Disclosure of sexual abuse by children and adolescents

Abstract

Sexual abuse is a socially significant, largely covert social problem. Abused children and adolescents often hide their experiences from others. Therefore, examining the disclosure processes of sexual abuse is essential. The Communication Management of Privacy Theory was used to examine child and adolescent disclosures of sexual abuse. Thirty‐eight face‐to‐face interviews were conducted with abused children and adolescents ages eight to 18 who willing disclosed their abuse. Qualitative analyses revealed that these children and adolescents used boundary access rules such as tacit permission, selecting the circumstances, and incremental disclosure as a basis for revealing their experiences. They also used boundary protection rules to preserve their privacy borders through evaluating target characteristics, and anticipating ramifications of disclosure about abuse. These findings may inform strategies parents and others might use to facilitate children and adolescents to reveal sexual abuse.