Keeping a secret that is not mine: children who has been exposed to intrafamilial sexual abuse

Resumen

Objective: Child sexual abuse produces physical, psychological andsexual consequences, where as the family environment is one of thecontext for this type of violence (Rose, 2007). A meta-analysis by Pereda, Guilera, Forns and Gómez-Benito (2009), which involved studies covering 22 countries, shows that 19.7% of females and 7.9% of males experienced some type of sexual abuse, which shows the severity of this phenomenon. It is also shown that the abuse is not a phenomenon restricted to the victim and the aggressor. It is multifaceted andinvolves consequences for the protagonists as direct family. Our plan is conceptual in nature as initially intend through this study better knowthe process by which the indirect victims construct their representations of abuse that were observant, and understanding the influence of these constructions in their developmental paths, trying to answer the following questions: Are children and youth who are exposed to familial sexual violence against their brothers and sisters at greater risk for psychological, behavioral, sexual or physical health problems? Another purpose is practical, since it is our intention to contribute to the prevention and intervention of sexual abuse. Method: We used a qualitative methodology, with semi-directed interviews and two questionnaires. Participants are six children (5 girls and 1 boy) and 230 adults from a city of the north of Portugal, aged between eighteen and fifty years old. Results and conclusion: Considering that this investigation isn’t finished we can only present the results on 21st Congress of theWorld Association for Sexual Health.