NCJ Number
178384
Journal
Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 23 Issue: 4 Dated: April 1999 Pages: 383-394
Date Published
1999
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This study examined the link between childhood experiences of sexual abuse and subsequent revictimization in adolescence.
Abstract
A sample of 281 female adolescents 17-20 years old, who participated in a prevalence survey of unwanted sexual contacts, completed the Sexual Experiences Survey as a measure of unwanted sexual contacts in adolescence; subjects indicated whether or not hey had experienced childhood sexual abuse. Childhood experiences of sexual abuse were reported by 8.9 percent of the respondents; a further 8.5 percent indicated they were not sure whether they had been sexually abused as children. Both abused women and women who were uncertain about their victimization status were significantly more likely to report unwanted sexual contacts as adolescents than women who did not report being abused as children. The link between childhood abuse and subsequent victimization as an adolescent was mediated by a higher level of sexual activity among the abuse victims. These results support existing evidence on the impact of childhood sexual abuse on sexual relationships in subsequent developmental stages and emphasize the need to consider childhood sexual abuse as a risk factor for adolescent sexual victimization. 1 table, 4 figures, 28 references, and appended items of the Sexual Experiences Survey