CHI LD SEXUAL ABUSE: THE PERCEPTI ON OF MOTHERS CON CERN I N G THEI R
DAUGHTERS’ SEXUAL ABUSE
Qu it ér ia Clar ice Magalh ães Car v alh o1 Mar li Ter esin h a Gim en iz Galv ão2 Mar ia Ver a Lúcia Mor eir a Leit ão Car doso3
Car v alho QCM, Galv ão MTG, Car doso MVLML. Child sex ual abuse: t he per cept ion of m ot her s concer ning t heir daught er s’ sex ual abuse. Rev Lat ino- am Enfer m agem 2 0 0 9 j ulho- agost o; 1 7 ( 4 ) : 5 0 1 - 6 .
Dom est ic violence affect s all m em ber s in a fam ily and childr en ar e consider ed t he m ain vict im s. This qualit at ive st udy aim ed t o gr asp t he per cept ion of m ot her s w hose daught er s w er e sex ually abused. Dat a w er e collect ed bet w een Febr uar y and Mar ch 2 0 0 7 in a gov er nm ent al facilit y in For t aleza- CE, Br azil t hr ough sem i- st r uct ur ed int er view s w it h t en m ot her s of sexually abused childr en. Dat a w er e subm it t ed t o t he Collect ive Subj ect Discour se Technique fr om w hich t hr ee t hem es em er ged: Guilt is r oot ed in t he m ot her hood m y t h, unhealable pain and despair as a consequence of a feeling of pow er lessness. Result s evidenced t hat m ot her s exper ience a r ange of feelings in w hich pain, r ev ulsion and pow er lessness ar e highlight ed. Societ y should be engaged in t he subj ect an d in t er est ed in u n der st an din g v iolen ce, it s m agn it u de an d t h e w h ole affect ed ch ain , ot h er w ise, on ly good int ent ions w ill r em ain, lost in t he void fr om t he lack of act ion.
DESCRI PTORS: sex ual v iolence; child abuse, sex ual; m ot her - child r elat ions
ABUSO SEXUAL I N FAN TI L: PERCEPCI ÓN DE LAS MADRES FREN TE AL ABUSO
SEXUAL DE SUS HI JAS
La v iolencia dom ést ica afect a a t odos los com ponent es fam iliar es, las niñas son consider adas las pr incipales víct im as. Est e es un est udio cualit at ivo que t uvo por obj et ivo apr ender la per cepción de las m adr es cuyas hij as fuer on víct im as de abuso sexual infant il. Los dat os fuer on r ecolect ados ent r e febr er o y m ar zo de 2007, en una or gan ización gu ber n am en t al de For t aleza, est ado de Cear á, m edian t e en t r ev ist a sem iest r u ct u r ada con diez m adr es de niñas v íct im as de abuso sex ual. Las infor m aciones fuer on som et idas a la t écnica del Discur so del Su j et o Colect iv o, de la cu al em er gier on t r es t em as: la cu lpa ar r aigada por el m it o m at er n o, el dolor de lo insuper able y el desesper o, com o consecuencia del sent im ient o de im pot encia, per m it iendo apr ender que las m adr es exper im ent an una am plia gam a de sent im ient os, dest acándose el dolor , la r ebelión y la im pot encia. Se con sid er a u n a n ecesid ad q u e ex ist a u n in t er és p or p ar t e d e la socied ad p ar a com p r en d er la v iolen cia, su m agnit ud y t odas sus im plicaciones, caso cont r ar io, solo r est ar án buenas int enciones per didas en el v acío de la falt a de acción.
DESCRI PTORES: v iolen cia sex u al; abu so sex u al in fan t il; r elacion es m adr e- h ij o
ABUSO SEXUAL I N FAN TI L: PERCEPÇÃO DE M ÃES EM FACE DO ABUSO SEXUAL
DE SUAS FI LH AS
A v iolên cia d om ést ica at in g e t od os os com p on en t es f am iliar es, as cr ian ças são con sid er ad as as p r in cip ais vít im as. Est e é um est udo qualit at ivo que obj et ivou apr eender a per cepção de m ães cuj as filhas for am vít im as d e ab u so sex u al in f an t il. Os d ad os f or am colet ad os em f ev er eir o e m ar ço d e 2 0 0 7 , em u m a or g an ização gov er nam ent al de For t aleza, CE, m ediant e ent r ev ist a sem iest r ut ur ada com dez m ães de m eninas v ít im as de abuso sex ual. As infor m ações for am subm et idas à t écnica do Discur so do Suj eit o Colet iv o, da qual em er gir am t r ês t em as: a culpa ar r aigada pelo m it o m at er no, a dor do insuper áv el e o desesper o com o consequência do sent im ent o de im pot ência, per m it indo apr eender que as m ães vivenciam um a gam a de sent im ent os, dest acando-se a dor , r ev olt a e im pot ên cia. Con sider a- acando-se a n ecessidade de h av er in t er esacando-se por par t e da sociedade par a com pr eender a v iolência, sua m agnit ude e t oda a cadeia at ingida, caso cont r ár io, só r est ar ão boas int enções per didas no v azio da falt a de ação.
