The Psychological Impact of Previous Victimization: Examining the “Abuse Defense” in a Sample of Harassment Litigants

Margaret E. Reed; Linda L. Collinsworth; Angela K Lawson; Louise F. Fitzgerald

doi:10.1007/s12207-016-9267-1

The Psychological Impact of Previous Victimization: Examining the “Abuse Defense” in a Sample of Harassment Litigants

Margaret E. Reed, Linda L. Collinsworth^*, Angela K Lawson, Louise F. Fitzgerald

^*Corresponding author for this work

Obstetrics and Gynecology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

The present study examines the impact of previous sexual victimization on emotional distress in a sample of women (n = 492) involved in a sexual harassment class action lawsuit. Sexual harassment was found to predict symptoms of PTSD and general symptoms of anxiety, over and above the effects of previous victimization and other relevant personal variables; it also predicted depression and self-esteem, although previous victimization had a stronger impact on these variables than did sexual harassment. The effects of previous victimization and sexual harassment on emotional distress appeared to be independent and cumulative. The legal and clinical relevance of these findings are discussed.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	230-240
Number of pages	11
Journal	Psychological Injury and Law
Volume	9
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s12207-016-9267-1
State	Published - Sep 1 2016

Keywords

Posttraumatic stress disorder
Sexual harassment

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Psychiatry and Mental health
Law

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