Long term consequences of child sexual abuse: the role of the nature and continuity of abuse and family environment

This study analyzes the contribution of the nature and continuity of sexual abuse and the variables related to the family environment to the variability on the psychological adjustment of the survivors. The participants, 209 female college student survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA), and a comparison group, completed during two sessions the Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire, the Family Environment Scale, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale. Results of the regression analyses showed that the type of sexual abuse, but not its continuity, significantly predicted the present psychological adjustment of the college student CSA survivors. Moreover, the variables of the family environment (expressiveness, achievement orientation and social-recreational orientation) were related to a better adjustment. Expressiveness of positive feelings was the only family variable that predicted the three measures of psychological adjustment, having also a stronger predictive power than the two other variables. Finally, the combination of family variables predicted the survivor’s adjustment better than the nature of CSA, especially in the case of self-esteem.