ABSTRACT
As a society, we have awakened to the reality that childhood sexual abuse is a major social problem, and that policies must be established to assure protection o f our children. Growing public awareness has resulted in an amazing increase in reported cases o f sexual abuse (Cantwell, 1981; National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1981). Unfortunately, as mental health professionals are keenly aware, we are sorely un derequipped to cope with the demands for services brought forth by these disclosures. Not only are agencies understaffed for managing sexual abuse cases, the technology for assessment and intervention is grossly underdeveloped. A pivotal cornerstone to the development o f adequate social and therapeutic interventions is a development of adequate assessment technology. The purpose o f this chapter is to pro vide a conceptual framework for assessing the sexually abused child, with a particular emphasis on understanding the interplay o f contextual factors as they relate to sexual abuse sequelae. Assessment methodology will be reviewed regarding the context o f the abuse, veracity o f allega tions, impact o f sexual abuse, and factors mediating the impact o f sexual abuse.
