Male Survivors
Even in our progressive culture, organizations and individuals continue marginalizing, isolating, disbelieving and often denying the existence of victims of various identities and experiences. As the sexual assault/domestic violence movement grew out of the women’s community and from a place of empowerment and healing by and for women, a significant portion of the population of victims were ignored at best, and re-victimized, ridiculed and denied services, at worst. This population consists of male victims (as well as any gender victims when the perpetrator is female).
Male victims are far less likely to report violence committed against them. The male victims that do report and/or seek professional help are often faced with challenges such as:
- society's stigma for not protecting themselves
- victimization because they fail to conform to the Macho man stereotype
- being perceived as a wimp
- not being believed because they are men
- being denied the status of victim
- are removed from or asked to leave their homes because it is the easy option
- have no support systems in place - they have no "listening ear"
About Gay men:
Various studies estimate that partner abuse among gay men ranges from 12-36%, which is
comparable to the rates of domestic violence among straight women. (In recent years, studies have shown that the rates of domestic violence is almost identical across all sexual orientations and gender identities.)
A study of 2800 interviews of gay men in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, published in December of 2002 in the American Journal of Public Health, found that violence between intimate male partners has been "virtually ignored as a public health problem." About 34 percent had suffered psychological/symbolic battering, 22 percent physical battering and 5 percent sexual battering.
Due to the fact that most DV shelters and services are constructed around heterosexual women victims, gay (and straight) men who are battered or abused by women or men have no place in many organized systems for helping victims. Often, male victims are told that the only shelter options available to them are emergency housing for homeless people.
Websites:
Male Survivor: Overcoming Sexual Victimization of Boys & Men
(A website committed to preventing, healing, and eliminating all forms of sexual victimization of boys and men through support, treatment, research, education, advocacy, and activism.)
http://www.malesurvivor.org/
Stop Abuse for Everyone
http://www.safe4all.org/info
Domestic Abuse Helpline for Men (and Women)
(A key resource in providing crisis intervention and support services to all victims of domestic violence and their families in order to help survivors recover from the trauma of domestic violence. We work towards the elimination of domestic violence by increasing public awareness and decreasing tolerance of domestic violence through community collaboration and education. )
www.noexcuse4abuse.org
Jim Hopper, Ph.D.
(An instructor of psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School)
http://www.jimhopper.com/male-ab/
1 in 6
The mission of 1in6 is to help men who have had unwanted or abusive sexual experiences in childhood live healthy, happy lives.
http://www.1in6.org/
Male Survivor – Ontario, Canada
(a website and services to reduce the impact of sexual abuse and/or sexual assault against males by coordinating and supporting the development and provision of community-based services in Ontario.)
http://www.malesurvivor.on.ca/index.htm
Male Abuse Survivor Support
(support for male survivors)
http://www.aest.org.uk/survivors/male/
Books and Articles
Adams, Kenneth M. (1991). Silently Seduced . Deerfield Beach , FL : Health Communications.
Adams, Kenneth M. (2007). When He's Married to Mom . New York : Fireside Books (Simon and Schuster)
Angelica, Jade Christine (2002). We Are Not Alone: A Teenage Boy's Personal Account of Child Sexual Abuse from Disclosure through Prosecution and Treatment. New York : Haworth Maltreatment and Trauma Press
Bagley, C. (1991). The prevalence and mental health sequels of child sexual abuse in a community survey of women aged 18 to 27. Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health, 10, 103-116.
Bagley, C., Wood, M., & Young, L. (1994). Victim to abuser: Mental health and behavioral sequels of child sexual abuse in a community survey of young adult males. Child Abuse and Neglect, 18, 683-697.
Baker, A. W. & Duncan, S. P. (1985). Child sexual abuse: A study of prevalence in Great Britain. Child Abuse and Neglect, 9, 457-467.
Bauserman, R. & Rind, B. (1997). Psychological correlates of male child and adolescent sexual experiences with adults: A review of the nonclinical literature. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 26, 105-141.
Bear, E., and Dimock, P. (1988). Adults Molested as Children: A Survivor's Manual for Women And Men. Orwell , VT : Safer Society Press.
Belkin, D. S., Greene, A. F., Rodrique, J. R., & Boggs, S. R. (1994). Psychopathology and history of sexual abuse. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 9, 535-547.
Berendzen, R, & Palmer, L. (1993). Come here : A man overcomes the tragic aftermath of childhood sexual abuse. New York: Villard Books.
Black, C. A. & DeBlassie, R. R. (1993). Sexual abuse in male children and adolescents: Indicators, effects, and treatments. Adolescence, 28, 123-133.
Blanchard, G. (1986). Male victims of child sexual abuse: A portent of things to come. Journal of Independent Social Work, 1, 19-27.
