Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives

Professional attitudes towards female-perpetrated sexual abuse (FPSA) reportedly reflect the gender-role expectations found in broader society, which cast males almost exclusively as sexual aggressors or willing sexual recipients, females as sexually non-coercive or victims and male perpetrated sexu...

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Main Authors: Clements, Hannah, Dawson, David L., das Nair, Roshan
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/34526/
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author Clements, Hannah
Dawson, David L.
das Nair, Roshan
author_facet Clements, Hannah
Dawson, David L.
das Nair, Roshan
author_sort Clements, Hannah
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Professional attitudes towards female-perpetrated sexual abuse (FPSA) reportedly reflect the gender-role expectations found in broader society, which cast males almost exclusively as sexual aggressors or willing sexual recipients, females as sexually non-coercive or victims and male perpetrated sexual abuse as particularly significant or injurious. Such views, however, appear to stand in contrast to the perspectives of individuals who have experienced FPSA. This paper details a systematic review of peer-reviewed quantitative and qualitative literature examining these different (professional and victim) perspectives. Although the methodological shortcomings of primary papers limit the conclusions that can be drawn, the findings suggest that victim and professional perspectives of FPSA remain discrepant; professionals generally considered FPSA as less serious, less harmful and less deserving of investigation than male-perpetrated abuse; while victims of FPSA felt their experiences influenced significantly their psychological wellbeing and abilities to form and maintain interpersonal relationships. These findings are discussed in relation to professional practice and suggestions for future research.
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spelling nottingham-345262020-05-04T16:36:56Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/34526/ Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives Clements, Hannah Dawson, David L. das Nair, Roshan Professional attitudes towards female-perpetrated sexual abuse (FPSA) reportedly reflect the gender-role expectations found in broader society, which cast males almost exclusively as sexual aggressors or willing sexual recipients, females as sexually non-coercive or victims and male perpetrated sexual abuse as particularly significant or injurious. Such views, however, appear to stand in contrast to the perspectives of individuals who have experienced FPSA. This paper details a systematic review of peer-reviewed quantitative and qualitative literature examining these different (professional and victim) perspectives. Although the methodological shortcomings of primary papers limit the conclusions that can be drawn, the findings suggest that victim and professional perspectives of FPSA remain discrepant; professionals generally considered FPSA as less serious, less harmful and less deserving of investigation than male-perpetrated abuse; while victims of FPSA felt their experiences influenced significantly their psychological wellbeing and abilities to form and maintain interpersonal relationships. These findings are discussed in relation to professional practice and suggestions for future research. Taylor & Francis 2013-05-17 Article PeerReviewed Clements, Hannah, Dawson, David L. and das Nair, Roshan (2013) Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives. Journal of Sexual Aggression, 20 (2). pp. 197-215. ISSN 1742-6545 Female sexual abuse Perspectives Attitudes Impact http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13552600.2013.798690 doi:10.1080/13552600.2013.798690 doi:10.1080/13552600.2013.798690
spellingShingle Female sexual abuse
Perspectives
Attitudes
Impact
Clements, Hannah
Dawson, David L.
das Nair, Roshan
Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
title Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
title_full Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
title_fullStr Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
title_full_unstemmed Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
title_short Female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
title_sort female-perpetrated sexual abuse: a review of victim and professional perspectives
topic Female sexual abuse
Perspectives
Attitudes
Impact
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/34526/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/34526/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/34526/