Mothers’ Narratives of System Intervention Following Disclosure of Child Sexual Assault

Abstract

The thesis, developed from my observation over years of social work practice, of the invisible needs of mothers whose children have been sexually assaulted. The research uses a socio-political trauma lens and systems theory to explore the research questions:

1) How did mothers experience their interaction with the multiple services that intervened at the time of disclosure of sexual assault?

2) How did this affect their emotional, mental and physical well-being?

3) How did this affect their relationship with their child and other relationships?

A qualitative methodology, involving in-depth interviews followed by thematic analysis of the mothers’ detailed narratives provided rich information relating to the lived experience of mothers following their child’s disclosure of sexual assault.

Research participants responded to an advertisement through Bravehearts, a national organization representing victims of sexual assault. They represent a highly invisible and stigmatised group of women and this research fills an important gap in current understandings of the impacts of disclosures of non-offending mothers, and develops knowledge relating to mothers’ experiences of formal and informal services and systems, during and after disclosure. Mothers’ experiences contest unhelpful understandings of mothers as either being in a state of “belief” or “disbelief” following their child’s disclosure. This study demonstrates the complex interplay of formal and informal systems on mothers’ lives following disclosure, the profound relational effects and its aftermath on mothers and their broader family and social networks, and mothers’ efforts to negotiate their relationships and systems in the best interests of their child and family. These findings both inform social work practice and identify the need for broad system change in response to child sexual assault.