Child sexual abuse is a global concern. Much national and international attention has focussed on child sexual exploitation and sexual abuse which is technology assisted or that which happens between children. A high proportion of victims and survivors are girls abused by adult males who are or feel like family. These victims are under-represented in research. Although primary school staff have ideal opportunity to support them, victims rarely disclose sexual abuse experiences at school. I led this research as an insider researcher using heuristic inquiry to provide unique insights into women survivors’ experiences of primary school having been sexually abused by an adult male within their family ecosystem. Heuristic inquiry holistically investigates a social phenomenon for which the researcher and research partners share intense personal interest (Moustakas, 2015). Using a best-practice model with a trauma responsive and relational ethic of care, I invited women survivors to share memories and create meaning of what primary school was like for them. Twelve survivor research partners provided rich, nuanced detail of how they experienced school, their protective factors and what might have helped them disclose. Reflexive thematic analysis of the semi-structured interviews and follow-up communications revealed their trauma responses, their efforts to establish autonomy, how they masked what had happened to them and their strong desire to matter in contrast with the sense of not mattering instilled by the sexual abuse and familial responses. The recommendations generated can inform educators, practitioners in other sectors and policy makers to drive enhanced responses for victims.

Authors:
Sheona Goodyear, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom

About the Presenter(s)
Sheona Goodyear is a dyslexia and inclusion specialist and doctoral researcher at the University of Birmingham, School of Education.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Sunday Schedule

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