N. Garnefski et Rfw. Diekstra, CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE AND EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL-PROBLEMS IN ADOLESCENCE - GENDER DIFFERENCES, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 36(3), 1997, pp. 323-329
Objective: To compare sexually abused boys with sexually abused girls
and with their non-sexually abused counterparts with regard to (1) the
type of mental health problems they experience; and (2) the number an
d patterns of such problems. Method: The sample comprised 745 secondar
y school students, aged 12 to 19 years, with a self-reported history o
f sexual abuse (151 boys and 594 girls) and 745 matched students witho
ut such a history. Sexually abused and nonsexually abused boys and gir
ls were compared with regard to four problem categories: emotional pro
blems, aggressive/criminal behaviors, addiction-risk behaviors, and su
icidality. Results: A larger proportion of sexually abused adolescents
than nonabused adolescents reported problems in the separate categori
es and in a combination of problem categories. Sexually abused boys ha
d considerably more emotional and behavioral problems, including suici
dality, than their female counterparts. There were differences between
the specific combinations of problem categories reported by sexually
abused girls and boys. These differences could not be attributed to th
e finding that sexually abused boys were more often the victim of conc
urrent physical abuse than sexually abused girls. Conclusions: The res
ults suggest that although there was a strong association between bein
g sexually abused and the existence of a multiple problem pattern in b
oth sexes, the aftermath for boys might be even worse or more complex
than for girls.