The Sexual Self-Perceptions of Young Women Experiencing Abuse in Dating Relationships

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To assess whether the negative sexual self-perceptions held by women in abusive dating relationships were an artifact of the greater depressive affect and reduced self-esteem of these women, a hierarchical regression analysis was conducted in which negative sexual self-perceptions at Time 1 were regressed onto length of time in the relationship on the first step, depressive affect and self-esteem scores on the second step, followed by the presence or absence of psychological/physical abuse and sexual coercion. As expected, greater depressive symptoms and lower self-esteem were both related to more negative sexual self-perceptions, [R.sup.2] = .279, F(2, 101) = 20.35, p < .001, although only depressive symptomatology accounted for unique variance (see Table III). After these variables were controlled for, abusive experiences explained an additional 13.9% of the variance in negative sexual self-perceptions, F(2, 99) = 12.40, p < .001. As seen in Table III, these findings suggest that experiences of sexual coercion especially, and physical/psychological abuse as well, had a direct relation to women's negative sexual self-perceptions, irrespective of depressive affect.

DISCUSSION

Although developing an intimate relationship is often a challenging experience, it can be more so when combined with experiences of abuse (Dimmitt, 1995; Varia & Abidin, 1999). In accordance with past research (Apt & Hurlbert, 1993; Bartoi et al., 2000; Bartoi & Kinder, 1998; McCarthy, 1998), experiences of physical or psychological abuse or sexual coercion were found to be related to women's sexual self-perceptions, in that women who had experienced abuse in their dating relationships reported more negative sexual self-perceptions than did women who were not abused. It should be noted, however, that many of the women who were in abusive relationships had experienced prior abuse or assault, a finding that is not unusual (Banyard et al., 2000; Pipes & LeBov-Keeler, 1997). It may be that prior abuse set in motion a cascade of changes related to belief systems, and perceptions of self and others, that increased the likelihood of subsequently encountering abuse (Banyard et al., 2000). Thus, given the high correspondence between current and previous experiences, these factors could not be separated, and so some caution is merited regarding the impact of current dating abuse.

Negative sexual self-perceptions among women experiencing sexual coercion in their relationships were particularly marked the outset of the study, which represented a transitional phase in these young women's lives. Women who were in abusive relationships not only lacked a key source of social support, namely that of their intimate partners, but in fact likely experienced their intimate relationships as an additional source of stress. Thus, when the stress associated with the transition to university was superimposed upon this backdrop of abuse, women's distress may have been exacerbated. This may have had the effect of undermining women's self-perceptions (Rao et al., 1999). However, given the correlational nature of this study, it may have been that women who already had negative self-perceptions were particularly vulnerable during this transition time. In line with this, women's negative self-perceptions were found to be associated with reduced self-esteem and more depressive symptoms. It is also possible, however, that within this new environment, women who were abused may become aware of how other intimate relationships compared to their own. This relative comparison might serve to increase negative sexual self-perceptions if the women question their own self-worth. Alternatively, given that the exaggerated negative sexual self-perceptions at the outset of the academic year were evident only among women who reported having experienced sexual coercion, as opposed to psychological or physical abuse, it is possible that the sexual dynamics within the relationship may have altered during this period. For example, partners may have been more neglectful in light of perceiving an increased number of alternative relationships, or conversely, may have been more coercive if they perceived a threat due to potential alternatives available for the women. As the year progressed, women and/or their partners may have readapted and their relationships stabilized (for better or worse). Hence, the women's negative sexual self-perceptions attenuated somewhat over time, although they continued to be more negative than those of women in nonabusive relationships. This interpretation is clearly speculative, and it requires a closer examination of the ongoing sexual dynamics within intimate relationships that involve coercion.

It is interesting that experiences of abuse were not associated with women's positive perceptions of their sexuality. It is possible that this reflects a lack of sensitivity of our measure of positive perceptions. Indeed, an important next step may validate our positive and negative sexual self-perceptions against other measures that make this distinction. Assessing the relations between the current measure of sexual self-perceptions with the positive and negative sexual schemas defined by Andersen and Cyranowski (1994) might be particularly interesting for both psychometric and theoretical reasons. As schemas are internalized representations that serve to filter incoming information and guide behaviors, it is important to determine the degree to which the sexual self-perceptions of women in abusive relationships are incorporated into these relatively stable schematic structures. Integration of these beliefs into women's self-schema may have implications for women's well-being not only within their current relationships, but as well for their interactions in future relationships. The finding that positive perceptions appeared to be resistant to abuse, and were independent of women's negative sexual self-perceptions, suggests that women seem to be able to compartmentalize different aspects of their intimate relationships (Apt, Hurlbert, Pierce, & White, 1996) as well as distinguish between aspects of their sexual self-perceptions. This may be encouraging, in that, if women exit these relationships, their positive self-perceptions may provide a basis for establishing healthier relationships with more supportive partners. However, in the present study we did not assess the longer term effects of abuse on sexual self-perceptions either within women's current relationships or upon the termination of their relationships.

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Consistent with previous research, women who experienced abuse in their dating relationships also reported reduced self-esteem (Jezl, Molidor, & Wright, 1996; Katz et al., 2000) and more depressive symptoms (Migeot & Lester, 1996). Thus, women's more negative sexual self-perceptions might have been a by-product of their feelings of general negative affect. Depressive affect or low self-esteem might result in the suppression of women's sexual desire or generalize to their self-perceptions in the sexual domain. Indeed, self-esteem and depressive symptoms were associated with more negative sexual self-perceptions. However, when esteem and depressive symptomatology were controlled for, women's experiences of abuse continued to have a direct relation to their more negative self-perceptions. This finding is consistent with those of others who have noted that the lack of intimacy and compatibility within the intimate relationship may impact sexual self-perceptions (Apt & Hurlbert, 1993). Moreover, the presence of abuse may promote a woman's perception of her sexuality as secondary to her partner's (Hird & Jackson, 2001) and reduce the importance of her own needs and her ability to voice those needs (Patton & Mannison, 1995).

It ought to be noted that the generalizability of the results of this study may be limited by its focus on university women. For example, these women may have a relative wealth of resources to rely on (e.g., postsecondary education, a highly social day-to-day milieu), all of which may affect their responses within the intimate relationship and, in turn, their sexual self-perceptions. Future researchers in the area of young women's experiences of date abuse should select a stratified sample of young women, both in and out of educational settings.

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