NCJ Number
220477
Journal
Journal of Child Sexual Abuse Volume: 16 Issue: 4 Dated: 2007 Pages: 37-61
Date Published
2007
Length
25 pages
Annotation
The study evaluated effects of a group intervention based on a feminst approach offered to sexually assaulted women in Quebec.
Abstract
The study data suggest that group interventions may be an efficient treatment modality to help reduce the consequences of sexual assault and enhance the well-being of adult women sexual assault survivors. Results revealed that group intervention reduced psychological distress and consequences associated with sexual abuse and that gains were maintained at the 3 month followup. Following the group intervention, the participants obtained significantly lower scores on psychological distress and depression scales and higher scores on self-esteem compared to women on the wait list to enter the program. The study took place in the province of Quebec’s Centres d’aide et de lutte contre les aggressions a caractere sexuel (CALACS). These help centers constitute a key feminist and public resource for women and adolescent girls who report sexual assault. The main outcomes investigated were selected from among those explored in previous studies: self-esteem, psychological distress, depression symptoms, and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Outcomes more closely related to the dynamics of sexual assault were also considered: self-blame/stigmatization and powerlessness, sexual anxiety, assertiveness, and strategies used to cope with sexual assault memories. The sample included women in or awaiting a group intervention at one of the three participating CALACS who were 18-years-old or older, victims of sexual assault in childhood or adulthood, and were willing to participate voluntarily in the group. A pre- and posttest design was used and included a wait list control group. A followup was performed 3 months following the end of the intervention for the experimental group. Although the study included an evaluation of maintenance of gains associated with the group intervention, future studies should consider conducting such analyses over a longer timeframe. Limitations of the study were also discussed. Tables, references