Overcoming Trauma

Abstract

Child sexual abuse can have devastating and long-lasting consequences for its victims, although some survivors manifest resilience or growth in the aftermath of abuse. This study explored resilience and thriving, assessed with life satisfaction ratings, in 47,869 self-identified survivors participating in a large cross-sectional national survey. Life satisfaction in survivors was associated with being younger, female, White, employed, better educated, better paid, and being in intimate relationships. The context of the abuse was not very important for predicting adult psychological status, but lesser severity of abuse and fewer additional traumatic experiences were positively associated with satisfaction. The Big Five personality variables were important predictors of satisfaction: Well-being was associated with greater extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness, as well as lower openness and neuroticism. Studying thriving after trauma may be a fruitful avenue for future research and may assist in the development of treatment and prevention programs.