The Relationship of Abuse Characteristics to Symptoms in Sexually Abused Girls

Abstract

This study evaluated the relationship between abuse-specific variables and levels of depression, anxiety, and self-worth in a racially mixed sample of 134 sexually abused girls. Multivariate analysis revealed that penetration predicted a more serious outcome on all study variables. There was an interaction effect between force and the perpetrator's identity. Girls abused with force by a non-father figure had much higher levels of distress than those abused by a non-father figure without force. Force did not predict a more serious outcome in girls abused by father figures. Age, age at onset, duration, and whether a girl was removed from the home after the abuse had no relationship to symptom levels.