DESCRI TORES: v iolên cia sex u al; m au s- t r at os sex u ais in fan t is; r elações m ãe- filh o
Un i v er si d ad e Fed er al d o Cear á, Br azi l : 1Do ct o r al st u d en t , e- m ai l : ccs0 1 @u o l . co m . b r ; 2Ph . D. i n Tr op i cal Di seases, Ad j u n ct Pr of essor, e- m ai l :
m ar ligalvao@gm ail.com ; 3Ph.D. in Nur sing, Adj unct Pr ofessor, e- m ail: car [email protected].
I NTRODUCTI ON
V
iolence is a concept difficult t o concept ualize because of t he num er ous sit uat ions t hat char act er izeit . Hence, t his st udy adopt ed t he concept used by t he
Br azilian Minist r y of Healt h in it s policy dev eloped t o
f i g h t t h e p r o b l e m . Vi o l e n ce i s d e f i n e d a s a ct i o n s
per pet r at ed by individuals, gr oups, classes or nat ions
t hat cause physical, em ot ional, m or al and/ or spir it ual
h ar m t o on eself or t o an ot h er( 1 ). Th er e is also t h e
n o t i o n t h a t v i o l e n c e i n v o l v e s r u l e s a n d p o w e r
r elat ion sh ip s in w h ich t h e ag g r essor d om in at es t h e
v ict im , w h et h er t h r ou gh ph y sical f or ce or econ om ic
or em ot ional pow er, am ong ot her s.
Alt h ou g h v iolen ce is a p r ob lem w or ld w id e,
t her e is not a specific elem ent ex plaining w hy som e
people behave violent ly t ow ar d ot her s or w hy violence
o ccu r s m o r e f r e q u e n t l y i n so m e co m m u n i t i e s o r
hom es t han in ot hers. What is know n is t hat violence
r e s u l t s f r o m a c o m p l e x i n t e r a c t i o n o f f a c t o r s
co m p o sed o f so ci o eco n o m i c, p o l i t i cal an d cu l t u r al
d et er m in an t s. Violen ce com m it t ed ag ain st ch ild r en
and adolescent s is specifically classified as phy sical,
p sy ch olog ical or sex u al v iolen ce, n eg lect , an d also
a s Mü n c h a u s e n s y n d r o m e b y p r o x y, w h i c h i s a
disor der in w hich t he par ent or guar dian ensur es t he
child has healt h pr oblem s( 2).
Th e m ost com m on for m of v iolen ce again st
ch ildr en , h ow ev er, is in t r a- f am ily v iolen ce. I t is
so-called bu t it is n ot ex clu siv ely lim it ed t o t h e f am ily
b ecau se it can in v olv e p eop le w h o sh ar e t h e sam e
dom est ic envir onm ent and m ay or m ay not be r elat ed
t o t h e ch i l d( 3 ). Ch i l d r e n h a v e t h e i r o w n p e r so n a l
c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , w h i c h a r e f o r m e d a c c o r d i n g t o
biological and em ot ional com ponent s and t he fam ily
i s a d e t e r m i n i n g e l e m e n t i n t h i s b i o p sy ch o so ci a l
f or m at ion( 4 ).
Am on g t h e t y p es of v iolen ce t h at occu r in
t he fam ily spher e, t her e is sex ual abuse, under st ood
as a sex u al act , an d h et er o sex u al o r h o m o sex u al
r el at i o n s, w h er ei n t h e ag g r esso r i s p sy ch o so ci al l y
m or e developed t han t he child or adolescent and aim s
t o sexually st im ulat e or use t he child t o obt ain sexual
sat isfact ion( 5 ).