Bloom, S. (1997). Creating Sanctuary: Toward the Evolution of Sane Societies . New York : Routledge.
Bolton, F. G. (1989). Males at risk: The other side of sexual abuse. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Boyle, P. (1994 ). Scout's Honor: Sexual Abuse in America's Most Trusted Institution . Rocklin , CA : Prima.
Briere, J., & Zaidi, L. J. (1988). Sexual abuse histories and sequelae in female psychiatric emergency Room patients. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 146, 1602-1606.
Brannon, J. M., Larson, B., & Doggett, M. (1989). The extent and origins of sexual molestation and abuse among incarcerated adolescent males. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 33, 161-172.
Briere, J., Evans, D., Runtz, M., & Wall, T. (1988). Symptomatology in men who were molested as children: A comparison study. American Journal of Ortho-psychiatry, 58, 457-461.
Briggs, F. & Hawkins, R. M. F. (1996). A comparison of the childhood experiences of convicted male child molesters and men who were sexually abused in childhood and claimed to be nonoffenders. Child Abuse and Neglect, 20, 221-233.
Brodie, Faithe (1992a). When the Other Woman Is His Mother: A Guide to Identify Your Mate's Child Abuse, Incest, and Dissociation . Tacoma WA : Winged Eagle Press
Brodie, Faithe (1992b). When the Other Woman Is His Mother: Boys and Incest Victims and Male Multiple Personality Disorder . Tacoma WA : Winged Eagle Press
Browne, Marie, with Browne, Marlene (2007). If the Man You Love Was Abused . Avon , MA : Adams Media.
Bruckner, D. F. & Johnson, P. E. (1987). Treatment for adult male victims of childhood sexual abuse. Social Casework, 68, 81-87.
Chandy, J. M., Blum, R. W., Resnick, M. D. (1996). Gender-specific outcomes for sexually abused adolescents. Child Abuse & Neglect, 20, 2019-1231.
Collings, S. J. (1995). The long-term effects of contact and noncontact forms of child sexual abuse in a sample of university men. Child Abuse & Neglect, 19, 1-6.
Cook-Daniels, L. (2006). Seeing Past the “L”: Addressing Anti-Male Bias in Sexual Assault Services for the “LGBT” Community. Originally published in Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault Connections Quarterly Educational Journal , Fall/Winter, October 2006.
de Milly, W. (2000). In my father's arms: A true story of incest. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press.
DeJong, A. R., Emmett, G. A., & Hervada, A. A. (1982). Epidemiologic factors in sexual abuse of boys. American Journal of the Diseases of Children, 136, 990-993.
Dimock, P. T. (1988). Adult males sexually abused as children: Characteristics and implications for treatment. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 3, 203-216.
Dorais, Michel, Don't Tell: The Sexual Abuse of Boys, McGill-Queen Univ Press, 2002.
Dube, Shanta R et al. “Long-Term Consequences of Childhood Sexual Abuse by Gender of Victim.” American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2005: 28(5): 430–438.
Ellerstein, N. S., & Canavan, J. W. (1980). Sexual abuse of boys. American Journal of Diseases of Children, 134, 255-257.
Estrada, Hank (1994). Recovery for Male Victims of Child Abuse. Red Rabbit Press, 356 W.Zia Rd., Santa Fe, NM 87505. ISBN: 9992059346
Finkelhor, D. (1979). Sexually victimized children. New York: Free Press.
Finkelhor, D. (1984). Child sexual abuse: New theory and research. New York: Free Press.
Finkelhor, D., Hotaling, G., Lewis, I. A., Smith, C. (1990). Sexual abuse in a national survey of adult men and women: Prevalence, characteristics, and risk factors. Child Abuse and Neglect, 14, 19-28.
Freeman-Longo, R. E. (1986). The impact of sexual victimization on males. Child Abuse and Neglect, 10, 411-414.
Friedrich, W. N., Berliner, L., Urquiza, A. J., & Beilke, R. L. (1988). Brief diagnostic group treatment of sexually abused boys. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 3, 331-343.
Fritz, G. S., Stoll, K., & Wagner, N. A. (1981). A comparison of males and females who were sexually abused as children. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 7, 4-59.
Fromuth, M. E. & Burkhart, B. R. (1989). Long-term psychological correlates of childhood sexual abuse in two samples of college men. Child Abuse and Neglect, 13, 533-542.
Fromuth, M. E. & Burkhart, B. R. (1987). Childhood sexual victimization among college men: Definitional and methodological issues. Victims and Violence, 2, 241-253.
Gartner, R. B. (2001). Betrayed as boys: Psychodynamic treatment of sexually abused men. New York: Guilford Press.
