SEXUAL ABUSE OF FEMALES

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This study examines the psychological and biological effects of sexual abuse on female children and adolescents. The main hypotheses being tested are that (1) as compared with nonabused girls, sexually abused girls will have a more difficult transition thorough puberty which may adversely affect subsequent development; (2) sexual abuse alters hormonal levels and affects the timing of puberty; and (3) as compared with nonabused girls, sexually abused girls will maintain higher levels of dissociation into adolescence and adulthood. A multimethod approach to data collection includes Tanner staging of pubertal stage; assaying of salivary hormonal levels; standardized tests and interviews of the child and parent; observation or parent-child interaction; and records from teachers, schools, and-other agencies. Subjects are 86 sexually abused females and their ( non-abusing) mothers and 82 demographically similar non-abused females and their mothers. At time of entry into the initial study, the girls ranged from 6 to 15 years of age with a median age of 11. A cross-sequential design has been employed and both cross sectional and longitudinal date collected. In the original study, there were three times of measurement (Time 1, Time 2, and Time 3) at yearly intervals. This continuation proposal is for two more times of measurement, two years apart when the median age of the sample will be 16 and 18. This would result in two important additions to the original study. (1) By the 2nd assessment (Time 5), essentially all subjects will have reached menarche and thus the hypotheses concerning the mediating role of puberty in adjustment, the timing of and rate of progression through puberty, etc., can be more adequately tested. (2) By Time 5, about half the sample will be young adults. Thus, it will be possible to examine long term impact of sexual abuse and certain outcomes (e.g., possible educational attenuation, early childbearing, and parenting problems) that could not be examined when the subjects were younger.