Sex u al ab u se v ar ies f r om act s t h at in v olv e
sex ual cont act w it h penet r at ion: or al, v aginal or anal
int er cour se; or w it hout penet r at ion: im pr oper t ouches
( m a n i p u l a t i o n o f g e n i t a l o r g a n s ) , k i s s i n g ,
m ast ur bat ion, por nogr aphy, phot os, ex hibit ionism , or
obscene phone calls( 6).
St at ist ical dat a r egar ding t he t hem e lead t o
reflect ion about t he fam ily com ponent s, especially t he
m at ernal figure. According t o t he lit erat ure, t he m ot her
is t he per son m ost r equir ed t o pr ov ide help( 7).
Th e m o t h er i s, i n t h e f a m i l y co n t ex t , t h e
cl o sest p er so n t o t h e ch i l d an d “ sh o u l d ” b e m o r e
at t ent ive t o signs of sexual abuse, alt hough oft ent im es,
due t o unconscious pr ocesses det er m ined by her ow n
life hist ory, she denies t he evidence. This fact , how ever,
d o es n o t j u st i f y t h e i d ea t h a t m o t h er s sh o u l d b e
punished. I nst ead, one should t r y t o under st and t he
f am ily d y n am ics as a w h ole( 7 ). I n t h is con t ex t , t h e
m at ernal figure is also part of t he vict im ized universe;
she is consider ed a secondar y v ict im( 8). I n t his w ay,
t he r elevance of t his st udy is based on t he st at em ent
t hat not only t he child needs t o be car ed for, but also
t h e m o t h e r a n d t h e w h o l e f a m i l y. Ba se d o n t h e
p r e c e d i n g , t h i s s t u d y a i m e d t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e
per cept ions of m ot her s w hose daught er s suffer ed child
sex u al ab u se.
METHODOLOGI CAL TRAJECTORY
Th is q u alit at iv e- d escr ip t iv e st u d y aim ed t o
under st and t he pr oblem fr om t he per spect ive of t hose
w h o ex p er ien ce it , t h at is, p ar t of t h eir d aily lif e,
sat isfact ion s, feelin gs an d desir es.
D a t a co l l e ct i o n w a s ca r r i e d o u t b e t w e e n
Febr uar y and Mar ch 2007 in a gov er nm ent facilit y in
For t aleza, CE, Br azil. Th is or g an izat ion at t en d s t o
ch ildr en an d adolescen t s w h o ar e v ict im s of sex u al
v iolen ce, abu se an d ex ploit at ion . I t pr ov ides special
social pr ot ect ion of av er age com plex it y deliv er ed by
a m u lt ip r of ession al t eam t h at in clu d es: social w or k
assist an ce, p sy ch osocial car e an d leg al su p p or t t o
v ict im s and t heir fam ilies.
Pa r t i ci p a n t s w e r e t e n m o t h e r s o f f e m a l e
childr en fr om 4 t o 10 year s old, all vict im s of sexual
ab u se. Th e n u m b er of p ar t icip an t s w as d et er m in ed
by t he pr in ciple of sat ur at ion, v er ified w hen r epor t s
st ar t ed t o r epeat( 9).
Dat a w er e collect ed t h r ou g h in d iv id u al an d
r ecor ded sem i- st r u ct u r ed in t er v iew s con du ct ed in a
pr iv at e r oom . I n t er v iew s w er e fu lly t r anscr ibed.
By in t er v iew , w e u n der st an d an in st r u m en t
t o collect t he r aw m at er ial of r epor t s. The fir st par t of
t h e in st r u m en t u sed in t h is st u dy w as com posed of
social iden t if icat ion an d econ om ic an d dem ogr aph ic
r elat ed t o t he st udy subj ect : How w as it for y ou t o
lear n t hat y our daught er w as sex ually abused?
Re p o r t s w e r e a n a l y z e d a c c o r d i n g t o t h e
Collect ive Subj ect Discour se m et hod ( CSD) . Accor ding
t o t h e lit er at u r e, t h e CSD is n ot in t er est ed in t h e
m echanical or aut om at ic m at hem at izat ion of collect ive
t hought or in t he use of m et a- language. I t s r ole is t o
m ake t he social express it self in a scient ifically rigorous
way, using explicit , clear and st andar dized pr ocedur es,
developing t he social report w it h t he em pirical cont ent
of indiv iduals’ r epor t s( 10).
CSD is com posed of t he follow ing elem ent s:
k e y e x p r e s s i o n s , c e n t r a l i d e a s a n d a n c h o r a g e .
