Sexual Abuse: A Comparison Between Resilient Victims and Drug-Addicted Victims

• NCJ Number: 193652
• Journal: Violence and Victims Volume: 16 Issue: 6 Dated: December 2001 Pages: 655-672
• Author(s): Magali H. Dufour; Louise Nadeau
• Date Published: December 2001
• Length: 18 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study determined which variables distinguished resilient victims from drug-addicted victims who were sexually abused during their childhood, and measured the contribution of these variables to the level of distress experienced by the victims.

Abstract

A number of factors might explain the differences in adjustment of abuse victims, including the characteristics of the abuse, maternal support, and locus of control and other cognitive variables. The goal was to compare a group of resilient women with a group of addicted women in order to identify the variables that characterized members of the resilient group and explained their recovery. Two groups of women participated in the study. A group of resilient women was recruited by an advertisement in a free weekly, Montreal newspaper and screened for abuse before the age of 16 and no addiction problems. The group of addicted women who were sexually abused were recruited in a public clinic specializing in the treatment of addictions. These two groups were very similar in all sociodemographic variables with the exception of their education levels. The resilient women were more educated than the group of addicted women. In regard to their abuse, the data from these groups showed that the resilient and the addicted women had been subjected to abuse that was similar in nature and in severity. Results implied that it was the victim’s interpretation of the event rather than the event itself that may be harmful. Results did not confirm the hypothesis that support in general, and after disclosure to their mother or first confidant, will reduce the impact of sexual abuse. The only differences between the two groups, besides level of education, were related to cognitive variables. The addicted women indicated significantly more often than the resilient women that their achievements and events in their life were determined by chance or powerful others. Some cognitive variables, such as stigmatization and self-blame, may play a role in recovery. Coping strategies, particularly cognitive variables linked to interpretation of the event, appeared to be more important than the severity of the event or the support received. 4 tables, 82 references