A psychologist says that while it can happen, it's not always the case and stigmatisation must be avoided.
Reuters pic
PETALING JAYA: A clinical psychologist has warned against propagating the belief that all child sex survivors end up becoming abusers themselves.
Speaking to FMT, Evelyn Soong from the Milestone Psychological Services said that while the victim-to-perpetrator cycle was real, it was not always the case.
“Many people believe that a child with a history of being a victim of sexual abuse is predisposed to becoming sexual abusers themselves when they grow up.
“There are some reported studies where such perpetrators turn out to have had a history of being sexually victimised during their own childhood,” she told FMT.
“But this is not always the case and the notion of the ‘victim-to-perpetrator cycle’ should be treated with caution to avoid stigmatisation.”
Evelyn pointed out that a sense of identity was built during childhood where ideology and concepts towards the world are being formed.
She said that having to experience sexual abuse at a young age would certainly put survivors at risk.
“This is especially so, when it is paired with possible risk factors, such as low self-esteem and a lack of emotional and social support.”
She said, however, that if the right measures were taken, the cycle could be easily prevented, especially with early identification and intervention.
“There must also be an availability of other important adults in the child’s life besides the abusers.
“Besides that, having strong faith or religious teachings stressing positive development and forgiveness is also very important.”
Evelyn said fairly good sexual knowledge at the onset of the abuse could also prevent the victim-to-perpetrator cycle from happening.
Recently, it was reported that four foreign teenagers had been forced into the sex trade after entering Sabah with their families in search of work.
The four, three girls and a boy, were rescued in a raid on an entertainment outlet at Cybercity near Kota Kinabalu on Feb 7.
The report quoted Kota Kinabalu police chief Asst Comm M Chandra as saying that the victims, who worked as guest relations personnel, were forced to provide sexual services to clients upon request.
The girls were aged 15, 17 and 18 and the boy 16.
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