The study was conducted at a residential treatment facility for emotionally disturbed children and adolescents in Connecticut. The sample consisted of 23 boys who were in treatment for emotional and behavioral problems and who came from abusive, neglectful, or violent households. Data was obtained on behavioral problems, medical histories, psychiatric symptoms and diagnoses, and physical and sexual abuse. Of the 23 boys, 9 were encopretic, 27 times the reported occurrence of encopresis in the general population of boys between 10 and 12 years of age. Of the nine encopretic boys, seven had sexual abuse histories. Although both boys and perpetrators were secretive about the specific nature of the sexual abuse that occurred, evidence strongly suggested that at least six of the nine encopretic boys had been sodomized. Why some of the sodomized children became encopretic whereas others did not requires additional study. Implications of the findings for the diagnosis of and research on encopretic children are discussed. 57 references and 3 tables