The Experiences of Parents of Children who have Engaged in Harmful Sexual Behaviour: an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
Abstract
Background and Aims: The importance of the involvement of parents in treatment
approaches for Children and Young People (CYP) who have engaged in Harmful
Sexual Behaviour (HSB) has been consistently highlighted within the literature. Given
that HSB arises in a family context, parents are considered key agents for change
where CYP remain in their care. Professionals may work with them as a means of
improving the CYP’s therapeutic outcomes. Despite this, little is known about their
personal lived experiences and representations of meaning, which remain largely
unexplored. The current study aimed to address this gap and gain a rich understanding
of the experiences of parents, from their own perspective.
Methodology: Semi-structured interviews were used with six biological parents who
were recruited via purposive sampling from a specialist service working with CYP who
have engaged in HSB and their families. During interviews, four broad areas of
interest were explored: the personal psychological impact of their child engaging in
HSB; the impact on the parent-child relationship; wider familial and community
responses; and parental coping. Interviews were audio-recorded and their verbatim
transcripts analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA).
Findings and Conclusions: The analysis produced four main themes; ‘A
devastated and overwhelmed life’; ‘Threatened and trying to feel safer’; ‘A challenged
relationship with son’; and ‘Space for hope in the face of hopelessness?’. It was
highlighted that parents’ experiences and meaning-making appeared intimately woven
with a complex web of powerful relational and socially constructed factors. The
research outcomes provide valuable insights for professionals working with young
people who have engaged in HSB and their families. In learning more about what it is
like to be the parent of a CYP who has engaged in HSB, it is hoped that professionals
will have a richer framework from which to provide support to both the parent and to
their child. Implications for clinical practice, the strengths and limitations of the
methodology and directions for future research are discussed.
Publication date
2017-10-12Published version
https://doi.org/10.18745/th.19460https://doi.org/10.18745/th.19460