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Parental Responses to Extrafamilial Child Sexual Assault

NCJ Number
122315
Journal
Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 14 Issue: 1 Dated: (1990) Pages: 113-120
Author(s)
C Regehr
Date Published
1990
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Parents of children who have been assaulted by someone external to the family are faced with the difficult task of dealing with their own reactions to the assault while attending to the needs of their children.
Abstract
Common emotional responses that parents express often fall into the following areas: guilt regarding failure as a parent; ambivalent feelings toward the child; ambivalent feelings toward the offender; and the concerns about the investigatory and judicial processes. Clinical interventions such as supportive counseling and psychoeducational approaches can help parents work through their own issues so that they can be emotionally available to help their child. Changes in the legal system that will render more support and less damage to the victim should be implemented. 15 references. (Author abstract modified)