M.A. / Sexual abuse of children has been a consistently high profile public issue throughout the late 1980’s and continues to be one. Nest and Woodhouse (1990:3) indicate that child sexual abuse and how to deal with it has become topics of enormous concern a preoccupation for health professionals no less than the media. Recent evidence points to an alarming prevalence of experiences of abuse, especially by young girls who become captive victims in their own homes. The researcher was therefore motivated to conduct this study because the incidents of child sexual abuse have increased dramatically in Soweto. Within the Western culture disclosure of sexual abuse and related interventions is well studied. In our black culture though, sexual abuse is regarded as a taboo, hence it is difficult for victims to report these cases. Even parents of abused children are not open about this problem and this makes it difficult for parents to deal with sexual abuse. The dilemma of non-disclosure causes a need for information about how parents in sexual abuse cases should handle the problem. The study focuses on formulating guidelines to help social workers in dealing with this issue of taboo. In this study the researcher conducted a groupwork with mothers of sexually abuse children in order to set a basis to develop a group intervention programme. Gomes-Schwartz (1990:20) indicates that mothers' responses to the disclosure often influence the relationship with their children. Developing a group intervention programme to address these damaged relationships is relevant to social work practice in South Africa. The aim of this study is to develop a group programme for mothers of victims of sexual abuse and to develop a treatment plan based on the literature survey. This is done by means of a literature survey (general) in the related field of child sexual abuse. The data gained from the literature study were used to develop a group programme and to make conclusions and recommendations in this regard. / Dr. E. Oliphant

M.A. / Child sexual abuse is a phenomenon that affects children all over the world. Over the past years we have seen an increase in child sexual abuse cases being reported (Richter and Dawes (2008). Parents and professionals are all concerned about children's safety, and the alarming number of cases reported daily makes it an even more difficult and destructive phenomenon to deal with. The South African government have gone to great lengths to put measures in place to protect our children. The new Child Care Act (act 38 of 2005) which came into effect in 2008, acknowledge certain rights of children, sets out principles relating to the care and protection of children, defines parental responsibilities and rights, and it makes provision for matters such as children's courts, adoption, child abduction and surrogate motherhood. There are currently scores of literature on child sexual abuse, but hardly any could be found that specifically relate to the non-abusive mothers and their experiences. The aims of the current study are: 1) to explore the lived experiences of non-abusive mothers whose children have been sexually abused by their intimate male partners, and 2) to add to the discourse of sexual abuse within the South African context. It is imperative to understand the experiences of non-abusive mothers, as this will provide new insights into our understanding of a phenomenon like child sexual abuse. The investigation elicited some of the common themes, thoughts and feelings, which describe the experiences that non-abusive mothers share. In order to conceptualise the experiences of non-abusive mothers, this study drew upon an existential phenomenological framework. This framework is useful, as it allows for mothers' own subjective experiences, and their own interpretations and understanding of these experiences to come to the fore, as opposed to the researcher's understanding of the non-abusive mothers' experiences. Non-abusive mothers seem to go through a similar process as those who grief the loss of a loved one, or who has experienced some kind of loss in their lives. This study elicited some of the themes that correspond with this process of grief. The experience for each of the mothers has been different; however there are commonalities in the way in which they describe their experiences. It would seem that non-abusive mothers experience an intense and overwhelming sense of loss, anger, disbelief, blame, shock, guilt, and depression.

Child abuse continues to be a major challenge in South Africa. Much of the research has focused on helping children who have been abused and more recently focus has been placed on the perpetrator. Understanding the needs of the mother of the abused child has largely been neglected. This study explored how mothers of abused children are also affected by the child's trauma and how her survival contributes to the healing of the family. Using a qualitative research approach, data was gathered from case files, groupwork notes and in-depth interviews with eight women whose children had been abused. A feminist approach guided the study. This research described the experiences of women and provided insight into their struggles and triumphs as they assisted their children in the healing process. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.