Gr ouping k ey ex pr essions t hat giv e or igin t o cent r al
ideas or r elat ed anchor age r esult in one, or sev er al,
sy nt hesis discour se( s) , ex pr essed in t he fir st per son
singular and w hich sy m bolize t he collect iv e; t hat is,
t he collect iv e is ex pr essed t hr ough one “ per son”.
Af t er t h e in t er v iew s w er e f u lly t r an scr ib ed ,
t hey w er e subm it t ed t o car eful r eadings in w hich key
ex pr ession s em er ged. Af t er r eadin g w as con clu ded,
se v e r a l ce n t r a l i d e a s/ a n ch o r a g e s w e r e o b t a i n e d ,
w h ich ar e r ep r esen t ed b y t h e f ollow in g t h em es: I .
Gu ilt is r oot ed in t h e m ot h er h ood m y t h , an ch or age
em er g ed f r om – t h e sear ch f or t h e p er f ect m ot h er
m y t h ; I I . U n h e a l a b l e p a i n ; I I I . D e s p a i r a s
con sequ en ce of a feelin g of pow er lessn ess.
The study was approved by the Ethics Research
Com m it t ee at t he Federal Universit y of Ceará ( Prot ocol
No. 11/ 07). The letter “M” followed by a num ber according
to the order of interviews (1 to 10) was assigned to each
participant so as to ensure their anonym ity.
RESULTS
I n d iv id u als’ Ch ar act er izat ion
The descr ipt ion of t he par t icipant s pr esent ed
i n Ta b l e 1 l i st s so m e ch a r a ct e r i st i cs o f m o t h e r s
( infor m ant s) t o help under st and t he CSD. The m ot her s
w er e young, had eit her a paid j ob or w er e housew ives,
and had ot her children. The gir ls w ho suffer ed sexual
ab u se r an g ed f r om f ou r t o t en y ear s old . Wit h t h e
except ion of one part icipant , all t he girls w ere closely
r e l a t e d t o t h e a g g r e s s o r s . I n f o u r c a s e s , t h e
a g g r esso r s w er e t h ei r o w n f a t h er s. Ba sed o n t h e
indiv iduals’ char act er ist ics, t he succession of cult ur al
an d su bj ect iv e elem en t s t o w h ich t h ey ar e ex posed
b ecom e clear er.
Table 1 – Par t icipant s’ char act er ist ics. For t aleza, CE, Brazil 2007
* The base salar y cur r ent at t he t im e w as R$ 350,00 ( Thr ee Hundr ed and Fift y Reais) *
Cen t r al ideas an d collect iv e discou r se w er e
obt ained fr om and ar e r epr esent ed by t hr ee t hem es.
Analysis of cent r al ideas and r epor t s of t he collect ive
s u b j e c t i v e a i m e d t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e f e e l i n g s o f
m ot her s, w hich w er e der iv ed fr om each r epor t .
The CSD t hat r efer s t o t he guilt r oot ed in t he
m at ernal m yt h is direct ly relat ed t o cult ural elem ent s
t hat dem and t he desir ed per fect ion fr om t he m at er nal
f ig u r e.
Them e I – Fr om t he cent r al idea: guilt is r oot ed in t he
m at er n al m y t h
I t is an im m ense pain, I w ish t o die, I feel so guilt y
because ever ybody says t hat a child w it hout a fat her is no good,
because m ot her s don’t know how t o r aise a child. Som et im es I
t hink, w hy did I let her go??? I f I hadn’t , none of t his w ould have
happened. The w or st t hing is t hat I gave him a second chance. I
suffer so m uch, I even considered killing m y daught er and m yself,
* NT. Exchange r at e ~ 2.00 Reais/ USD
t n a p i c i t r a
P Age MaritalStatus Occupation Nºof n e r d l i h
c MonthlyIncome(R$)*
e h t h t i w n o i t a l e R
r o s s e r g g a
n e r d l i h c / e g A
s r a e y
1
M 39 Married Unemployed 2 400,00 Uncle 8 2
M 39 Married Cook 2 240,00 Neighbor 8
3
M 41 Divorced Housemaid 3 350,00 Husband 10 4
M 38 Married Housewife 2 400,00 Uncle 8 5
M 38 Divorced Masseuse 2 600,00 Husband 4 6
M 49 Divorced Saleswoman 3 550,00 Husband 6 7
M 47 Divorced Unemployed 4 350,00 Husband 8 8
M 34 Married Unemployed 2 390,00 Acquaintance 7 9
M 39 Married Dressmaker 2 400,00 Neighbor 8 0
1
w e’d go t o sleep and never w ake up. She w as abused w hen I w as
br east feeding her one- year old sist er , t he lit t le t im e I left , it
seem s she w as t ot ally unpr ot ect ed. He t ook his chance at t hat
m om ent because I w asn’t ar ound t o pr ot ect m y daught er , t his
w as m y m ist ake. I suffer a lot , I keep im agining t he scene. I
alw ays ask m yself how did I let t his happen. I f I w er e t her e,
none of t his w ould have happened.
