PSYCHOPATHOLOGY ASSOCIATED WITH SEXUAL ABUSE - THE IMPORTANCE OF COMPLEMENTARY DESIGNS AND COMMON GROUND

In their recent longitudinal study of youth victimization and conseque nt traumatization, S. Boney-McCoy and D. Finkelhor (1996) contrast the ir position with previous retrospective research (S. Harter, P. Alexan der, & R. A. Neimeyer, 1985; M. R. Nash, T. C. Hulsey, M. C. Sexton, T .L. Harralson, & W. Lambert, 1993a), arguing that their data support t he impact of victimization per se, independent oi the moderating effec t of family environment. Because Boney-McCoy and Finkelhor's argument may misrepresent the results of such studies, this article (a) clarifi es the actual findings of previous retrospective studies of abuse, (b) suggests methodological limitations both in Boney-McCoy and Finkelhor 's research and in that of S. Harter el al., 1998, and M. R. Nash et a l., 1993a, that should be remedied by future investigators, and (c) ar gues that both retrospective clinical research and prospective communi ty surveys converge on a common ground, namely, that specific abuse ex periences can best be understood and investigated in the context of th e prior, contemporaneous, and subsequent family environments in which they occur.