Reporting costs to nonoffending parents in cases of intrafamilial child sexual abuse

Findings from a study of 104 nonoffending parents and their sexually abused children suggest four areas in which nonoffending parents experience significant change or loss as a result of the disclosure of the sexual abuse of their children. The term reporting cost was coined to describe these changes and losses. The four types of reporting costs found are relational, financial, vocational, and residential. Nonoffending parents experienced an average of three major costs from the disclosure of intrafamilial sexual abuse.