Study finds gender differences in reported childhood sexual abuse


Study finds gender differences in reported childhood sexual
abuse
October 12, 2005
A new Queensland study has found a significant link between
childhood sexual abuse and symptoms of sexual dysfunction in adult
men and women.


The study, conducted by scientists from UQ, QUT and QIMR, is
published in the current edition of international journal Archives
of Sex Research (Oct 2005).
It found that the rate of sexual dysfunction for men who had
experienced childhood sexual abuse was double that of those who had
not experienced abuse.
For women, similar differences were apparent, with women who had
experienced penetrative abuse substantially more likely to report
three or more symptoms of sexual dysfunction.
Study lead author, Professor Jake Najman of UQ's School of
Population
Health, said the research looked
at the rates of sexual dysfunction by specific type of sexual
abuse experience.


"The research suggests that for males, non-penetrative childhood
sexual abuse experiences do not lead of higher rates of sexual
dysfunction. However, males who have experienced some forms of
childhood sexual abuse are more likely to report that they have
symptoms of sexual dysfunction in later
life.
"Females reporting both non-penetrative and penetrative sexual
abuse experiences are substantially more likely to report many
symptoms of sexual dysfunction."
The National Health and Medical Research Council-funded study is
one of the first to directly compare the impact of childhood sexual
abuse on males with that of females in adulthood.


Professor Najman said men and women could react differently
because they tended to experience different kinds of childhood
sexual abuse.
Because women tended to be exposed to more abuse within the
family, and tended to experience it at younger ages, they could
find childhood sexual abuse to be more damaging than men.
Study respondents were randomly selected from the Australian
electoral roll. They were interviewed about their health status and
sexual experiences, including unwanted sexual experiences before
the age of 16.


The study observed that women, but not men, who had experienced
childhood sexual abuse reported more sexual partners over their
lifetime, but neither males nor females who had experienced
childhood sexual experience reported more partners in the last
year.
"We found that childhood sexual abuse was not associated with
the level of physical or emotional satisfaction respondents
experienced with their sexual activity," Professor Najman said.
The study confirmed that childhood sexual abuse was common in
Australia. More than one-third of women and one-sixth of men
reported a history of childhood sexual abuse.


"Women were more likely than men to report both non-penetrative
and penetrative childhood sexual abuse,\
Research Australia

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