Ev er y body say s t hat a child w it hout a fat her is no
good, because m ot her s don’t know how t o r aise a child. I s it
because of t his t hat she is going t hr ough all t his? The lit t le I
know , it seem s she w as t ot ally unpr ot ect ed. How did I let t his
happen? I f I w er e w it h her , none of t his w ould have happened.
Th e m e I I p r e s e n t s u n h e a l a b l e p a i n ,
ev iden cin g t h e par t icipan t s’ dif f icu lt y in ov er com in g
t he ex per ience of seeing t heir daught er v ict im ized in
sex u al ab u se.
Them e I I – Fr om t he cent r al idea: unhealable pain
I t w as a t er r ible t hing, I guess I ’ll never r ecover , even
know ing t hat she is fine and t her e w as no penet r at ion. I have no
w or ds t o expr ess how I feel. I t is a t er r ible pain, Jesus, I w ish t o
die. God is helping m e; I ’m not com plet ely cured because you can
never heal fr om a t r agedy like t his [ …] t hings set t le dow n, but
t he pain r em ains. I t w as so sad, because, aft er all he is her
fat her. I was down in t he dum ps, you know? Couldn’t sleep, t here
w as a night she saw m e aw ake and asked m e if I w as sick or
anyt hing, I said I had a pain in m y leg, but w hat w ouldn’t let m e
sleep w as a m uch w or se pain. No m at t er how har d I t r y, I can’t
expr ess t he pain I feel [ …] .
Despair, as a con sequ en ce of t h e feelin g of
p ow er lessn ess, is p r esen t ed in Th em e I I I . We can
sen se t h e r ev u lsion an d p ow er lessn ess r ev ealed in
t he r epor t s in an exacer bat ed way, w hich m akes t hese
em ot ions t he t or m ent or s of t heir v ict im s.
Th em e I I I – Fr o m t h e cen t r a l i d ea : d esp a i r a s a
con sequ en ce of a feelin g of pow er lessn ess
I f I had a gun at t he t im e I ’d have killed him w it h no
pit y. I suffer so m uch. I t hink she’d suffer even m or e if I killed
m yself, because she’d be w it hout m e. I f I killed her , I ’d die of
suffer ing, so I t hought t hat w e bot h should die. I hat e him so
m uch, aft er all he is her fat her . I w as t aken aback, I held m yself
so as not t o do anyt hing st upid. I t ’s t er r ible. I had no st r uct ur e.
I felt so pow er less because I didn’t see it . I n t he hour of despair ,
I spanked her because she hadn’t react ed, hadn’t scream ed. When
I t ook her t o t he hospit al, t he doct or said her hym en had been
br eached, it seem ed t hat t he new s t ook m e out of t he gr ound. I
despaired, went t o t he st reet s as if m ad, looking for t hat despicable
per son, t he neighbor s w ent t o look for him w it h m e.
DI SCUSSI ON
Th e CSD r e v e a l e d m a n y o f o u r so ci e t y ’ s
beliefs r elat ing t o t he m at er nal figur e. I t is believ ed
t hat t he m ot her is t he best per son and t he only one
cap ab le of t ak in g car e of h er ch ild r en . Sh e h as t o
incor por at e t he qualit ies t r adit ionally associat ed w it h
fem ininit y. I t is int ended t hat she be so, and t hus she
seeks t o be. She has t o have an ext r em e capacit y of
offer ing her self t hr ough im m ense sacr ifices( 1 1 ).
Gu i l t p a i r s w i t h t h e m a t e r n a l f i g u r e a n d
consequent ly it becam e a nat ur al feeling( 12). Such a
feeling, clear ly speak ing, t r ansfor m ed m at er nit y int o
a m inefield and t he w om an w alks in it , w it hout a m ap
t o g u id e h er. We ob ser v ed t h at M4 ex p r esses
self-r epself-r obat ion foself-r heself-r m at eself-r nal “ m ist ake” : he t ook his chance
at t hat m om ent , because I wasn’t around t o prot ect m y daught er;
t his w as m y m ist ake.
