NCJ Number
145843
Journal
Journal of Child Sexual Abuse Volume: 2 Issue: 3 Dated: (1993) Pages: 71-80
Date Published
1993
Length
10 pages
Annotation
A sample of 535 women who were admitted to a residential treatment facility for eating disorders over a period of 4 years was used to test the hypothesis that women who had a history of sexual abuse would have a higher degree of secondary psychopathology than patients without such a history.
Abstract
The SCL-90-R was used to examine psychological symptom patterns of the women, while a comprehensive intake questionnaire, based on the Diagnostic Survey for Eating Disorders, was used to gather background information. Of the total sample, 365 reported no history of sexual abuse, 123 reported between one and five incidents, and 47 reported having been abused more than five times. While there were few significant differences between the abused and nonabused groups in terms of SCL-90-R results, self-injury, suicide attempts, and alcohol abuse were more frequent among the women who had a history of sexual abuse. Furthermore, the high abuse group had been hospitalized twice as often as the no abuse group. 1 table and 22 references