Citation

Kogan SM. J. Child Sex. Abus. 2005; 14(2): 25-47.

Affiliation

Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, Valdosta State University. smkogan@uga.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

15914409

Abstract

The role of disclosing child sexual abuse on adolescent survivors' symptomatology and the presence of additional unwanted sexual experiences was investigated in a subsample of 111 adolescents from the National Survey of Adolescents who reported child sexual abuse. Results indicated that prompt disclosure of sexual abuse to an adult moderated the influence of penetration during the abuse on the number of symptoms at assessment. Thus, prompt disclosure buffered the influence of more severe abuse. Disclosure also had a main effect on the likelihood of further victimization. Participants who told an adult promptly after the abuse were less likely to report additional unwanted sexual experiences.

Language: en