Spirituality, self-blame, and trauma symptoms among adolescents waiting for treatment after disclosing sexual abuse

Ernest N Jouriles; Melissa J Sitton; Caitlin Rancher; Jeanine Johnson; Madeline Reedy; Annette Mahoney; Renee McDonald

doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.107214

Spirituality, self-blame, and trauma symptoms among adolescents waiting for treatment after disclosing sexual abuse

Child Abuse Negl. 2025 Jan 7:160:107214. doi: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.107214. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ernest N Jouriles¹, Melissa J Sitton², Caitlin Rancher³, Jeanine Johnson⁴, Madeline Reedy⁵, Annette Mahoney⁶, Renee McDonald²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Southern Methodist University, P.O. Box 750442, Dallas, TX 75275-0442, USA. Electronic address: ejourile@smu.edu.
² Department of Psychology, Southern Methodist University, P.O. Box 750442, Dallas, TX 75275-0442, USA.
³ Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, 67 President St, Charleston, SC 29425-5712, USA.
⁴ Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, 5057 Woodward, Suite 7908, Detroit, MI 48202-4051, USA.
⁵ Dallas Children's Advocacy Center, 5351 Samuell Blvd., Dallas, TX 75228, USA.
⁶ Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, 822 E Merry St., Bowling Green, OH 43403-0232, USA.

PMID: 39778415
DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.107214

Abstract

Background: Adolescents who have been sexually abused commonly experience trauma symptoms, and many spend considerable time waiting for treatment.

Objective: This study examines the extent to which adolescent perceptions of divine spiritual support, divine spiritual struggles, and self-blame collected during a screening assessment predict trauma symptoms at the beginning of treatment.

Participants and setting: Participants were 224 adolescents (92.9 % female, Mean age = 13.46 years; 53.6 % identified as Hispanic/Latino/a and 24.1 % Black/African American). All obtained services at a Children's Advocacy Center in the southern United States.

Methods: Adolescents reported on trauma symptoms, divine spiritual support, divine spiritual struggles, and self-blame appraisals at a screening assessment (T1). Trauma symptoms were also reported a second time when beginning treatment (T2).

Results: The mean level of trauma symptoms declined over time for the total sample, t(223) = 9.37, p < .001, d = 0.63. Greater divine spiritual struggles (β = 0.10, t[219] = 1.98, p = .049, sr² = 0.02) and self-blame for the abuse (β = 0.11, t[219] = 2.03, p = .044, sr² = 0.02) at the screening assessment were associated with higher levels of trauma symptoms at the beginning of treatment, controlling for sex, trauma symptoms and age at the screening assessment.

Conclusions: Assessing adolescents' divine spiritual struggles and self-blame for sexual abuse may be important in triage and treatment planning for youth who have experienced sexual abuse.

Keywords: Sexual abuse; Spirituality, self-blame; Trauma symptoms.