title: Resilience and mental health in adult survivors of child abuse associated with the institution of the Austrian Catholic Church.
abstract: In recent years, reports of institutional abuse within the Catholic Church have emerged and research on the consequences on mental health is in its beginnings. In this study, we report findings on current mental health and resilience in a sample of adult survivors of institutional abuse (N = 185). We compared 3 groups of survivors that differed regarding their current mental health to investigate aspects of resilience, coping, and disclosure. The majority of the sample was male (76.2%), the mean age was 56.28 (SD = 9.46) years, and more than 50.0% of the sample was cohabiting/married. Most of the survivors reported severe mental health problems. Known protective factors (education, social support, age) were not associated with mental health in our sample. Our findings corroborate that institutional abuse has long-term effects on mental health. We found that fewer emotional reactions during disclosure, task-oriented coping, and optimism were associated with better mental health. The study was limited by a cross-sectional design, but we conclude that the kind of institutional abuse reported is especially adverse, and thus typical protective factors for mental health do not apply. Future research should focus on intrapersonal factors and institutional dynamics to improve treatment for persons affected by institutional abuse.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Brigitte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lueger-Schuster
authors.forename: Dina
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Weindl
authors.forename: Viktoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kantor
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Knefel
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Glück
authors.forename: Yvonne
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Moy
authors.forename: Asisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Butollo
authors.forename: Reinhold
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jagsch
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D054523:Adult Survivors of Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001317:Austria; D002410:Catholicism; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D030881:Disclosure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000209:etiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires