Incest between an adult and a related child or adolescent is recognized as the most prevalent form of child sexual abuse according to researcher Christine Courtois, Ph.D. Coutois was quoted in a thesis written by Lisa Elaine Warner as saying the potential for damage to the child is great when it is a victim of incest.
In her book, High on Arrival, childhood-actress Mackenzie Phillips claims that her father shot her up with drugs then raped her. She has no recollection as to whether or not anything happened prior to that particular incident that took place when she was 19 years old, but stated that it developed into consensual sex.
Incest Cases that Shocked the World
In 2006, siblings Patrick Stübing and Susan Karolewski, who had four children together, became front page news as they challenged Germany's incest laws. Incest is illegal and even while sitting in a jail cell, and their children in foster care, this couple wanted to be together. In March 2007, Germany's highest court upheld the law that incest is a criminal offense.
Last year, 73-year old Josef Fritzl admitted to imprisoning his daughter, Elisabeth Fritzl, 42, for twenty-four years. He repeatedly raped her and fathered seven children by her. Elisabeth said that her first memory of her father raping her was when she was 11 years old. In August 1984, her father enticed her into the basement, drugged her, handcuffed her and locked her in a room.
In 1997, Allen and Patricia Muth, a brother and sister in Wisconsin, were charged with incest. They were separated as children but when they met as adults, they fell in love and had children together. They were prosecuted, convicted and imprisoned as a result of their choice. Allen was sentenced to eight years and Patricia five years.
Incest is Repulsive
The thought of a family member sexually touching or raping another family member makes most people feel sick. Simply stated, it's repulsive. ABC News reported on April 9, 2008, that recent research reinforces the idea that even on a subconscious level, the thought of incest is sickening to most people. A team of researchers at the University of California, published a study in 2007 in the journal “Nature” that shows siblings possess a hard-wired instinct to avoid sexual relations with one another.
Statistics
Sadly, child sexual abuse is not uncommon. According to statistics compiled by the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 out of 4 girls and 1 out of 6 boys will experience some form of sexual abuse before they reach their 18th birthday.
It's not the stranger to be leery of, children are most often sexually abused by someone they know and trust. According to information in the document “Child Maltreatment 2005,” three-quarters of reported cases of child sexual abuse are committed by family members, or other individuals who are considered part of the victim's 'trust circle'.
According to author Judith Herman, in her book, “Father-Daughter Incest”, she says that father-daughter incest is most frequent. Other studies, including those by Goldman & Goldman (1988), David Finkelor (1979), Sue Rayment-McHugh and Ian Nesbit (2003), indicate that sibling incest occurs as often if not more than father-daughter. Researchers Bank & Kahn (1982), Caffaro & Conn-Caffaro (1998) and Harding (2001), also agree that sibling incest occurs at a frequency that rivals and may exceed other forms of incest.
Getting Help
For those who have been a victim of incest, or any sexually-related crime need to get help. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network is a good starting point in seeking further information and help.
Canadian Hotlines
- National Crisis Line 1-800-999-9999
- Kids Help Phone 1-800 668 6868
American Hotlines
- Child Help 1-800-422-4453
- Rape, Abuse and Incest National Helpline 1-800-656-4673
- Sexual Assault Crisis Line 1-800-643-6250
Sources:
- Child Maltreatment (2005). US Government.
- Incest. Wikipedia
- Father-Daughter Incest. Judith Herman (1981). Harvard University Press.
- Goldman & Goldman (1988). The Prevalence and Nature of Child Sexual Abuse in Australia.
- Finkelor, D. (1979). Sexually Victimized Children. New York: Free Press.
- Rayment-McHugh. Sue and Ian Nesbit. 2003. Sibling Incest Offenders as a Subset of Adolescent Sex Offenders.
- The Star Online. Incest Age-Old Taboo. Allan Koay. May 5, 2008
- ABC News. When Daddy Loves Daughter: Exploring the Incest Taboo. Dan Childs. April 9, 2008.
- The Effects of Incest: A Review of the Literature Pertaining to Women and Children. Lisa Elaine Warner (1986). Education Resources Information Center.
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