Abstract

Many factors can discourage survivors of sexual assault from reporting their assaults. Even those survivors who disclose, their reporting experiences may not leave them feeling empowered or that they have received adequate support to begin the healing process after disclosure. Using a mixed methods approach, we examined the relationship between religious and spiritual coping strategies, the experience of social disclosure, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM). We further used qualitative data examining the ways that participants used religious/spiritual coping strategies in response to the trauma of sexual assault. In total, 94 female or non-binary participants were enrolled. The CFA showed good model fit for all latent factors except positive religious coping and positive social responses. The SEM path analysis found a significant relationship between the latent factor Distract and PTSD symptoms. No other variables were significant in the SEM model, likely due to the small sample size. Qualitative data themes were identified such as respondent-supported healing, responses promoting shutting down/isolation, and responses affecting self-blame for social disclosure and positive and negative religious coping. Finally, this study substantiates the importance of research assessing the needs and experiences of sexual assault survivors, as this is a population that is particularly vulnerable, and struggles to get adequate support and resources. An increase in understanding about the experiences, needs, and coping strategies of sexual assault survivors will help both informal and formal interventions become more effective.

Degree

PhD

College and Department

David O. McKay School of Education; Counseling Psychology and Special Education

Rights

https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2022-08-04

Document Type

Dissertation

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd12965

Keywords

spirituality, religiosity, religious/spiritual coping, sexual assault, posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, social disclosure

Language

english

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