Experiences of Disclosure and Reactions of Close Ones from the Perspective of Child Sexual Abuse Survivors: A Qualitative Analysis of Gender Specificities

The disclosure of child sexual abuse (CSA) is a complex process that remains partially understood, despite its crucial role in survivors' recovery. Gender specific experiences of disclosure have been little investigated while this information is crucial to better tailor interventions for surviv...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of child sexual abuse 2021-10, Vol.30 (7), p.806-827
Main Authors: Guyon, Roxanne, Fernet, Mylène, Dussault, Éliane, Gauthier-Duchesne, Amélie, Cousineau, Marie-Marthe, Tardif, Monique, Godbout, Natacha
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anger
Blame
Child Abuse
Child sexual abuse
Childhood sexual abuse
Children
Community services
Content analysis
Disclosure
Emotions
Empowerment
Females
Gender
Guilt
Helplessness
Males
Men
Pedophilia
qualitative
Qualitative research
reaction
Recovery
Sex crimes
Sexual abuse
Survivor
Victims of crime
Women
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The disclosure of child sexual abuse (CSA) is a complex process that remains partially understood, despite its crucial role in survivors' recovery. Gender specific experiences of disclosure have been little investigated while this information is crucial to better tailor interventions for survivors. This qualitative study aims to 1) explore survivors' experiences in disclosing to close ones, and 2) contrast experiences of male and female survivors. Fifty-one CSA survivors (25 women and 26 men) aged 18 years or older were recruited via community services for survivors. Two main categories emerged from thematic content analysis: 1) experiences of disclosure hindering CSA recovery or 2) ones fostering CSA recovery. Men felt ignored when their close ones were focused on their own emotions of indifference, helplessness and guilt toward CSA. Men felt guilty when confronted with reactions of blame for their own inaction or disempowered when pressured to remain silent or to forgive. Women felt ignored when their close ones showed anger toward their perpetrator. Women felt guilty when they were held accountable for CSA events or disempowered when pressured to take legal actions. Women, but not men, reported feeling considered through caring and heart-to-heart discussions. Recommendations for awareness messages and practitioners are discussed.
ISSN:1053-8712
1547-0679
DOI:10.1080/10538712.2021.1942369