Mothers of Incest Survivors: Another Side of the Story - Hardcover

Johnson, Janis Tyler

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0253330963 ISBN 13: 9780253330963

Publisher: Indiana University Press, 1992

Synopsis

"This book is both an intellectually stimulating discussion of important theories and an enthrallingly personal reading experience. It does leave a few of the current shibboleths of family sexual abuse theory teetering, but that is all to the good." - Elizabeth L. Navarre. Most literature on incest has focused on the father and daughter in the incest family. "Mothers of Incest Survivors" is the first direct account of incest-family mothers. Janis Tyler Johnson has collected the stories of six mothers who relate, in their own words, their experiences as women, wives, and mothers in incest families. Their accounts challenge the collusive, mother-blaming model that informs much incest literature, as well as the assumptions of many professionals working with incest families. Mothers tell how they discovered the incest secret, why they believed the secret was kept, the ways they responded, how they explained what happened, and the meaning they attached to the incest event in terms of the consequences for themselves, their daughters, husbands, and families. Johnson concludes that their experiences and behaviors must be interpreted within a social context that takes into account the roles women are socialized to play inside and outside the family, and the responsiveness of community services to families in which incest has been disclosed.

About this title

Review

" ... an intellectually stimulating discussion of important theories and an enthrallingly personal reading experience." - Elizabeth L. Navarre " ... the one book we've been waiting for... The book succeeds admirably in exploring six women's stories with a great deal of respect." - Changes: An International Journal of Psychology and Psychotherapy " ... poignant revelations ... Johnson is able to paint an individualized portrait of each woman and avoids twisting their stories to fit some theory." - Publishers Weekly " ... a gritty glimpse of a painful struggle, and a framework for rethinking our perspectives and prejudices." - The Women's Review of Books

From the Back Cover

This book is the first direct account of incest-family mother. Six women relate their experiences in accounts that challenge the collusive mother model. They tell how they discovered the incest, why the secret was kept, how they responded to and explained events, and how they interpret the consequences for their daughters, husbands, families, and themselves.

Edition details

• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0253330963
• ISBN 13: 9780253330963
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 176