This study focuses on the psychological and biological effects of sexual abuse on children. Subjects will be sexually abused females (6-15 years of age) and their parents or guardians. Controls will be age and socio-economically matched. The study will use a multi-method approach to gather information on the psychological and physical development of children and their home environment. Methods include: staging physical development, measurement of blood hormone levels, psychological tests and measures for both children and adults. Three hypotheses will be tested: A), that sexually abused girls will have a more difficult transition through puberty; B), that sexual abuse may alter the hormonal levels and effect the timing of puberty; and C), that sexually abused children will demonstrate higher levels of dissociation than controls.
