Degrees of memory of childhood sexual abuse among women survivors in therapy

Past and current memory for childhood sexual abuse reported by a clinical s ample of 160 women survivors was assessed utilizing a structured clinical i nterview. Response alternatives for memory were ordered along a continuum. To minimize treatment effects, participants were interviewed as early in th erapy as possible. Fairly complete recollection both in the past and curren tly was reported by 26.3% of the sample, 36.9% apparently lost and subseque ntly recovered sexual abuse memories and 36.9% endorsed intermediate degree s of memory. Only 2.5% indicated a decrease in degree of recollection over time. Age at onset was the only abuse characteristic found to differentiate participants with fairly complete memory from the rest of the sample. Find ings are interpreted as illustrating that conclusions about memory for abus e are highly dependent on the way inquiries are conceptualized and worded.