"Maybe I imagined it, maybe it really was all just childish play": Complexity and ambiguity in survivors' perceptions of harmful preadolescent sexual behavior.
Child sexual abuse (CSA)
Harmful preadolescent sexual behavior (HPSB)
Harmful preadolescent sexual behavior disclosure
Peer sexual behavior
Survivors' perceptions
Journal
Child abuse & neglect
ISSN: 1873-7757
Titre abrégé: Child Abuse Negl
Pays: England
ID NLM: 7801702
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
01 2022
01 2022
Historique:
received:
22
03
2021
revised:
26
09
2021
accepted:
13
10
2021
pubmed:
19
11
2021
medline:
19
3
2022
entrez:
18
11
2021
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
Harmful preadolescent sexual behavior (HPSB) is an understudied phenomenon in the field of child sexual abuse (CSA). The purpose of the present study was to analyze and describe the experiences and perceptions of adult survivors of HPSB. 16 survivors of HPSB were recruited as part of a purposeful sample. Their ages at the time of the study ranged from 21 to 50; they were Jewish-Israeli, secular, and Hebrew-speaking. Semi-structured interviews and qualitative thematic analysis were conducted based on a descriptive phenomenological-psychological approach. Participants described elements of complexity in their perceptions of the "truthiness" of their memories and the mutuality of the HPSB experiences, as well as their primacy, seriousness, and life impact. They also described elements of support during disclosure, but mostly exposed the challenges and hardship involved, particularly the lack of legitimacy in exposing harmful sexual behavior perpetrated by other children. Both the HPSB experiences themselves and the subsequent disclosure contributed to the development of detached, mistrustful identities among the participants.
Sections du résumé
BACKGROUND
Harmful preadolescent sexual behavior (HPSB) is an understudied phenomenon in the field of child sexual abuse (CSA).
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of the present study was to analyze and describe the experiences and perceptions of adult survivors of HPSB.
PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING
16 survivors of HPSB were recruited as part of a purposeful sample. Their ages at the time of the study ranged from 21 to 50; they were Jewish-Israeli, secular, and Hebrew-speaking.
METHODS
Semi-structured interviews and qualitative thematic analysis were conducted based on a descriptive phenomenological-psychological approach.
RESULTS
Participants described elements of complexity in their perceptions of the "truthiness" of their memories and the mutuality of the HPSB experiences, as well as their primacy, seriousness, and life impact. They also described elements of support during disclosure, but mostly exposed the challenges and hardship involved, particularly the lack of legitimacy in exposing harmful sexual behavior perpetrated by other children.
CONCLUSIONS
Both the HPSB experiences themselves and the subsequent disclosure contributed to the development of detached, mistrustful identities among the participants.
Identifiants
pubmed: 34794016
pii: S0145-2134(21)00437-3
doi: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2021.105368
pii:
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
105368Informations de copyright
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