Language Use and PTSD Symptoms: Content Analyses of Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse

Abstract

The objective of this article is to understand how traumatized children report traumatic narratives. This study aims to explore the mediating effects of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms on the relationship between child age and narrative characteristics in the allegations of child sexual abuse. Some characteristics of traumatic narratives were analyzed in a group of 58 victims of sexual abuse (M = 10; SD = 3.5 years), including 29 children (50%) with all the symptoms of PTSD. Results were consistent with a model of PTSD symptoms as a mediator of the relationship between age and sensory impressions, emotional nodes, and cognitive distancing.

KEYWORDS:

• child sexual abuse
• posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• content analyses
• allegations