The Effects Of Childhood Abuse On Adulthood

When thinking of the effects of childhood events on adults, one might ask how does childhood sexual abuse affect a person in their adult life? The effects of childhood abuse on adults is a subject that has recently gained momentum in the research world. Being an adolescent sexual abuse survivor, this issue means a great deal to me. This problem needs further acknowledgement in our society, so that maybe people will think again before acting on their intent to abuse another human being. The research in the following text can benefit you by informing you of the signs and symptoms of childhood abuse in adulthood, look into the effects of childhood abuse on next generation parenting, define what childhood abuse actually is, and review the influence it can have on a person in their adult life.

In an article entitled The Effect of Childhood Sexual Abuse on Psychosexual Functioning During Adulthood, Easton, Coohey, O’leary, Zhang, and Hua (2011) explored the question of whether and how characteristics of childhood sexual abuse and disclosures influenced three dimensions of psychosexual functioning emotional, behavioral and evaluative during adulthood.

Some of the negative effects of child sexual abuse include mental health difficulties, substance abuse, and suicidal thoughts and attempts. Researchers have also found a relationship between child sexual abuse and psychiatric disorders involving sexual functioning. Not all researchers have found a link between child sexual abuse and sexual dysfunction in adulthood. There was very little research on sexual functioning among adults who were sexually abused as children so Eastwon, Coohey, O’Leary, Zhang and Hua (2011) conducted a study to characterize the relationship between the two. The purpose of their study was

to

The Effects of Childhood Sexual Abuse in Adulthood
understand inconsistency in psychosexual functioning between adults who were sexually abused as children.
To test this, they first determined whether the characteristics of the sexual abuse and disclosure are related to multiple dimensions of psychosexual functioning in adulthood. Then they examined whether disclosure controls the effect of more severe sexual abuse on each dimension of psychosexual functioning (Easton, Coohey, O’leary, Zhang, and Hua 2011). The researchers studied the effects of disclosure on adolescents, meaning whether or not it effects them if they tell someone right after the abuse happens. They also examined whether or not disclosure controls the relationship between characteristics of child sexual abuse and each side of psychosexual functioning. They conducted a study where they surveyed participants who were enlisted from the community through ways such as advertisements placed throughout the public. They found 276 adults who were abused sexually during childhood but 96 of these adults stated that they had also been sexually abused during their adulthood. The researchers found that they would not be sure whether or not they were responding to their sexual abuse from childhood or adulthood. So, they left out these participants in the final conclusion of their study. They also left out 7 participants that admitted having “sexual problems” but didn’t say the nature of them. Their final study included 165 adults aged 20 and older who were abused only during childhood. The participants were asked yes or no questions relating to whether or not “the sexual abuse resulted in being afraid of sex and in feeling guilty during sex” (Easton, Coohey, O’leary, Zhang, and Hua 2011). They were also asked how old they were when the abuse first occurred, and whether or not they told anybody after the abuse.

The Effects of Childhood Sexual Abuse in Adulthood
The results showed that the older the child was at the time of abuse the more likely he/she is to experience emotional distress related to sexual functioning. The results are that the older you are the more likely you are to feel distress because of your abuse. Also that telling someone about the abuse made the participants feel worse.