Abstract:
Background: Despite a robust consensus regarding the potentially negative
implications of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), research investigating risk and
protective factors—particularly among well-functioning young adults—is
scant. Dissociation is one of the major maladaptive outcomes of CSA.
Nevertheless, CSA explains only about 10% of the variance of dissociation.
Possibly, this modest effect size is due to protective factors moderating the
relation between CSA and dissociative symptoms. One such factor may be the
extent to which one has succeeded in developing a clear and coherent sense of
who they are. Objective: We aimed to explore whether self-concept clarity
(SCC) moderates the relationship between CSA and dissociation (Model 1), and an alternative hypothesis, whereby CSA may moderate the relationship
between SCC and dissociation (Model 2). Participants and Setting: This was
tested among 65 well-functioning young women drawn from an earlier study
that intentionally oversampled CSA survivors. Methods: We included data
from survivors of CSA by a known perpetrator (n = 35) and women with no
sexual trauma (n = 30). Results: Findings were consistent with both Model 1
and Model 2, but only when depersonalization-derealization, namely detachment, was considered. Simple effects analyses revealed that CSA was
related to depersonalization-derealization only under low SCC levels (Model
1), and SCC was negatively related to depersonalization-derealization only in
the CSA group (Model 2). Conclusions: Findings suggest that SCC is a
protective factor, buffering the association between CSA and detachment
(depersonalization-derealization) symptoms. Clinical implications are
discussed.