ABSTRACT
There are pervasive social, individual, inter-relational, psychical, and professional forces which contrive to make any realistic quantification of the extent of female, and maternal, sexual abuse, virtually impossible. The view was taken that of all professional groups, psychotherapists, would be the most likely group to encounter the phenomenon of specifically maternal sexual abuse, in professional practice. Psychotherapy, and psychotherapeutic practice, is often viewed as being resistant to research penetration and subsequent analysis, principally to protect patient confidentiality. The approach was based upon the premise that maternal sexuality, and maternal sexual abuse was a commonly encountered phenomenon. In relation to the difficulties in examining maternal sexual abuse T. A. Trepper comments “the case study should not be considered non scientific, only non experimental.
