Child sexual abuse in Asian American families: An examination of cultural factors that influence prevalence, identification, and treatment

Child sexual abuse affects thousands of families each year. Issues pertaini ng to the prevalence, identification, and treatment of sexual abuse have be en relatively well explored in the literature as they pertain to the domina nt European American culture. These issues, however, are still relatively u nexplored in terms of how sexual abuse affects Asian American families and the Asian American community. We review the relevant literature in Asian Am erican families. These matters are explored in the context of Asian America n valuer such as collectivity, conformity, inconspicuousness, middle positi on virtue, shame, self-control, and fatalism. Attitudes toward family, sexu ality, and the mental health system are also discussed. Cultural and instit utional barriers to underutilizing mental health services are also explored , and suggestions for overcoming these barriers are offered.