A psycho-social exploration of shame within young adult women’s narratives of unwanted sexual experiences

Background: Shame is widely theorised as central to the impact of CSA, contributing to disrupted self-concept and psychological distress, relational disconnection and is a barrier to disclosure and healing (MacGinley et al., 2019). However, there is a dearth of qualitative literature within the area, with a particularly limited focus on women, shame, and CSA. Aims: The research explored the presence of shame within young adult women’s narratives, and how shame is navigated and overcome over women’s life course, and how it influences the construction and sharing of stories. Methodology: A psycho-social methodology in combination with narrative inquiry was utilised to explore the presence, transformation and linguistic features of shame within young adult women’s narratives. Purposive and convenience sampling methods were utilised to recruit women via university and social media. Eight young adult women participated within two interviews which was guided by the biographical narrative interpretative method (BNIM). Data was analysed using personal and structural narrative analysis methods. Findings: The results illustrated the presence and transformation of shame across women’s lives which was captured within nine narrative themes; ‘Traumatic Feminine Shame’, ‘Retreating for Self-Protection’, ‘Systemic Shame Wounds’, ‘Navigating Relational Proximity’, ‘Mirrored Compassion’, ‘The Path of Self-Reclamation’ and ‘The Unburdening of Shame in Emerging Adulthood’. Structural analysis revealed three narratives types including ‘Narratives of Fragmentation’, ‘Narratives of Disconnection’ and ‘Narratives of Integrated Shame’. Conclusions: Emerging adulthood was a critical developmental period for re-authoring shame narratives. Women integrated new experiences into their identity, challenged dominant cultural narratives, and began to separate shame from their core sense of self. The findings offer recommendations for shame-sensitive practice for clinicians and organisations working with young adult survivors of USE, and highlight the need for continued political action to challenge harmful patriarchal structures which contribute to that perpetuate shame.