The m ot her s have t he need t o sear ch for t he
g u i l t y. Th ey u n co n sci o u sl y t r an sf er g u i l t f r o m t h e
aggr essor t o t he m at er nal figur e, w hich r ev eals t heir
d i s a p p o i n t m e n t f o r n o t h a v i n g p r o t e c t e d t h e i r
daught er s fr om sex ual abuse and t her efor e t hey ar e
r ev ealed as im per f ect m ot h er s.
Th er e is a n ar r ow v iew in r egar d t o issu es
b r o u g h t b y s e x u a l i d e n t i t y a n d p r o m o t e d b y
concept ualizat ions r elat ed t o fam ily sy st em s. Societ y
h as in cr easin g ly f ailed t o ack n ow led g e t h e cen t r al
d i l em m a o f m an y w o m en , g i v en t h at t h e r u l es o f
m ot her hood r equir e t hem t o give up t heir ow n needs
in favor of fam ily needs. They t ake t o t hem selves t he
b a s i c r e s p o n s i b i l i t y a n d , o f t e n t i m e s e x c l u s i v e
r esponsibilit y, of r aising t heir childr en and pr ot ect ing
t hem , t hough m any t im es t hey do not have t he needed
r esour ces and pow er( 13) .
Accor dingly, t her e ar e sev er al pr essur es t hat
allude t o ir r epr oachable m ot her hood. I n t his cont ex t ,
t h e f e e l i n g o f f a i l u r e b e co m e s p e r f e ct l y n a t u r a l ,
because t he m y t h of t he per fect m ot her w as cr eat ed
t o b e i m p o se d o n h u m a n b e i n g s w h o h a v e b o t h
qualit ies and defect s. Ther e is a m odel of t he m ot her
t o be follow ed, t he “ per fect ,” and alway s pat ient and
kind, at t ent ive t o all her child’s needs, a t ot ally devot ed
m ot h er. An y diver gen ce fr om t h is st an dar d leads t o
feelings of guilt or fr ust r at ion.
Wom en discover t he im possibilit y of achieving
t his ideal in t heir daily life. The guilt ex per ienced by
t he par t icipant s or iginat es in a com plex m ot her hood
m od el t h at com es ab ou t in t h e ab sen ce of er r or s.
feel dim inished, especially because t hey ar e not able
t o av oid fat alit ies t hat occur t o t heir childr en.
Di f f er en t f o r m s o f co m m u n i cat i o n su ch as
w r it t en and spok en com m unicat ion in addit ion t o t he
co m m u n i t y, g e n e r a l l y p r e a ch t h e “ g o sp e l ” o f t h e
m a t e r n a l f i g u r e i n v o l v e d i n a n a t m o s p h e r e o f
“ p er f ect i o n ” w i t h t h e d u t y o f d ev el o p i n g h er r o l e
i m p e cca b l y. Th i s i m a g e e n d s i n g u i l t , t h e g r e a t
t o r m en t o r o f a h a p p y m o t h er h o o d . Ho w ev er, t h i s
i m a g e h a s t o b e a b o l i sh e d w i t h a v i e w t o m a k e
m ot her s happy and aw ar e of t heir lim it at ions.
“ Pain” is a fundam ent al char act er ist ic of t he
em ot iv e life, m or e pr ecisely a n egat iv e on e, alm ost
alw ays underst ood as a sign or indicat ion of a host ile
charact er, against a sit uat ion in w hich a living being is
insert ed( 14). As w e can see in t his st udy, t he report of
M4 ev id en ces t h e cer t ain t y of p er m an en t p ain an d
difficult y in overcom ing it : I ’m not com plet ely cur ed because
you can never heal fr om a t r agedy like t his [ …] t hings set t le
dow n, but t he pain r em ains. I n t he face of t his st at em ent ,
w e can conclude t hat violence is ext rem ely funct ional,
t hat is, it achieves it s goal, dest roys, m arks and kills.
