Age and gender differences in children's and adolescents' adaptation to sexual abuse

How children manifest psychological distress following the discovery of sexual abuse requires a better understanding of individual differences in developmental capacities and vulnerabilities. This study examined how age at the time of the abuse discovery and gender of victim are related to psychological distress.

One hundred and sixty-nine participants (96 children, 73 adolescents) were interviewed within 8 weeks of discovery of the abuse. Multivariate analyses were used to examine how age at discovery, and gender, with abuse characteristics as covariates, were related to shame, attribution style, depression, self-esteem, and traumatic events sequelae.

Adolescents compared to children report a higher level of depressive symptoms, negative reactions by others, and lower levels of self-esteem, social support, and sexual anxiety. Girls compared to boys report higher levels of intrusive thoughts, hyperarousal, sexual anxiety, personal vulnerability, and perceiving the world as a dangerous place and lower levels of eroticism.

These findings suggest the importance of considering individual differences in age and gender for understanding patterns of symptom expression. Treatment strategies need to reflect these individual differences in adjustment, such as targeting issues of sexual anxiety for girls and self-esteem for adolescents.