1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«Beyond an examination of the prevalence of self-defined CSA [child sexual abuse] among those who meet legal definitions of abuse, the main objective of the present study was to examine the empirical correlates of CSA self-definition. First, we explore CSA characteristics that distinguish self-definers from non-self-definers among those who have experienced legally defined CSA. […] The second purpose of the study was to determine whether negative emotional reactions to CSA and CSA-related sexual reactions were correlates of self-definition status among legally defined CSA survivors.» (p. 230)

Questions/Hypothèses :
«We hypothesized that retrospective and current reports of negative emotional reactions to CSA, as well as higher sexual avoidance and compulsivity, would discriminate self-identification status among CSA survivors.» (p. 230)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
«Of the 1,472 eligible men and women who began the survey, 1,021 (69.4%) provided usable data […] and were included in this study. Of these, 74.0% were women (n = 756), and 26.0% were men (n = 265).» (p. 230) Note that this study is based on a «sample of French-speaking Canadians, aged 18 or older, [that] was recruited from the general population and the academic community for an online study of the determinants of sexuality in adulthood.» (p. 230)

Instruments :
Questionnaire

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

«In the present study, 21.3% of women and 19.6% of men reported legally defined CSA, whereas only 7.1% of women and 3.8% of men self-defined this experience as sexual abuse. […] The current results support the hypothesis that survivors who self-define as abused often have experienced more severe forms of CSA. In comparison with non-self-definers, self-defining survivors in the present study were sexually abused more frequently and more typically experienced abuse by a male and by a parental figure. These findings are consistent with past studies, indicating that self-definitions of CSA are often rooted in abuse characteristics that shape personal and social criteria used to interpret early sexual experiences. In line with trauma-focused theories (Briere & Scott, 2014; Freyd & Birrell, 2013), a single CSA incident perpetrated by a nonparental figure on an older victim might be more easily rationalized or denied as abusive, whereas incest and chronic CSA on a younger child might override subjective attempts to normalize or deny its existence as an abusive sexual experience.» (p. 234) «Our results also indicate that CSA sexual reactions are associated with differential self-definition status. Whereas those survivors who self-defined had higher levels of sexual avoidance, those who do not self-define the experience as abuse reported more sexual compulsivity.» (p. 235)