ABSTRACT
This chapter is based on a mixture of clinical and research experience. The research perspective involves a PhD. study entitled Clients' and therapists' perceptions of the psychotherapeutic process: a study of adults abused as children. Research into the prevalence of child abuse over recent decades has produced wildly different findings. Browne and Finklehor concluded that approximately 40 per cent of sexually abused children suffer consequences serious enough for them to need therapy in adult life. The activities of psychotherapy and counselling have existed for far longer than the current public recognition and concern about childhood abuse. Recovery models are also limited in that they are less congruent for people who were abused as children in the context of affectionate caretaking relationships. Theoretical arguments revolve around cognitive psychological models of memory versus the notion of 'repression'. The therapeutic community to be proactive with public education and the importance of informed consent for those who seek and utilize counselling and therapy services.