Th e v iolen t act ion r epr esen t s an at t it u de in
w hich t he abused being ser ves as a m eans t o r ealize
a dest r uct ive fant asy, obj ect of sat isfact ion, of a desir e
o f d e a t h . V i o l e n c e i s t h e i n t e n t i o n a l u s e o f
ag g r essi v en ess t o ach i ev e d est r u ct i v e en d s. On ce
v iolence is per pet r at ed, t he abused indiv idual has t o
b e o b ser v ed , b ecau se t h i s i s an i ssu e o f co m p l ex
su b j e ct i v i t y w i t h d e st r u ct i v e p a i n a n d n o t o n l y a
p h en om en on w it h cu lt u r al an d social con t ou r s t h at
dr ives t he legal syst em in it s punit ive funct ion( 15).
Vi o l e n ce a f f e ct s m o r e t h a n t h e b i o l o g i ca l
s p h e r e . Th e n e e d t o s u p p l a n t t h e m o d e l o f t h e
p osit iv ism h as b een con st an t ly d iscu ssed , t h ou g h ,
according t o w hat has been highlight ed, pr ofessionals
w h o a t t e n d v i ct i m s o f v i o l e n ce sh o u l d v i e w t h i s
c l i e n t e l e i n a s y s t e m i c w a y a n d f o c u s o n t h e
subj ect iv it y in t heir sit uat ions.
I t is u r gen t t h at t h e m u lt ipr ofession al t eam
obser v es t he t r aum a and pain pr oduced by v iolence
because t his phenom enon goes bey ond sociocult ur al
and legal fact or s. I t im m ediat ely act s on one’s psyche,
on t he “ self” and life of t he abused being as w ell as
o n t h e w h o l e f a m i l y s t r u c t u r e . K n o w i n g t h e
im p licat ion s of t h e d y n am ics of p ain , w h ich is t h e
p r od u ct of v iolen ce, sh ou ld b e a p r ior it y. For t h at ,
obj ect iv e m easu r es sh ou ld be t ak en ; car e deliv er ed
t o v i c t i m s o f v i o l e n c e s h o u l d f o c u s o n t h e
biopsy ch osocial aspect s of v iolen ce.
We also ob ser v ed t h at in d iv id u als f ace t h e
d i f f i c u l t r e a l i t y o f r e v u l s i o n a s a r e s u l t o f t h e
p ow er lessn ess f eelin g . Th e d if f icu lt y in ov er com in g
t he sit uat ion leads t o revulsion and at t he sam e t im e
t o a feeling of pow er lessness, feelings ex pr essed by
t h e p a r t i ci p a n t s. Th e m o t h e r s f i n d i t i m m e n se l y
difficult t o live w it h t he idea of not having been able
t o pr event t heir daught er s’ suffer ing, t hat is, t o pr ot ect
t hem fr om being sex ually abused.
We can perceive in t he report s t hat revulsion
an d p ow er lessn ess ar e r ev ealed in an ex acer b at ed
way, w hich t ur n t hem int o t he v ict im s’ aggr essor s. A
w arning follow s: despit e t he fact t hat t he children w ere
sex u ally abu sed, it w ou ld be f r iv olou s t o st at e t h at
t h e r e w a s m a t e r n a l n e g l e c t i n a l l t h e c a s e s .
Specifically, in t he st udied cases charact erized by int
ra-f a m i l y a b u se , t h e a g g r e sso r s w e r e p e o p l e w h o m
m ot her and daught er t r ust ed and ev en lov ed.
The r ole of t he m ot her as non- abusive par ent
r ev eals t hat sex ual abuse also happens in fam ilies in
w hich t he m ot her - daught er r elat ionship is close and
pr ot ect iv e. I n t his case, t he abuse does not cont inue
ov er y ear s, becau se t h ese m ot h er s, alm ost alw ay s,
denounce t he abuse aft er gr asping t he m anifest at ions
of abu se in t h e v ict im ized ch ild. Th e ch ild, in t u r n ,
t alk s about it and is believ ed. When m ot her s det ect
signs t hat t heir daught er s have been sexually abused
or act ually see t he phenom enon, t hey t ake w hat t hey
h av e seen an d h ear d v er y ser iou sly an d g en er ally
t ake m easur es t o pr ot ect t he child( 16). How ever, w hen
t he m ot her does not r ecognize t he sexual abuse, her
m at er n al pr ot ect ion becom es f r agile becau se sh e is
not able t o per ceive t he r isks t he child is exposed t o.
H e n c e , h e r s o n s a n d d a u g h t e r s m i g h t b e m o r e
v ulner able t o v iolent sit uat ions.
