Citation

Starzynski LL, Ullman SE, Vasquez AL. Women Ther. 2017; 40(1-2): 228-246.

Affiliation

University of Illinois at Chicago.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/02703149.2016.1213609

PMID

28603330

PMCID

PMC5464601

Abstract

An interview study of 15 sexual assault survivors' narratives examined positive and negative post-assault experiences with mental health professionals. Survivors who told one professional had more positive experiences than those who told multiple professionals. Qualitative analyses revealed how help seeking experiences were related to the context and nature of disclosures, survivors' readiness to disclose, trust building, social reactions received from providers, type of therapy, perceived control over recovery, and mental health system factors impacting access and quality of care. Themes from survivor's accounts illustrate how survivors perceived therapists, which can be used in training mental health professionals encountering survivors in clinical settings.

Language: en

Keywords

disclosure; mental health professionals; recovery; sexual assault