Physical and sexual assault histories among psychiatric outpatients

Using a semistructured interview, the author obtained complete histories of experiences of being physically or sexually assaulted from 31 psychiatric outpatients, and most assaults had not been revealed to the patients' prior therapists.

Abstract

Using a semistructured interview, the author obtained complete histories of experiences of being physically or sexually assaulted from 31 psychiatric outpatients. The majority (68%) of outpatients had experienced major physical and/or sexual assaults, and most assaults had not been revealed to the patients' prior therapists. Circumstances associated with the assaults, a comparison of outpatient and inpatient assault histories, and the relevance of the findings to clinical practice are discussed.