NCJ Number
112435
Date Published
1987
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Four studies investigated the relationship between fantasy-proneness and childhood sexual abuse (CSA) in clinical and general student samples.
Abstract
Measures used in all four studies included the Inventory of Childhood Memories and Imaginings, the Short Imaginal Processes Inventory, and the Children's Fantasy Inventory. Data for 25 adult women being treated for sequelae of incest indicated no relationship between fantasy-proneness and childhood sexual victimization, with the exception of a negative correlation between the frequency of abuse and fantasy-proneness. Data for 47 adolescent psychiatric inpatients indicated no significant differences among subjects who had experienced only sexual abuse, only physical abuse, or neither sexual nor physical abuse. However, total traumata score coded from case histories showed a low but significant correlation between fantasy/imagination measures and the intellectual and aggressive content of fantasy/imagination. A study of over 1,000 students found that over a third had experienced some form of sexual abuse in childhood. Subjects reporting extrafamilial abuse alone or in conjunction with incest showed higher scores for absorption, paranormal experiences, guilt, and fear of failure than did incest victims or nonabused subjects. Finally, in the last study, high fantasizers were significantly more likely to report extrafamilial sexual abuse during childhood and adolescence than were low or medium fantasizers. 9 references.