This study investigated the effects of childhood sexual abuse and
parental alcoholism in a sample of university women. Current symptoms
of anxiety and depression were measured together with retrospective
reports of subjects' families of origin. Using a 2 x 2 factorial
design, main effects on symptoms were obtained for sexual abuse and
parental alcoholism, but their interaction was not significant. With
respect to family environment, a history of sexual abuse was
associated with perceptions that families of origin had less cohesion,
more conflict, less emphasis on moral-religious matters, less emphasis
on achievement, and less of an orientation towards intellectual,
cultural, and recreational pursuits. Similarly, subjects who had
alcoholic parents reported less family cohesion, more conflict, and
less emphasis on moral-religious matters. Results of analyses of
covariance suggested that family environment was a mediator of current
symptoms of anxiety, but not symptoms of depression.