Tl. Messman et Pj. Long, CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO REVICTIMIZATION IN ADULT WOMEN - A REVIEW, Clinical psychology review, 16(5), 1996, pp. 397-420
Revictimization is defined as the experience of both childhood sexual
abuse and later sexual or physical abuse as an adult. Although clinica
lly it is generally well accepted that women with a history of childho
od sexual abuse are more likely than women without such a ht tory to e
xperience adult assault, little systematic investigation of this quest
ion has been conducted and no review of the literature on this topic i
s available. Several theoretical models have been suggested to account
for the revictimization phenomena. This review outlines the theoretic
al positions that have been formulated to account for revictimization
in women, examines the literature available concerning revictimization
both in the form of adult sexual and physical assault, and considers
impact of revictimization on women's later adjustment. Research in the
area reveals that women who were sexually abused as children are sign
ificantly more likely to experience abuse as adults as compared to wom
en who have not had such an experience in childhood. Conclusions about
the state of the literature are discussed, and clinical and research
implications are examined.