Quality of life in adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse who have undergone therapy

Rachel Lev-wiesel

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

29 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study examined perceptions of past sexual abuse experiences and quality of life among adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Fifty-two adult survivors (15 men, 37 women) of childhood paternal sexual abuse who had completed therapy were interviewed about their past and current life. A qualitative analysis of the interviews revealed three types of explanations for the offenders' abusive behavior (fathers and/or mothers in terms of compliance): characteristics of the offender-parent (incestuous father), the victim's characteristics, and circumstantial conditions. The results indicated that a higher percentage of survivors who attributed the abuse to the offender's characteristics managed to keep their self-esteem fairly intact and had a higher quality of life, in contrast to survivors who took full blame on themselves or blamed situational factors. The results further revealed that male survivors judged their quality of life as less satisfactory than did female survivors.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1-13
Number of pages13
JournalJournal of Child Sexual Abuse
Volume9
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 9 Sep 2000

Keywords

  • Adult survivors
  • Parental abusive behavior
  • Quality of life
  • Sexual abuse

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
  • Pathology and Forensic Medicine
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Quality of life in adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse who have undergone therapy'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this