Child sexual abuse by a member of the same family affects the entire family. The family members are therefore encountered with decision making to side with either the offender or the abused. In the meantime, the whole family is subjected to shame as a result of invasion by law enforcement agencies and social workers. The intervention of social workers is encouraged to safeguard the safety of the abused. However, they should do so in such a way that the family bond especially between the children and the non offending parent is maintained.
This presents a big challenge as societal norms regarding the responsibility of women in their families has an influence in this decision. The cultural values al times put blames on the non offending parent especially the female parent. These cultural norms lead to the belief that women have a significant responsibility in incidences of child sexual abuse by their spouses. However, other studies have opposed this notion arguing that over 78 percent of the women have also been sexually and physically abused alongside their children by the same offender (Massat & Lundy, 1998).
Other emerging research studies have stressed the importance of giving more support to mothers for the sake of their children (Corcoran, 1998). The ability of the abused child to effectively recover from the devastating effects of sexual abuse depends heavily on the support from the other parent who is non-offending. The reluctance and failure by parents to recognize and believe the reports of sexual abuse by the abused child increases the child’s perception of isolation and betrayal.
On the other hand, there is growing evidence that material support helps in the recovery process of the abused child in the long term (Hughes, et al. , 1998). The effects of child sexual abuse are also felt by the non offending parent. They usually suffer from shock because of the sexual abuse subjected to their child and are therefore faced with the difficult and strenuous decision of whether to report the incidences of sexual abuse to the authorities. As soon as these cases are reported, the relationship between these non offending mothers and the society is changed.
According to a research study conducted by Massat and Lundy in 1998 to explore the potential costs of reporting incidences of sexual abuse, the non offending mothers faced many problems with members of the family which accounted for 54 percent of the total problems, reduction in the level of income constituting 55 percent, problems at work place and difficulties in finding a new job (26%) and finding new residential places (50%). Coping with these challenges require emotional resources which these mothers lack.
In order to protect the privacy of their children, the non-offending female parents may decide to overlook the support provided by social networks as well as ignoring the need to establish new support networks (Corcoran, 1998). The perpetrators of child sexual abuse regardless of whether they are members of the same family are also affected by the effects of the abuse. These perpetrators end up living double lives: one as an upright and responsible family figure and the other as a sex offender.
Regardless of the society perception about these perpetrators, they are still very important figures in the family despite the betrayal. As a result, the family members are faced with contradictory and mixed feelings about the offending parent. In order to support the abused child and the entire family to effectively heal from the devastating effects of sexual abuse and prevent the future occurrence of child maltreatment, social network workers should refer the offenders to professional therapists. The treatment programs for the perpetrators of sexual abuse may include apology sessions.
During this session of the treatment, the perpetrator may be require to personally write a letter to the victim to be real aloud in the presence of both the abused child, the entire family and the therapist. In this process, the offender assures the abused child that assault was entirely his fault and is sorry for the damages caused by the abuse . This clarification by the perpetrators of sexual abuse might be helpful in ensuring that the victim copes with the consequences of sexual abuse (Wylie, 1998).