Gartner, R. B. (2005). Beyond betrayal: Taking charge of your life after boyhood sexual abuse. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Gartner, R. B. (1999b), Cinematic depictions of boyhood sexual victimization. Gender and Psychoanalysis , 4:253-289 (available ay www.richardgartner.com)
Gilgun, J. & Reiser, E. (1990). The development of sexual identity among men sexually abused as children. Families in Society, 71, 515-521.
Gold, S. N., Elhai, J. D., Lucenko, B. A., Swingle, J. M., Hughes, D. M. (1998). Abuse characteristics among childhood sexual abuse survivors in therapy: A gender comparison. Child Abuse & Neglect, 22, 1005-1012.
Grubman-Black, Stephen (1990, 2nd edition 2002). Broken Boys/Mending Men . Caldwell , NJ : Blackburn Press
Harrison, D. & Sheffer, S. (2005). In a dark time: A prisoner's struggle for healing and change. Amherst, MA: Stone Lion Press. (Publisher's site, including book excerpts.)
Haskett, M. E., Marziano, B., & Dover, E. R. (1996). Absence of males in maltreatment research: A survey of recent literature. Child Abuse & Neglect, 20, 1175-1182.
Henton, D., and McCann, D. (1995). Boys Don't Cry: The Struggle for Justice and Healing In Canada's Biggest Sex Abuse Scandal . Toronto : McClelland and Stewart.
Hepburn, J. M. (1994). The implications of contemporary feminist theories of development for the treatment of male victims of sexual abuse. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 3, 1-18.
Hillary, B. E. & Schare, M. L. (1993). Sexually and physically abused adolescents: An empirical search for PTSD. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 49, 161-165.
Holmes, G.R., Offen, L., Waller, G. (1997). See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil: Why do relatively few male victims of childhood sexual abuse receive for help for abuse-related issues in adulthood? Clinical Psychology Review, 17, 69-88.
Hopkins, B. (2004) A boy's story. ACM, pp. 140-153
Hunter, J. A. (1991). A comparison of the psychosocial adjustment of adult males and females sexually molested as children. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 6, 205-217.
Hunter, M. (1990). Abused boys: The neglected victims of sexual abuse. New York: Fawcett Columbine.
Hunter, M. (Ed.) (1990). The sexually abused male: Prevalence, impact, and treatment. Vol. 1. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Hunter, Mic. (1992). Joyous Sexuality: Healing From Family Sexual Dysfunction. Minneapolis , MN : Comp Care Publishers.
Hunter, M. (Ed.) (1996). The sexually abused male: Application of treatment strategies. Vol. 2. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Johnson, R. L. & Shrier, D. (1987). Past sexual victimization by females of males in an adolescent medicine clinic population. American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 650-652.
Johnson, Scott. Man to Man. When Your Partner says NO - Pressured Sex and Date Rape. Safe Society Press. ISBN: 1884444318
Kendall-Tackett, K. A. & Simon, A. F. (1992). A comparison of the abuse experiences of male and female adults molested as children. Journal of Family Violence, 7, 57-62.
King, N. (1995). Speaking our truth: Voices of courage and healing for male survivors of childhood sexual abuse. San Francisco: Harpercollins.
Kinzl, J. F., Mangweth, B., Traweger, C., Biebl, W. (1996). Sexual dysfunction in males: Significance of adverse childhood experiences. Child Abuse and Neglect, 20, 759-766.
Kuhn, Judy, ed. (2000). In Cabin Six: An Anthology of Poetry by Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse . Atascadero , CA : Impact Publishing
Krug, R. S. (1989). Adult male reports of childhood sexual abuse by mothers: Case descriptions, motivations and long-term consequences. Child Abuse and Neglect, 13, 111-119.
La Valle, John (1996). Everything You Need to Know When You Are the Male Survivor of Rape or Sexual Assault . New York : The Rosen Company
Lawson, C. (1993). Mother-son sexual abuse: Rare or underreported? A critique of the research. Child Abuse and Neglect, 17, 261-269.
Lee, John. (1987). The Flying Boy: Healing The Wounded Man . Deerfield Beach , FL : Health Communications, Inc.
Levesque, R. J. R. (1994). Sex differences in the experience of child sexual victimization. Journal of Family Violence, 9, 357-369.
Lew, M. (1988). Victims no longer: Men recovering from incest and other child sexual abuse. New York: Nevraumont.
Lew, Mike. (1990) Victims No Longer: Men Recovering from Incest and Other Sexual Child Abuse. Foreword by Ellen Bass / Paperback. ISBN: 0060973005.
Lew, M., & Hoffman, R. (2000). Leaping upon the mountains: Men proclaiming victory over sexual child abuse. Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts: Small Wonder Books.
