"In Silence there was a lot of suffering": The impact of child sexual abuse across the life-course.

This dissertation explores the lifelong impact of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) and the role that the timing of disclosure plays in shaping survivors’ experiences. Using a life-course perspective, this study examines how the age at which survivors disclose – whether in childhood, young adulthood and late adulthood, affects outcomes across the life-course, such as access to justice, and social responses. This study adopted a qualitative approach, whereby 31 adult survivors were interviewed. Participants varied by age and disclosed abuse at different life stages. A thematic analysis was employed to interpret the data through the lens of life-course theory, exploring themes such as human agency, linked lives, timing of events and societal framing. The findings revealed that survivors described a multi-stage, non-linear journey of disclosure involving pre-disclosure silence, the moment of disclosure, and its aftermath. The findings also showed that participants that disclosed in childhood often encountered disbelief and inaction. Survivors that participated in this study reported difficulties in major life transitions such as education, forming romantic relationships, employment, and parenthood. These disruptions were particularly severe when disclosure was delayed or disbelieved. Furthermore, this study showed that older survivors often had less societal support and more institutional distrust, which affected their ability to disclose. Last, the findings showed that a reframing of CSA discourse such as replacing terms such as ‘historical’ or ‘non-recent’ with survivor-informed language that acknowledges the ongoing harm. The results from this study concluded that institutions should accommodate the complexities of disclosure by understanding the impact that CSA has on survivors across the course of their life. This research fills a significant gap in understanding CSA disclosures across the life-course and offers crucial insights for improving institutional response.