Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-kw2vx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-02-04T17:21:20.988Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Women's Self-Esteem: A Community Study of Women who Report and do not Report Childhood Sexual Abuse

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Sarah E. Romans ,
Judy Martin  and
Paul Mullen
Judy Martin
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, Otago Medical School
Paul Mullen
Affiliation:
Rosanna Forensic Psychiatry Centre, Melbourne, Australia
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background

The determinants of self-esteem have been little studied in non-clinic samples. It has been suggested recently that child sexual abuse (CSA) may be a major determinant of low self-esteem in adulthood.

Method

The psychosocial circumstances associated with low self-esteem in two random samples of women, one reporting CSA, the other not were compared, with particular emphasis on characteristics of family of origin. A two-phase (postal-then-interview) random community study assessed self-esteem and related variables.

Results

Psychosocial variables predicting low self-esteem were the same in the two groups. They included being a follower or a loner, having an overcontrolling mother, being poorly qualified, giving a history of depressive disorder and displaying current psychiatric disorder. In addition, the subject's CSA status led to low self-esteem but only when it was of the most intrusive type. The CSA women had a substantially lower mean total self-esteem score. However, not all aspects of self-esteem were diminished equally; 12/30 items differed between the two groups, and two of the five generated self-esteem factors, which we named Pessimism and Fatalism, which differed between the control group and the whole CSA group. There were no differences for Likeability and Determination.

Conclusions

Predictors of low self-esteem for women include childhood temperament, a poor relationship with the mother, low qualification attainment, psychiatric morbidity, both previous and current, and, only when it is the most intrusive, CSA.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 169 , Issue 6 , December 1996 , pp. 696 - 704
Copyright
Copyright © 1996 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Akiskal, H. S. (1995) Mood disorders: An introduction and overview. In Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry/VI (eds Kaplan, H. I. & Sadock, B. J.), pp. 1067–1079. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins.Google Scholar
Anderson, J., Martin, J., Mullen, P., et al (1993) The prevalence of childhood sexual experiences in a community sample of women. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 32, 911–919.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andrews, B. & Brown, G. W. (1995) Stability and change in low self-esteem: The roles of psychosocial factors. Psychological Medicine, 25, 25–31.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Beitchman, J. H., Zucker, K. J., Hood, J. E., et al (1992) A review of the long term effects of child sexual abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 16, 101–118.Google Scholar
Brown, G., Andrews, B., Harris, T., et al (1986) Social support, self-esteem and depression. Psychological Medicine, 16, 813–831.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, G., Bifulco, A. & Andrews, B. (1990a) Self-esteem and depression. III: Aetiological issues. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 25, 235–243.Google Scholar
Brown, G., Bifulco, A. Veiel, H. O. F., et al (1990b) Self-esteem and depression. II: Social correlates of self-esteem. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 25, 225–234.Google Scholar
Coofersmith, S. (1967) The Antecedents of Self Esteem. San Francisco: W. H. Freeman.Google Scholar
Gilligan, C. (1982) In a Different Voice. Psychological Theory and Women's Development. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Green, A. H. (1993) Child sexual abuse: Immediate and long-term effects and intervention. Journal of the American Academy of Adolescent Psychiatry, 32, 890–902.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hyland, K. Z., Tsujimoto, R. N. & Hamilton, M. (1993) A new comparison group for research on child sexual abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 17, 367–370.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ingham, J. G., Kreitman, N. B., Miller, P. M., et al (1986) Self-esteem, vulnerability and psychiatric disorder in the community. British Journal of Psychiatry, 148, 375–385.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ingham, J. G., Kreitman, N. B., Miller, P. M., et al (1987) Self appraisal, anxiety and depression in women: A prospective enquiry. British Journal of Psychiatry, 151, 643–651.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Martin, J., Anderson, J., Romans, S., et al (1993) Asking about child sexual abuse: Methodological implications of a two stage survey. Child Abuse and Neglect, 17, 383–392.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGuffin, P. E., Katz, R. & Aldrich, J. (1986) Past and present state examinations: The assessment of ‘lifetime ever’ psychopathology. Psychological Medicine, 6, 461–465.Google Scholar
Mullen, P. E., Martin, J. L., Anderson, J. C., et al (1993) Child sexual abuse and mental health in adult life. British Journal of Psychiatry, 163, 721–732.Google Scholar
Mullen, P. E., Martin, J. L., Anderson, J. C., et al (1994) The effect of child sexual abuse on social, interpersonal and sexual function in adult life. British Journal of Psychiatry, 165, 35–47.Google Scholar
Parker, G., Tupling, H. & Brown, L. B. (1979) A parental bonding instrument British Journal of Medical Psychology, 52, 1–10.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robson, P. J. (1988) Self-esteem – A psychiatric view. British Journal of Psychiatry, 153, 6–15.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Robson, P. J. (1989) Development of a new self-report questionnaire to measure self-esteem. Psychological Medicine, 19, 513–518.Google Scholar
Rodgers, B. (1991) Models of stress, vulnerability and affective disorder. Journal of Affective Disorders, 21, 1–13.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Romans, S., Walton, V., McNoe, B., et al (1993a) Otago Women's Health survey 30-months follow-up. I: Onset patterns of non-psychotic psychiatric disorders. British Journal of Psychiatry, 163, 733–738.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Romans, S., Walton, V., McNoe, B., et al (1993b) Otago Women's Health survey 30-month follow-up. II: Remission patterns of non-psychotic psychiatric disorder. British Journal of Psychiatry, 163, 739–746.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Romans, S., Martin, J. L., Anderson, J. C., et al (1996) The “anatomy” of female child sexual abuse: Who does what to young girls? Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 30, 21–27.Google Scholar
Rosenberg, M. (1962) The association between self-esteem and anxiety. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 1, 135–152.Google Scholar
Roy, M.-A., Neale, M. C. & Kendler, K. S. (1995) The genetic epidemiology of self-esteem. British Journal of Psychiatry, 166, 813–820.Google Scholar
Warr, P. & Jackson, P. (1983) Self-esteem and unemployment among young workers. Le Travail Humam, 46, 355–366.Google Scholar
Wilhelm, K. & Parker, G. (1988) The development of a measure of intimate bonds. Psychological Medicine, 18, 225–234.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wing, J. K., Nixon, J. M., Mann, S. A., et al (1977) Reliability of the PSE used in a population study. Psychological Medicine, 7, 505–516.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.