Citation

DiLillo D, Jaffe AE, Watkins LE, Peugh J, Kras A, Campbell C. Couple Family Psychol. 2016; 5(4): 212-225.

Affiliation

University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Educational Publishing Foundation of the American Psychological Association)

DOI

10.1037/cfp0000067

PMID

28392971

PMCID

PMC5383208

Abstract

The present study examines whether individuals with a history of child sexual abuse are at risk of sexual revictimization in marriage and, if so, whether these experiences are associated with increased trauma symptomatology. Two hundred heterosexual newlywed couples were recruited from marriage license records and completed self-report assessments of past sexual victimization and sexual coercion within the marital dyad. Actor-Partner Interdependence Models revealed that, compared to non-victims, women with a history of child sexual abuse (CSA) experienced more acts of sexual coercion by their husbands during the past year. Moreover, there was a significant interaction between CSA and sexual coercion such that, among women who experienced CSA, the relationship between marital revictimization and trauma symptoms was stronger.

FINDINGS suggest that, for women but not men, sexual revictimization may occur in the context of a new marriage, and these experiences are associated with increased trauma symptoms. These findings have implications for understanding female survivors' perceptions of risk, and are particularly concerning given the high degree of personal and legal commitment involved in marriage.

Language: en

Keywords

childhood sexual abuse; intimate partner violence; long-term effects; sexual assault