Childhood Experiences of Sexual Abuse and Later Parenting Practices Among Non-Offending Mothers of Sexually Abused and Comparison Girls

• NCJ Number: 231998
• Journal: Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 34 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2010 Pages: 610-622
• Author(s): Kihyun Kim; Penelope K. Trickett; Frank W. Putnam
• Date Published: August 2010
• Length: 13 pages
• Grant Number(s): 90CA1549; R01MH48330; ACYF90CA1686
• Sponsoring Agency: William T. Grant Foundation; National Institute of Mental Health; US Dept of Health and Human Services; Smith Richardson Foundation; University of Southern California Urban Initiative; COYDOG Foundation
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United Kingdom

Annotation

Using data from a prospective, longitudinal study of the long-term impact of childhood sexual abuse on female development (Putnam and Trickett, 1987), this current study of parenting practices of nonoffending mothers in incest cases focuses on the influence of the mothers' own childhood experiences of sexual abuse.

Abstract

The study determined that the parenting practices of nonoffending mothers in incest cases are determined by the interaction of a variety of factors that include their daughters' sexual abuse, the mothers' childhood experience of punitive discipline, the mothers' current dissociative symptoms, and social support received by the mothers. These findings tend to support an integrative model of parenting practice for nonoffending mothers of sexually abused girls, under which a variety of childhood experiences, including sexual abuse, combine with the mothers' current mental health, their daughters' sexual abuse, and patterns of social support are integrated to determine the mothers' parenting practices. The study's findings suggest that more theoretical discussions and empirical investigations of the intergenerational process are needed in order to better understand the process of intergenerational impacts of child sexual abuse. This study used a sample from a longitudinal, multigenerational study in which sexually abused girls, demographically similar comparison girls, and the mothers of both groups of girls participated. For the current study, the focus was on data regarding the mothers of the two groups of girls. Guided by a developmental-ecological perspective of parenting, several models with different potential pathways starting from the mothers' childhood experiences of sexual abuse and culminating in their parenting practices were hypothesized and explored in the context of the mothers' past and current psychosocial risks and resources. Two dimensions of parenting were considered: providing positive structure (i.e., ratings of consistency, fairness, and patience), and use of punitive discipline. 4 tables, 3 figures, and 68 references