Factors Influencing Adult Cognitive Appraisals of Childhood Sexual Abuse: A Prospective Investigation

• In Event: New Findings on the Consequences of Childhood Maltreatment: Results of a Prospective Longitudinal Study

Abstract

Childhood sexual abuse is associated with long-term psychological consequences, but outcomes have been shown to be related to retrospective self-reports. Factors that characterize adults who appraise or recall their childhood sexual experiences as abuse remain unknown. Using a prospective cohort design, we examined retrospective reports of childhood sexual experiences in adults with documented histories of child maltreatment and demographically matched controls (N = 1196; Mage = 29 years). Participants were asked to recall the frequency of their reported abuse, age at onset of abuse, relationship to perpetrator, and whether they appraised the experience as abuse. Over half the sample (52%) reported childhood sexual experiences, yet only 44% considered those experiences to be sexual abuse. Individuals with documented histories of childhood sexual abuse and neglect were more likely to appraise their childhood sexual experiences as abuse compared to controls. Those who reported more severe abuse, more frequent abuse, younger age at onset of abuse, and intrafamilial and both intra- and extrafamilial abuse (vs. extrafamilial abuse) were more likely to consider their experiences to be abuse. Compared to males and Black individuals, females and White individuals were more likely to appraise their childhood sexual experiences as abuse. Clinical implications will be discussed.

Authors

• Quincy Claire Miller, University of California, Irvine

• Cathy Spatz Widom, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY