Treatment for Sexually Abused Children and Adolescents
Abstract
<p>We examine key issues in the treatment of sexually abused children 1 and their families. After reviewing the principal findings on the effects of childhood sexual abuse, we describe the available research on treatment efficacy and discuss a number of the difficult questions still facing practitioners, researchers, and policymakers today.</p> What Are the Effects of Child Sexual Abuse? <p>The bulk of past research on childhood sexual abuse has suggested two important findings. First, the impact of child sexual abuse is highly variable. Some children show no detectable negative effects; others show highly adverse reactions with severe psychiatric symptomatology (e.g., Kendall-Tackett, Williams, & Finkelhor, 1993 ). Second, child sexual abuse is a risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders and distress in adults, although not all individuals will experience long-term effects (e.g., Fergusson, Horwood, & Lynskey, 1996 ; Glaser, 1991 ; Mullen, Martin, Anderson, Romans, & Herbison, 1996 ; Saunders, Kilpatrick, Hansen, Resnick, & Walker, 1999 ; Silverman, Reinherz, & Giaconia, 1996 ; Widom, 1999 ).</p><p>Variability in the effects of child sexual abuse is not surprising given the wide range of experiences that constitute sexual abuse and the disparate contexts in which it can occur, ranging from indecent