The experiences of help received by children in the aftermath of rape.

Abstract

The aim of the study was to explore and describe the experiences of children who have been raped. It is a known fact that children are raped every day in South Africa, but how the consequences are experienced by the child victims of rape is another matter. Specifically, the researcher wanted to determine whether these children receive the support that is their constitutional right and whether or not they are subjected tc secondary victimization. The sampling strategy employed was purposive sampling. This type of sampling wai selected, as the researcher was looking for a particular type of participant, that is, children who had disclosed rape. The sample consisted of six female children between the ages of 5 and 17years. Participants' parents were consulted for their consent at c counseling centre for abused children in Durban, where participants attended group counseling and individual sessions. The data were collected by means of semi-structured interviews and analyzed usin^ thematic analysis. Unstructured interviews were tape recorded and transcribed. Thesi transcriptions were coded for descriptive themes and were analyzed using thematic conten analysis. The research findings suggest that children have mixed views regarding the quality of the help they receive; some had positive experiences and some had negative experiences. Despite the fact that most participants experienced a sense of being interrogated and had feelings of being not involved during discussions, two participants reported that although rape is an atrocious experience there were positive consequences for them. For example, getting attention from significant people in their lives was one of their positive experiences. It was the experience of the researcher that there is a lack of research pertaining to the experiences of children who are rape victims, especially research focusing on the quality of support that rape victims ought to receive. Further research is recommended to clarify and measure the prevalence of typical feelings and experiences of children who have been raped