NCJ Number
149892
Journal
Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 18 Issue: 8 Dated: (August 1994) Pages: 679-682
Date Published
1994
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This study examined and contrasted professionals' expectations of nonoffending parents' responses during child sexual abuse investigations with the personal responses reported by professionals in reaction to the hypothetical discovery that their own child had been sexually abused by a spouse or lover.
Abstract
The sample consisted of participants in two training conferences for professionals involved in the investigation, prosecution, and treatment of child sexual abuse cases. A total of 317 conference participants completed the questionnaires; 77 percent of the respondents were female, and 23 percent were male. The questionnaires, developed by the investigators to assess reactions to child sexual abuse allegations, were distributed to conference participants. To compare professionals' expectations of nonoffending parents with professionals' personal reactions, chi-square analyses were performed. Responses from male and female subjects were analyzed separately. The findings show a discrepancy between the personal responses and the professional expectations expressed by female professionals who work in the field of child sexual abuse. Among female respondents there was a significant difference in attitude towards preservation of the incestuous family. In reacting personally to the hypothetical finding that their own child had been abused by their spouse, the female professionals were inclined to separate from the alleged perpetrator rather than to seek family counseling. These same professionals, on the other hand, would urge nonoffending parents to seek family counseling and maintain family unity as the optimal response to the incest. There was no such discrepancy in the views and reactions of the male professionals. 1 table and 14 references