Defense mechanisms used by sexually abused children
Children Today, Jan-Feb, 1985 by Christine Adams-Tucker
Studies of groups of sexually molested children have described the immediate and long-term effects of their abuse--symptoms, diagnosis and problem areas projected into their future adult lives. Findings from groups convey valuable descriptive data on molested children, particularly on how much and for how long they suffer psychological harm from sexual abuse during childhood. Individual case reports of sexually victimized children deepen our perspective by constructing an unfolding scenario of the coping strategies employed by each child. In such reports, inferences are made about psychic defenses that aid or obstruct children in grappling with their abuse. Defenses are ordinarily studied as part of a larger motivational or psychodynamic exploration, but taken by themselves, defenses make a good beginning toward the dynamic assessment of a child.
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Approximate Pages: 7 (260 words per double-spaced page) |