Linden , Paul (2001). Winning is Healing: Body Awareness and Empowerment for Abuse Survivors . ebook available at www.being-in-movement.com
Linden , Paul (2003). Reach Out: Body Awareness Training For Peacemaking - Five Easy Lessons. ebook available at www.being-in-movement.com (a free download).
Linden , Paul (2004 ). Winning is Healing Basics: An Introduction to Body Awareness and Empowerment for Abuse Survivors . ebook available at www.being-in-movement.com
Lisak, D. (1994). The psychological impact of sexual abuse: Content analysis of interviews with male survivors. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 7, 525-548. (http://www.jimhopper.com/pdfs/Lisak_(1994)_Male_Survivor_Interviews.pdf)
Lisak, D., Hopper, J., & Song, P. (1996). Factors in the cycle of violence: Gender Rigidity and emotional constriction. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 9, 721-743.
Lisak, D. & Luster, L. (1994). Educational, occupational, and relationship histories of men who were sexually and/or physically abused as children. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 7, 507-523.
Loving in Fear: An Anthology of Lesbian and Gay Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse. (1991). Toronto : Queer Press.
Mendel, M. P. (1990). The male survivor: The impact of sexual abuse. London: Sage.
Metcalfe, M., Oppenheimer, R., Dignon, A., & Palmer, R.L. (1990). Childhood sexual experiences reported by male psychiatric patients. Psychological Medicine, 20, 925-929.
Mezey, G. C., & King, M. B. (Eds.) (1992). Male victims of sexual assault. New York: Oxford University Press.
Mezey, Gillian, and King, Michael, Male Victims of Sexual Assault, Oxford, 2000.
Miletski, H. (1997). Mother-Son Incest: The Unthinkable Broken Taboo . Brandon , VT : Safer Society Press.
Munro, Kali (2002). Am I Gay Because of the Abuse? ( http://www.kalimunro.com/article_gay_abuse.html)
Myers, M. F. (1989). Men sexually assaulted as adults and sexually abused as boys. 13th Annual Canadian Sex Research Forum Conference (1986, Vancouver, Canada). Archives of Sexual Behavior, 18, 203-215.
Munson, M. (2006) “Practical Tips for Working with Transgender Survivors of Sexual Violence,” Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault Connections Quarterly Educational Journal , Fall/Winter, October 2006.
Napier-Hemy, John (1991). When Boys Have Been Sexually Abused: A Guide for Young Boys = Les Jeunes Garcons Victimes De Violence Sexuelle: Guide A L'intention des Jeunes Garcons. Vancouver: Incest and Sexual Abuse Centre.
Nasjleti, M. (1980). Suffering in silence: The male incest victim. Child Welfare, 59, 269-275.
Olson, P. E. (1990). The sexual abuse of boys: A study of the long-term psychological effects. In M. Hunter (Ed.), The sexually abused male: Vol. 1. Prevalence, impact and treatment (pp.137-152). Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Palmer, Tink and Wootliff, Jeremy (2001). No Son of Mine!: Children Abused through Prostitution . Ilford, Essex , UK : Barnardo's (video and report).
Peters, D. K. & Range, L. M. (1995). Childhood sexual abuse and current suicidality in college women and men. Child Abuse and Neglect, 19, 335-341.
Pierce, R. & Pierce, L. H. (1985). The sexually abused child: A comparison of male and female victims. Special Issue: C. Henry Kempe memorial research issue. Child Abuse and Neglect, 9, 191-199.
Risin, L. I. & Koss, M. P. (1987). The sexual abuse of boys: Prevalence and descriptive characteristics of childhood victimizations. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2, 309-323.
Rosen, L. N. & Martin, L. (1998). Long-term effects of childhood maltreatment history on gender-related personality characteristics. Child Abuse & Neglect, 22, 197-211.
Sanders, Timothy. (1992). Male Survivors: A 12-Step Recovery Program For Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse . Freedom, CA: Crossing Press.
Scarce, M. (1997). Male on Male Rape: The Hidden Toll of Stigma and Shame . New York : Insight Books (Plenum Press).
Schacht, A. J., Kerlinsky, D., & Carlson, C. (1990). Group therapy with sexually abused boys: Leadership, projective identification, and countertransference issues. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, 40, 401-417.
Sonkin, Daniel Jay (1998). Wounded Boys Heroic Men: A Man's Guide to Recovering from Child Abuse . Adams Media Corporation
Thomas, T. (1989). Men Surviving Incest . Walnut Creek , CA : Launch Press.
Tobin, Rod~(1999). Alone and Forgotten: The Sexually Abused Man . Carp:ON: Creative Bound.
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Wiehe, V. (1996). The Brother-Sister Hurt: Recognizing the Effects of Sibling Abuse. Brandon , VT : Safer Society Press.
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