OBJECTIVE: Clinical studies have found elevated rates of childhood
sexual abuse (CSA) in women seeking treatment for alcohol or drug
abuse, and elevated rates of alcohol and drug disorders among female
psychiatric patients with histories of CSA. The present study examines
the relationship of CSA to women's use of alcohol and other drugs in a
large, nationally representative sample of U.S. women. METHOD: As part
of a national survey of women's drinking, 1,099 women were asked about
sexual experiences occurring before age 18. Women who reported sexual
experiences classified as abusive were compared to women without
histories of CSA on nine measures of substance use, self-perception of
anxiousness, the occurrence of one or more lifetime depressive
episodes, five measures of sexual dysfunction, and early onset of
masturbation and consensual sexual intercourse. RESULTS: Results of
logit analyses, controlling for age, ethnicity and parental education,
indicated that women with histories of CSA were significantly more
likely than women without CSA histories to report recent alcohol use,
intoxication, drinking-related problems and alcohol dependence
symptoms; lifetime use of prescribed psychoactive drugs and illicit
drugs; depression and anxiety; pain that prevented intercourse; and
consensual sexual intercourse before age 15. CONCLUSIONS: Findings
from this U.S. national sample support those of previous clinical
studies and suggest that women's experience of sexual abuse in
childhood may be an important risk factor for later substance abuse,
psychopathology and sexual dysfunction. Implications of these findings
for future research, treatment and prevention are discussed.