As sh o w n i n t h e l i t e r a t u r e , se x u a l a b u se
com m it t ed against childr en is pot ent ially t r aum at izing
due t o t he feeling of pow er lessness and fear, am ong
ot her dev ast at ing feelings( 13). Thus, t he m ot her of a
ch ild v ict im ized b y sex u al ab u se is in clu d ed in t h e
gr oup of v ict im s affect ed by sex ual v iolence. Such a
st a t e m e n t i s b a se d o n n e g a t i v e a n d d e st r u ct i v e
feelings ex pr essed by t he par t icipant s, am ong w hich,
suicidal and hom icidal ideas, accor ding t o t he r epor t
of M3, w ho declar ed: I t hink she’d suffer ev en m or e if I
killed m yself, because she’d be w it hout m e. I f I killed her , I ’d die
of suffer ing, so I t hought t hat w e bot h should die.
Th e su icidal an d h om icidal ideas ex pr essed
in t he m ot her ’s r epor t r eveals her hopelessness. This
hum an beings fragile and incapable of self- realizat ion,
t hat is, t hey experience t he deat h of t he “ self”( 14). This
reinforces t he idea t hat violence, m ost of t he t im e, is
n ot u n id ir ect ion al, b ecau se it act s in t h e lif e of it s
v ict im s in a sy st em ic w ay.
Hum an beings easily under st and t hings w hen
t hey ar e fr agm ent ed, t hat is, w hen a phenom enon is
isolat ed fr om it s cont ext , as w hen people ar e divor ced
f r o m t h e i r r e a l i t y. Th a t t h e u n i v e r s e o f p e o p l e
cor r elat es and for m s a set w her e ever yt hing int er act s,
i n cl u d i n g t h o se w h o o b se r v e i t , i s n o t so e a si l y
u n d er st ood .
I t r epr esent s a gr eat challenge. I f societ y is
not int erest ed in underst anding violence, it s m agnit ude
and t he w hole chain affect ed by it , t her e w ill not be
adequat e inst rum ent s t o fight it or t o car e for it s vict im s
and t here w ill only be good int ent ions lost in t he void
fr om a lack of act ion.
CONSI DERATI ONS
Ch i l d sex u al ab u se i s a p h en o m en o n t h at
af f ect s t h e w h ole f am ily st r u ct u r e an d m an y t im es
aggr av at es fam ily disaggr egat ion, especially in cases
of in t r a- fam ily sex u al abu se. Th e m at er n al figu r e is
highlight ed am ong fam ily m em ber s w it h it s univ er se
of feelings. I n t he child sex ual abuse scenar io, such
f e e l i n g s a r e r e p r e s e n t e d b y p a i n , m a n y t i m e s
ex pr essed as pain fr om w h ich t h er e is n o r ecov er y,
an d r ev u lsion r elat ed t o a feelin g of pow er lessn ess.
Th e s t u d y p a r t i c i p a n t s r e p o r t g u i l t a s t h e m o s t
r esponsible for t heir suffer ing, w hich is r oot ed in t he
st r on g cu lt u r al elem en t of “ per f ect m ot h er h ood”. I n
t he face of t he feeling of guilt , t he m at er nal despair
ex p r essed in t h e r ep or t s as su icid al an d h om icid al
ideas w as con sider able.
We observed, how ever, t hat t here is a desire
t o o v er co m e t h e co n seq u en ces f o r t h e l i f e o f t h e
sex ually abused daught er, t he hope t o allev iat e and
ev en “ er ase” all t he pain and also alt er t he behav ior
m anifest ed by t he daught er. Based on t he abov e, t he
f eelin g s ev id en ced b y t h e p ar t icip an t s r ep r esen t a
m ot iv e t o r ef lect on t h e u r gen t n eed t o in f or m an d
st r engt hen a social suppor t net w or k .
I t i s a l s o n e c e s s a r y t o e m p h a s i z e t h e
im p or t an ce of an ef f icien t p r act ice of p r of ession als
dir ect ly and indir ect ly inv olv ed in t he car e deliv er ed
t o v ict im s of ch ild sex u al ab u se an d t h eir f am ilies.
Nur ses st and out am ong t hese pr ofessionals and ar e
consider ed t he m ost pr esent pr ofessional in t he car e
set t ing. Nur ses have t he oppor t unit y t o ident ify, fight
and even report child sexual abuse as w ell as t o deliver
car e t o it s v ict im and fam ilies. Ther efor e, nur ses can
d e c i s i v e l y c o n t r i b u t e t o o v e r c o m i n g t h e s e v e r e
consequences of such a dev ast at ing t y pe of abuse.
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