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Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a frequent problem in American society associated with a wide range of negative mental health outcomes. Some evidence suggests that disclosure may moderate the relationship between CSA and mental health. However, the specific reactions a victim receives following disclosure may directly affect the impact that disclosure has on mental health. The current study directly and simultaneously evaluated the roles of disclosure and social reactions in relation to mental health outcomes. The sample consisted of 652 undergraduate students at East Tennessee State University who completed an on-line, self-administered questionnaire. Forty-four (6.75%) of the participants reported experiencing CSA. Of the 44 participants who experienced CSA, 18 (41%) disclosed their abuse. Results indicated that, counter to our hypotheses; neither CSA nor disclosure was significantly related to anxiety and depression. However; as predicted, negative social reactions were significantly related to both anxiety and depression among those who had disclosed.

Sexual violence (SV) affects millions of people, with an estimated 24.8 – 43.6% of people in the United States reporting at least one form of SV in their lifetime. SV has been associated with the development of negative outcomes such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). There is a robust body of evidence which demonstrates the impact that social reactions to SV and coping can have on higher post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms. Furthermore, studies have shown that individuals from marginalized communities (e.g., racial/ethnic, gender, sexual orientation) may be disproportionately impacted, with greater exposure to SV, negative social reactions, and PTS. Studies have also supported that PTS can be further exacerbated by minority stress and that being a member of multiple marginalized groups, where identities intersect, may confer additional stress relative to each identity. The current study examined the relation between number of intersecting marginalized identities (MID) and exposure to SV across the lifetime, receipt of negative social reactions, and PTS symptoms after SV; additionally, moderated regression models were conducted to test whether coping styles and types of social reactions to disclosure moderated the relation between number of MID and PTS symptoms. Results of moderated regression models were non-significant for moderation effects between MID and coping styles and MID and social reactions to disclosure, however PTS symptoms were significantly predicted by several of the study variables. Additionally, results of analyses conducted to identify if significant differences existed for rates of SV exposure, receipt of negative social reactions to disclosure, and PTS symptoms between identity groups were mixed, and were further complicated by timing of data collection (i.e., pre- or post-COVID-19) Findings, limitations and future directions are discussed.