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Immediate and Delayed Treatment of Rape Victims a
Author(s) -
FRANK ELLEN,
ANDERSON BARBARA,
STEWART BARBARA DUFFY,
DANCU CONSTANCE,
HUGHES CAROL,
WEST DEBORAH
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1988.tb50872.x
Subject(s) - gerontology , medicine
Early descriptions of the response to rape victimization indicated that while some rape victims made a relatively rapid and complete recovery following the assault experience, others had more prolonged difficulties.’.’ Furthermore, these studies suggested that most victims continued to experience residual fears and problems many months, and even years, afterward. The three large empirical studies of rape victims conducted in the last six years at first appear to contradict these early descriptions. Each of the major assessment studies found greatly elevated symptom levels in recent victims and highly significant differences between victims and matched controls at initial assessment.’-’ When followed over a year’s time, subjects tended to show marked improvement. Indeed, a first reading of the findings in the repeated-assessment-only studies, in which scores on standardized assessment instruments for depression, fear, anxiety, and social adjustment were used as outcome measures, would suggest that recovery from rape occurs within a few months and is largely a function of the passage of time.)’ A major source of confusion in the attempt to understand recovery from rape trauma is the lack of clarity concerning the role that treatment intervention may or may not play in the process. Few research groups have attempted systematic treatment trials with rape victims. Kilpatrick’s initial study (personal communication, 1981) included a treatment trial that began three months after the initiation of the assessment study. Relatively small numbers of subjects were sufficiently symptomatic at the threemonth point to justify a course of treatment. Thus, the number of subjects entered into treatment proved too few to permit statistical analysis. In a subsequent study, Kilpatrick compared a Brief Behavioral Intervention Procedure (BBIP), Repeated Assessment, and Delayed Assessment and was unable to find significant differences among the three groups.6 Ledray (personal communication, 1985) compared Supportive Crisis Counseling with Goal-Oriented Counseling and found goal-setting superior to support; however, she presents no evidence to demonstrate that the groups did not differ prior to treatment. We have compared subjects who were randomly assigned to either Cognitive Behavior Therapy or Systematic Desensitization and, while both groups of subjects