Abstract
M.A.
Incest can be defined as, “The involvement of dependant children
or adolescents in sexual activities they do not truly comprehend,
to which they are unable to give informed consent, or that violate
the social taboos of family roles” (Kempe & Kempe, 1978, p.60).
Incest may include a multitude of activities, such as fondling,
masturbation, exposing genitalia, exposure to pornographic
material, as well as intercourse (Gilmartin, 1994). In our sexist
patriarchal society, sexual abuse of children and women has been,
and still is, a dark secret (Bradshaw, 1995). A study done by
Collings (1997) at the University of Natal revealed that over 50%
of all second year st udents had reported some incidence of sexual
abuse during their childhood and/or adolescent years. Statistics
from the South African Police Force indicate an increase in the
number of incest cases from 7559 in 1994 to 10037 in 1995
(Tucker, 2000). Lyell (1997) emphasised that the magnitude of
the problem of sexual abuse is far greater than any professionals
working in this field ever imagined. Over the past 24 years many
studies have been published on the psychological impact of incest
(Ensink, 1992). These effects include the disruption of normal
development (Doyle, 1997), emotional problems (Newman &
Peterson, 1996), social problems (Newman Lubell & Peterson,
1998) and physical problems (Tucker, 2000), to name a few.
The abovementioned statistics show that incest is of concern in
the South African context. It is also of international relevance
because as Boyles, De Noon and Key (1999) have noted sexual
abuse is a worldwide problem.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the way adult female
survivor s of childhood incest cope. The epistemological
framework of this study is that of the Modernistic approach.
Quantitative methods of research were therefore used to collect
and analyse the data.
The survivors’ ways of coping were assessed through response s t o
the “Ways of Coping” Questionnaire given by a multi-e t h n i c
sample containing mainly white women. Relevant biographical
details were obtained with the use of a constructed biographical
questionnaire. The differences regarding the different ways of
coping, as related to specific factors, such as duration of therapy,
duration of abuse and so forth, were discussed. Possible
implications of the results have also been mentioned in this
thesis.
The information obtained provides a new perspective on incest,
that of salutogenesis. Previous research has focused on the
adverse effects that occur because of incest. There has not been a
focus on the strengths of incest survivors, or the reason why
some survivors cope better than others. It was found that incest
sur vivors develop constructive coping skills, such as positive
reappraisal, seeking social support and planful problem solving,
after a minimal time period of one year in therapy. It was also
found that the duration of abuse affects the way an adult survivor
copes with the incest. Particular ways of coping are correlated
with others, for example planful problem solving is correlated
with positive reappraisal. The information which has emerged
from this study may be useful for therapists working with incest
sur vivors. Having a broader understanding of survivors’ ways of
coping and some of the factors influencing these, may allow
therapists to direct and teach ways of coping, and more
specifically to facilitate and encourage more constructive ways of
coping.