. Anxiety disorders and adjustment disorder were the most common psychiatric diagnoses. Family counselling for possible risk factors, child protection, and prevention of further abuse was provided for all cases. The authors concluded that the data was similar to western studies. Because of the significant impact on the victim, publishing data and emphasising the topic of child sexual abuse should help facilitate recognition and management of such cases.