A history of sexual abuse was examined for its relationship to signs ofpsychosocial dysfunction among an aggregated adolescent chemical dependency treatment sample. Chemical Abuse Treatment Outcome Registries (CATOR) collected and analyzed data on adolescents admitted to nine private treatment centers from 1984 to 1986; 210 self-reported female victims were compared with 234 nonvictims, 81 male victims with 890 nonvictims. Both male and female victims used a wider variety of drugs than did nonvictims and more used alcohol and drugs to self-medicate. More victims were troubled by nervousness, sleep problems, sexual problems, and suicidal thoughts. Twice as many victims as nonvictims had attempted suicide during the previous year. More victims were arrested at a young age, and more had suffered serious legal consequences. These findings have important implications for the evaluation and treatment of adolescents in clinical and correctional settings, as well as for rethinking priorities and strategies for prevention of substance abuse among the young.
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