D. Litt. et Phil. / This study aims to create a grounded model that can contribute to the knowledge about successfully coping with sexual molestation. Sexual molestation is a worldwide problem and is not unique to South Africa. In the past few decades, the problem of sexual molestation has emerged from the cloak of secrecy and has become an important theme in the social sciences and professions. Research on sexual molestation has mainly developed from a pathogenic perspective where the main function was to describe the nature and negative effects of sexual molestation, and to diagnose and treat sexual molestation as an illness. Recent research has however shown that not all sexually abused children develop psychopathology and therefore, a growing number of researchers have moved beyond psychopathology to a salutogenic perspective within the past two decades to explain why many people show signs of adaptation after traumatic experiences. The epistemological framework of this study is that of constructivism where the approaches of both modernism and post modernism are integrated. The dominating paradigm of the study is that of salutogenesis where the focus is on health and the successful adaptation of mankind. The grounded theory research methodology was used to develop a conceptual model about successfully coping with sexual molestation. This model can serve as a point of departure for future research and can contribute to the existing knowledge on resilience. Studying woman who have been sexually molested within a salutogenic paradigm, can have various implications for research and intervention strategies. Salutogenesis provides an optimistic alternative to the study of sexually molested woman and can help them to deal with the trauma in a more constructive way.

In a survey of parents, professionals, and college students in Northern Virginia, 123 adults indicated they had experienced child sexual abuse. Their responses were examined in an effort to identify characteristics of child sexual abuse which might be related to long term negative effects. The variables examined include (a) incestuous verses non-family abuse, (b) victim's reported feelings of responsibility about the sexual abuse, (c) victim's reported feelings of guilt about the sexual abuse, (d) the duration of the sexual abuse, (e) the age of the victim at time of the sexual abuse, and (f) whether or not the sexual abuse was kept secret. Only one of the six variables was found to be significantly related to long term negative effects. The research found evidence that keeping the child sexual abuse experience/s secret may be positively related to long term negative effects of child sexual abuse. Of the 83 participants who reported that the sexual abuse had remained a secret, 58 also reported long term negative effects. The importance of creating a safe and secure atmosphere in which children are able to disclose incidents of child sexual abuse is emphasized by the findings of this research. / Master of Science

In a resource-rich environment, WS of CSA, wanting to enter therapy in order to deal with their early life trauma, can choose from an array of potential treatment modalities. One such intervention is called wilderness therapy. Although a number of studies have investigated various facets ofthis fairly new therapeutic modality, this is not the case for WS as potential clients. This study with its focus on how WS ofCSA experience and perceive therapeutic change as a result of participating in wilderness therapy, intended to explore how this intervention facilitates change. The research aimed to elicit phenomenological insights that could assist in the development and refinement of the therapeutic approach and its intricate constituents. The sample included twelve WS ofCSA (21 years and older) ofwhom four took part in a fourday therapeutic wilderness experience in the Drakensberg Mountains, a World Heritage Site, while another four joined a traditional time-limited therapy group. Four participants opted to withdraw from the study. Factors that influenced the decision to withdraw were explored. Ethical considerations necessitated a pre-interview with each participant. It allowed the researcher to screen each WS for her suitability, but also to identify her unique therapeutic needs, while also providing an opportunity to acquaint her with the research project as a whole, and more specifically with the respective therapeutic intervention. The researcher gathered interview data after each intervention, which after transcription was analysed using an experience-near, phenomenological research model (Colaizzi, 1978; Giorgi, 1994; Polkinghorne, 1989) that included validation through the participants. The themes that the participants of each group described were analysed and then presented in diagrammatical form. A comparison of the results elicited elements common to both therapeutic interventions, but more importantly the unique features ofwilderness therapy. These included (a) the reality of therapeutic change in terms of CSA-related issues, (b) nature as a significant therapeutically containing space, and (c) silence as a tool for facilitating catharsis. The reality of post-hike depression and the change-inducing quality ofanticipatory anxiety evolved as other significant elements of therapy within a nature setting. The themes were examined in greater depth leading to the conclusions that wilderness therapy is a valuable therapeutic modality for WS of CSA, possibly best used as an adjunct, and offers unique therapeutic change mechanisms to these trauma survivors. Because of its exploratory nature, the study was unable to outline these mechanisms in more detail and hence suggestions for further in-depth research were made. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

Although researchers and clinicians have been aware of male victims of childhood sexual abuse, the literature still lacks sufficient data on the long-term effects for adult males sexually abused during childhood. The current study examined the long-term psychological impacts of childhood sexual abuse for adult males. A standardized measurement, SCL-90-R, was used to assess current psychological functioning such as somatization, obsessivecompulsive, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety, hostility, phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, and psychoticism. A questionnaire consisting of demographic data and childhood experiences was also administered to collect background information. Seventy-four undergraduate male students enrolled in counseling psychology courses were recruited. The abused group consisted of twelve subjects who reported histories of child sexual abuse. The rest of the sample (62) consisted of the nonabused group. Due to the small sample size, the results must be interpreted with extreme caution. Results of multiple t-tests suggested that there is no significant difference between the abused and nonabused group on subscales of the SCL-90-R. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Thesis (Ph. D.)--St. Mary's University, San Antonio, Texas, 2007. / "December 2007." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 155-170) and appendices.

Thesis (M. Ph.)--Australian Catholic University, 2002. / Title from PDF title page (viewed Aug. 15, 2005). Includes bibliographical references (p. [162]-180).

Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of Psychology, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 51-55).

Magister Psychologiae - MPsych / The purpose of this study was to determine the extent, pattern and forms of child sexual abuse amongst university students; to investigate the degree of sexual coercion; to examine victim-perpetrator relationships; to determine the extent to which students are bothered by the event at the time of completing the Early Sexual Experiences Checklist; to establish the age of the student at the time the event occurred and also the age of the other person involved when the event occurred; and to determine the frequency of the coercive event. / South Africa

The purpose of this action study was to conduct a group treatment program for female adult survivors of incest using TFA Systems™. Specifically this study examined the coping response behavior patterns of adult survivors in situations of perceived victimization. During stage one of the treatment program, clients presented situations in which they had perceived themselves to have been in the victim role. Each client analyzed her patterns of coping using the TFA Helping Cycle. The specific thoughts (T), feelings (F), and actions (A) experienced by participants were examined. Special attention was given to the cues that signaled perceptions of victimization. Processing through the Helping Cycle assisted clients in moving from an awareness of habitual patterns to problem solving alternative coping responses. In stage two, participants predicted situations that had the potential for eliciting perceptions of victimization. These situations were likewise examined in TFA terms. Applying TFA methods to understanding coping response behavior patterns in threatening situations allowed clients the opportunity to break the cycle of relying on habitual behavior patterns. Intervention techniques were individualized to both the client and her situation. The results of this study suggest that the TFA Systems™ model accurately assessed the coping response behavior patterns of clients in situations of perceived victimization. Participants were able to use effectively the Helping Cycle to examine the thoughts, feelings and actions that directed their behavior. Conscious awareness of existing patterns and knowledge of available options allowed clients to restructure ineffective coping responses. Both objective and subjective evaluation procedures confirmed the TFA Systems™ treatment model as a promising method for effecting positive behavior change in an adult survivors of incest population. / Ed. D.