SEXUAL ABUSE IN CHILDHOOD.   Term Paper ID:28903 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Effect on human development. Defines various types of abuse & discusses studies that demonstrate developmental problems of sexually abused children into adulthood.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Effect on human development. Defines various types of abuse & discusses studies that demonstrate developmental problems of sexually abused children into adulthood. Paper Introduction: Sexual abuse in childhood contributes to a number of problems later in life, and research shows that human development is affected by abuse in a number of detrimental ways. Among the problems are the fact that those abused as children tend to become abusers themselves. Various psychological problems also derive from sexual abuse in childhood. Sexual abuse is defined in terms of a variety of actions involving contact and noncontact maltreatment. Contact abuse is sexual contact with a youngster, with examples including molestation with genital contact, fondling, intercourse, oral or anal sex, and object intrusion. Noncontact abuse includes coercing the child to watch pornographic films or pictures, to observe sexual intercourse, to perform sexual activities, and to Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Girls with a secure, responsive relationship in childhood with their mothers or other primary caregivers have some protection against the long-term negative effects that sexual abuse has on other college women who were abused as children (Lang, 1997).This is one of the first studies to explore the long-term effects of sexualabuse on attachment in later life and to examine the role of childhoodattachment relationships in moderating the effects of sexual abuse. theresearchers looked at attachment "because attachment theory provides amodel of individual development in the context of family relationships,whereby the child's sense of self and personality organization are shapedby his or her earliest relationships, particularly the relationship withthe primary caregiver" (Lang 1997). Lowenthal, B. Noncontactabuse includes coercing the child to watch pornographic films or pictures,to observe sexual intercourse, to perform sexual activities, and to witnesssexual exhibitionism (Lowenthal, 1996). "Educational implications ofchild abuse." Intervention in School & Clinic 32, 21. (1997, April 6). Thestudies use non-abused subjects as a control group, which provides a basisfor comparison. Theresults supported previous findings with adult subjects demonstrating thata history of childhood sexual abuse is associated with weight and bodydissatisfaction, along with purging and dietary restriction. Research in the past has linked childhood sexual abuse with fear,anxiety, depression, aggression, anger, hostility, poor self-esteem,substance abuse, and sexual maladjustment, as well as somatic complaints.A recent study set out to compare sexually abused adolescent females toadolescent females who have not been sexually abused with respect toincidence of emotional disorders and somatic symptoms. (2 , October 1)."Relationship of childhood sexual abuse and eating disturbance inchildren." Journal of the American Academy of Child and AdolescentPsychiatry 39(1 ), 1277. Variouspsychological problems also derive from sexual abuse in childhood. Cornman concludedthat given the epidemic proportions of childhood sexual abuse, nurses invaried settings are in a good position to identify, evaluate, and treatfamilies with adolescents. Sexual abuse is defined in terms of a variety of actions involvingcontact and noncontact maltreatment. (1997, March 22). Contact abuse is sexual contact witha youngster, with examples including molestation with genital contact,fondling, intercourse, oral or anal sex, and object intrusion. Sexual abuse in childhood contributes to a number of problems laterin life, and research shows that human development is affected by abuse ina number of detrimental ways. "Childhood sexual abuse affectsrelationships in adulthood." Human Ecology Forum. . Developmental problems appear early, as Lowenthal (1996) notes,stating that at a very early age, maltreated children exhibit deficits inself-esteem, behavior, and adaptation to their environments. . By preschoolage, specific behaviors are associated with the different types of abuse.Sexually abused children show extreme anxiety, inattentiveness, anddifficulty in following directions, with social behavior ranging from beingwithdrawn to being extremely aggressive, with the consequence of beingrejected by their classmates. Such abuse is bad enough on its face, but it may have long-termconsequences, some of which will only show up years later.For instance, recent research on college-age women who had been sexuallyabused before age eighteen shows that these women tend to have less secureand trusting relationships with their partners and lower levels ofinterpersonal functioning and social adjustment than college women who werenot abused. Margaret Freerick, a doctoral student in the Department ofHuman Development and Family Studies, and her adviser, Jeffrey Haugaard,associate professor, state, In other words, our findings suggest that how sexual abuse affects overall mental health in later life depends on the quality of the abused girl's childhood attachment . This study by Cornell University also suggests that women whowere sexually abused as children show more signs of posttraumatic stressdisorder than other women their age, especially if they had less secure andresponsive relationships with their mothers or primary caregivers duringchildhood. Wonderlich, Crosby, Mitchell, Roberts, Haseltine, Demuth, &Thompson (2 ) report on a study to test the hypothesis that childhoodsexual abuse increases the risk of eating disturbance in children. References Cornman, B.J. However, the desire to be thin is not the sole cause of eatingdisorders, but it can be a contributive cause when other factors arepresent. This research suggestsdirect links between sexual abuse in childhood and later problems withpersonal associations, eating disorders, depression, and so on. Cornman (1997)found that the sexually abused adolescents scored significantly higher thanthe adolescents who had no history of sexual abuse on specific sub scales(anxiety, muscle tension, cognitive disorganization). Many young women suffer from eating disorders that have beenattributed to various societal pressures, such as media depictions of thinwomen. Lang, S. Additionally, abused childrenreported eating less than control children when they felt emotionally upsetand were also less likely than control children to exhibit perfectionistictendencies while being more likely to desire thinner body types. Among the problems are the fact that thoseabused as children tend to become abusers themselves. Theyobtained data from 2 sexually abused children and compared this data withthat obtained from 2 nonabused control children, all of whom were femaleand between the ages of 1 and 15 years. Numerous adult maladaptive behaviors and psychological problemscan be associated with sexual abuse in childhood. The researchers found that the abusedchildren had higher levels of weight dissatisfaction and purging anddieting behavior than the control group. These subjects completed abattery of tests assessing eating disorder behaviors, body image concern,and childhood trauma history. (1996, September 1). The research discussed suggests that developmental problems beingearly with sexually abused children and continue to be manifested intoadulthood. Wonderlich, S.A., Crosby, R.D., Mitchell, J.E., Roberts, J.A.,Haseltine, B., Demuth, G., & Thompson, K.M. These children also are dependent on adultsand have a strong need for the affection and approval of their teachers,and such dependent behaviors seemed to be reflective of their roles asvictims at home. "Female adolescent response tochildhood sexual abuse." Journal of Child and Adolescent PsychiatricNursing 1 (2), 1 73-1 77. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.