Perpetrator-victim relationship: Long-term effects of sexual abuse for men and women

Abstract

This study investigated the emotional and familial relationships of 465 victims and perpetrators of childhood sexual abuse. Four hundred nineteen women and 56 men who were victims of childhood sexual abuse completed the Trauma Symptom Checklist-33 (TSC-33; J. Briere & M. Runtz, 1989) and a severity of sexual abuse scale. In addition, the abuse survivors answered questions about their emotional relationships with the offender prior to the abuse. The data were analyzed with analysis of variance. The dependent variable was the adjustment to the trauma, as measured by the TSC-33. The independent variables were perpetrator identity, gender, level of abuse, and emotional feelings exhibited toward the perpetrator prior to being sexually abused. The most pervasive symptoms were found among participants who were abused by a father figure and women who were very severely abused. Contrary to theoretical expectations, there were no statistically significant differences based on gender.