NCJ Number
118378
Editor(s)
S M Sgroi
Date Published
1988
Length
314 pages
Annotation
Writings by experienced therapists, psychologists, physicians, law enforcement experts, social workers, and others address a wide range of topics on evaluating and treating sexually abused children, adult survivors of child sexual abuse, and sex offenders against children.
Abstract
The opening chapter discusses the normal and age-appropriate sexual behaviors for children at various developmental stages, a child's behavior that suggests sexual victimization, and when a child's sexual behavior with others is abusive. The next two chapters on family therapy for intrafamily child sexual abuse describe an eclectic combination of principles and their applications to a population typically ignored by leaders in the field of family therapy. Four chapters cover the treatment of adult survivors of child sexual abuse. These include a discussion of the process by which adult survivors attempt to make sense of their sexual victimization and the clinical implications of this process, the assessment and treatment of adult male victims of child sexual abuse, and the use of a combination of self-help and therapy models of intervention for adult survivors. A combined psychodynamic and behavioral perspective in working with adult survivors is also described. Chapters in the last part of the volume detail guidelines for investigating child sexual abuse cases, describe Texas' experience in implementing a law that permits the videotaping of a child victim's/witness' testimony, and presents techniques for using art therapy with sex offenders against children. The concluding chapter examines child sexual abuse from the perspective of the impact of modern culture on the sexual mores of the Yuit Eskimo. Chapter references, subject index.