The Eurasian Journal of Medicine
Original Articles

Clinical and Sociodemographic Characteristics that May Affect Delays in Child Sexual Abuse Disclosures: Ten Years in Practice

1.

Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Atatürk University Faculty of Medicine, Erzurum, Türkiye

2.

Department of Forensic Medicine, Atatürk University Faculty of Medicine, Erzurum, Türkiye

3.

Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Health Sciences International School of Medicine, Istanbul, Türkiye

Eurasian J Med 2024; 56: 163-169
DOI: 10.5152/eurasianjmed.2024.24441
Read: 369 Downloads: 324 Published: 23 October 2024

Background: This study covers Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) survivors who had never disclosed the abuse until their psychiatric interview. There is a clear lack of understanding of which factors contribute to delays in the disclosure of CSA. Thus, we aimed to examine the risk factors and sociodemographic variables that may inhibit CSA disclosures.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the files of patients who presented to a child and adolescent psychiatry clinic with diferent complaints between 2010 and 2020 in a tertiary hospital. All of these sexual assaults were ofcially reported by a child and adolescent psychiatrist to the competent authorities.

Results: The mean period of time from abuse to disclosure was 28.4 ± 32.5 months. The time from abuse to disclosure was significantly negatively correlated with mothers’ education years (r=−.430, P < .01) and with the age of onset of sexual abuse (r=−.589, P < .001). Results of multiple linear regression showed that female sex and the earlier age of onset of sexual abuse were significant predictors of increased duration from abuse to disclosure.

Conclusion: Our results provide insights into several risks that may afect the time from abuse to disclosure for CSA survivors. Studies with larger samples are needed to understand the factors afecting the time from abuse to disclosure.

Cite this article as: Doğru H, Selçuk Esin İ, Kök AN, Dursun OB. Clinical and sociodemographic characteristics that may afect delays in child sexual abuse disclosures: ten years in practice. Eurasian J Med. 2024;56(3):163-169.

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