Factors influencing adult cognitive appraisals of childhood sexual abuse.

Background: Adult appraisals of their childhood sexual experiences as abusive are associated with increased risk for long-term psychological problems. Factors that underlie whether adults appraise their childhood sexual experiences as abusive remain unknown.

Objective: To determine factors associated with adult cognitive appraisals of childhood sexual abuse.

Participants And Setting: Participants were 1196 adults ages 19-41 (M = 29.23, SD = 3.84) with documented cases of childhood maltreatment (sexual abuse, physical abuse, and neglect) during the years 1967-1971 and demographically matched controls who were followed-up and interviewed in adulthood.

Methods: Using a prospective cohort design, participants were asked to recall whether they had any sexual experiences in childhood, and if so, the frequency of abuse, age at the onset of abuse, relationship to perpetrator, and whether they appraised the experiences as sexually abusive.

Results: Over half of the sample (52%) reported childhood sexual experiences, yet only 44% considered those experiences sexually abusive. Participants with documented cases of child sexual abuse and neglect were more likely to appraise their childhood sexual experiences as abusive compared to controls. Participants who reported more severe abuse, more frequent abuse, younger age at the onset of abuse, and intrafamilial and both intra- and extrafamilial abuse (vs. extrafamilial abuse) were more likely to consider their experiences abusive. Compared to males and Black participants, females and White participants were more likely to appraise their experiences as abusive.

Conclusions: Understanding factors that determine adult cognitive appraisals of childhood sexual experiences as abusive can inform clinical interventions for maltreated populations.