Citation

Merrill LL, Thomsen CJ, Sinclair BB, Gold SR, Milner JS. J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 2001; 69(6): 992-1006.

Affiliation

Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, California 92186-5122, USA. merrill@nhrc.navy.mil

Copyright

(Copyright © 2001, American Psychological Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

11777126

Abstract

Female Navy recruits (N = 5,226) completed surveys assessing history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), childhood strategies for coping with CSA, childhood parental support, and current psychological adjustment. Both CSA and parental support independently predicted later adjustment. In analyses examining whether CSA victims' functioning was associated with CSA severity (indexed by 5 variables), parental support (indexed by 3 variables), and coping (constructive, self-destructive, and avoidant), the negative coping variables were the strongest predictors. A structural equation model revealed that the effect of abuse severity on later functioning was partially mediated by coping strategies. However. contrary to predictions, the model revealed that childhood parental support had little direct or indirect impact on adult adjustment.

Language: en