Sexual Self-Concept and Psychological Functioning of Women With a History of Childhood Sexual Abuse in Hong Kong

Abstract

Sexual self-concept (SSC) is an important component of health that is closely associated with the well-being of survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA). Compared with non-CSA respondents, SSC of CSA survivors was deleteriously affected, resulting in ineffective psychological functioning (negative self-evaluation, psychological ill-health, and difficulties in interpersonal relationships). Negative SSC (sexual anxiety, sexual depression, and sexual fear) played a significant role in mediating the adverse effects of CSA on psychological functioning. Future studies may recruit a sample with greater variation in CSA characteristics and use externalizing problems as outcome measures to cross-validate findings of this study.

Keywords:

• Child sexual abuse
• female survivors
• psychological functioning
• sexual self-concept

Acknowledgements

The authors thank all the participants of this study for their valuable contributions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work is supported by a grant awarded by the Research Grant Council of the University Grant Committee of Hong Kong SAR [UGC/FDS11/H03/16] for which the authors wish to express their appreciation.