U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Patterns of Emotional Response to Childhood Sexual Abuse

NCJ Number
127583
Author(s)
P J Long; J Jackson
Date Published
Unknown
Length
11 pages
Annotation
Information from 105 female university students who had experienced child sexual abuse formed the basis of an analysis of whether these victims showed distinct patterns of emotional reactions.
Abstract
The participants averaged about 19 years of age and were generally of middle class and never married. The abusive sexual activities ranged from fondling (82 percent) and exposure (32 percent) to intercourse (9 percent). The participants completed a self-report instrument that gathered data on demographics, childhood sexual activities with older persons, reactions to the sexual activities, and other potentially traumatic events. The questionnaire contained a scale developed by Shipp and others to assess emotional reactions. Results showed that victims experience a variety of emotional responses to childhood sexual abuse, with combinations of emotions producing a relatively small number of profiles of emotional reactions. Positive and ambivalent roles were relatively rare, however, while those involving one or more negative emotions characterized the majority of victims. Findings also suggested a relationship between emotional reaction and general social adjustment. Tables, figures, and 6 references