Child Sexual Abuse and Adolescent and Adult Adjustment: A Review of British and World Evidence, with Implications for Social Work, and Mental Health and School Counselling

Abstract

We offer a narrative review of the findings of available British research on the sexual abuse of children, and its behavioural and mental health sequels in adolescent and adult adjustment, and link this to the growing world literature on child abuse, which frequently occurs within family settings. The evidence shows that around 9% of women, and about 3% of men have experienced prolonged, bodily intrusive abuse by the age of 16 or 18. This has many adverse sequels including impaired self-esteem, clinical levels of depression and anxiety, self-harm and substance abuse, somatic disorders, and many forms of maladaptation. Poly-victimisation combining physical, sexual and emotional abuse has particularly negative impacts. The long-term burden in human suffering and public health costs is high. In school, abuse victims are often bullied and isolated in school, which exacerbates (or even triggers) the negative effects of abuse. Teachers and school counsellors and social workers have an important role to play in identifying abuse victims, and offering help in ways which prevents the development of serious mental health problems.

High Rates of Suicide and Violence in the Lives of Girls and Young Women in Bangladesh: Issues for Feminist Intervention

“…The majority of perpetrators were unmarried adolescents and men, aged less than 25. The data from this study do not allow us to calculate risk rates for rape in young girls, but can say that these penetrative assaults were at the most serious end of the sexual abuse spectrum, and greatly exceed the one per cent prevalence of child rape we have inferred from the world literature (Sawyerr and Bagley 2017). The often-public setting of these violent assaults must, we infer, create a climate of fear amongst young girls.…”

Book Review: Pimp State: Sex, Money, and Equality by Kat Banyard

“…This and other literature (e.g. Mitchell, Finkelhor & Simmons, 2013;Kaetle, 2012;Sawyerr & Bagley, 2017a) leads to the powerful conclusion that: the commercialized sexual exploitation (CSE) of adult women cannot conceptually be distinguished from the abuse, neglect, and exploitation experienced by a child or adolescent (sexual, emotional and physical abuse, family …”

“…Running from home (or being removed into "care") is often a pathway into selling sex for survival, being prey to pimps and trafficking, become substance addicted, suffering PTSD-inducing trauma, devastated self-esteem, and dissociation from the abuse of enforced adult prostitution (Sawyerr & Bagley, 2017a). The man who pays to sexually abuse adult women is re-enacting and re-imposing this pattern of earlier abuse.…”

İhmal Ve İsti̇smari Önlemeye Yöneli̇k Çocuk Koruma Poli̇ti̇kalarinda Uzmanlaşmiş Koruyucu Ai̇le Modeli̇ni̇n Yeri̇

“…Çocuk ihmal ve istismarı olgusu yalnızca az gelişmiş veya gelişmekte olan ülkelere has bir sorun değildir. Nitekim İngiltere'de yapılan araştırma verilerini inceleyen Bagley (2017) kadınların %9'unun, erkeklerin ise %3'ünün 16-18 yaşına kadar olan çocukluk dönemlerinde uzun süreli cinsel istismara maruz kalmış olduklarını belirtmektedir. Yine Avustralya'da 2016-2017 döneminde rapor edilen yaklaşık 68 bin çocuk ihmali ve istismarı vakasının 2012-2013 döneminden bu yana %27 artış gösterdiği belirtilmektedir.…”