Security in Father-child Relationship and Behavior Problems in Sexually Abused Children

Abstract

While the influence of mother-child relationships on children's recovery following sexual abuse has been documented, less is known about the possible contribution of father-child relationships on outcomes. The present study explored the contribution of children's perception of security in their relationship to the father on internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, while controlling for sociodemographic variables and variables associated with the mother-child relationship. Participants were 142 children who disclosed sexual abuse involving a perpetrator other than the biological father. Regression analyses indicated that children's perception of security to fathers contributed to the prediction of parental reports of children's behavior problems, even after controlling for maternal psychological distress and perception of security to mothers. KeywordsChild sexual abuse; perception of security to fathers; perception of security to mothers; psychological distress Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a widespread social problem that affects children and adolescents, both boys and girls. Prevalence of CSA occurring in childhood (i.e. before the age of 18) is established at 18% for women and 8% for men (Stoltenborgh et al. 2011). Among all substantiated reports of child abuse in the US, 9% involve CSA, meaning that more than 63 000 children per year are reported to public services for sexual abuse (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2010). Numerous studies have shown that child victims of sexual abuse are more likely to demonstrate negative emotional, psychological, and social outcomes compared with non-abused children (Guelzow et al. 2002; Hébert et al. 2006a, b;Swanston et al. 2003;Walrath et al. 2003). However, outcomes following the disclosure of CSA have been described as quite diverse (Hébert et al. 2006a, b;Paolucci et al. 2001) and empirical reports have identified factors associated with variability of outcomes. Some studies revealed that abuse-related characteristics such as the duration (chronic) and severity of acts (penetration), the perpetrator's identity (intra-familial perpetrator) as well as the use of coercion have been related to more detrimental outcomes (Hulme and Agrawal 2004;Merrill et al. 2001). However, other studies have failed to identify a link between abuse-related variables and children's symptoms (Bal et al. 2004 CIHR Author ManuscriptCIHR Author Manuscript CIHR Author Manuscript Bennett et al. 2000; Romano and De Luca 2001), highlighting the need to consider other variables that may contribute to outcomes in child victims of CSA.Authors argue that familial factors, such as quality of attachment to parents, parental capacity to support the child following disclosure, and family characteristics (e.g., cohesion and conflict), can influence a child's capacity to cope with sexual abuse. On this matter, a study by Ray and Jackson (1997) found that adult survivors of CSA were better able to cope with the situation when the family environment was evaluated as being cohesive....

Does family communication moderate the association between adverse childhood experiences and emotional and behavioural problems?

“…Likewise, recent studies show that negative family interactions between parent and child are associated with higher levels of anxiety and depression [23,[38][39][40], whereas communication between the parents and the child may be influenced by several factors, such as a divorce of the parents [41,42]. Moreover, recent studies exploring father-child relationships have proposed an "activation relationship", where fathers also tend to encourage children to take risks, while at the same time ensuring their safety and security [43][44][45][46][47]. Family communication plays an important role in the occurrence of EBP in adolescence [41].…”

The Unique Contribution of Attachment Theory in Understanding the Role of Nonoffending Fathers in the Care of Children Who Have Been Sexually Abused: A Historical Lens

“…Research on attachment theory has focused predominantly on the mother–child relationship (Bretherton, 2010; George & Solomon, 2008; Palm, 2014; Parent-Boursier & Hebert, 2015).…”

“…When considering the various factors in a child’s life that build resilience, the responses and reactions of caregivers matter. In both theory and practice, a child’s caregivers have often been named as the most vital and influential supports in child development (Andersson, 2005; Bolen & Lamb, 2007; Grossmann, Grossmann, Kindler, & Zimmermann, 2008; Harden, 2004; Parent-Boursier & Hebert, 2015; van der Kolk, 2003). Yet the term “caregiver” has changed over time.…”

The Predictive Effect of Father-Child Relationship on Peer Relationships of Young Children

“…In this respect, the presence of a healthy communication between fathers and their children is important for the development and positive behaviours of children. The studies have also suggested that fathers are very important for their children (Amato, 1994;Benzies, and Evans, 2015;Bowey, 1995;Culpin et al, 2013;Downer and Mendez, 2005;Ferreira et al, 2016;Kochanska et al, 2015;Parent-Boursier and Hébert, 2015). For instance, in the study conducted by Levesque (2009) to investigate the father figure in preschool children, it was determined that four-year-old male children displayed behaviours reflecting the figure of father in their symbolic games at least once.…”