The impact of sexual offences : short and long-term effects on victims through expert insights in the Maltese islands

Abstract

With an emphasis on the immediate and long-term psychological, physical and social repercussions, this study explores the complex effects of sexual abuse on survivors. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO, 2024), sexual abuse, including forms of sexual exploitation and abuse, constitutes a serious breach of an individual’s well-being and frequently causes severe and long-lasting trauma. In addition to long-term consequences like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, physical health issues and challenges in interpersonal relationships, survivors frequently experience immediate effects like anxiety, distress and behavioural changes. The study looks at important mediating factors that affect the severity and course of these effects, with a focus on age at the time of abuse and disclosure experiences. It investigates how early-life victimisation and societal reactions to disclosure influence recovery using qualitative information from semi-structured interviews with experts in psychology, social work and victim support. Results show that while supportive reactions foster resilience and healing, childhood abuse is linked to more severe, lasting impacts. On the other hand, stigma, cynicism and victim-blaming can worsen trauma and make it more difficult to get help, especially in culturally conservative settings like Malta. The study also assesses current intervention techniques, such as trauma-informed care, emphasising the value of interdisciplinary and survivor-centred methods. Services offered by groups like Victim Support Malta show how beneficial integrated care models are for promoting healing. Overall, the study finds enduring gaps in long-term evidence and cultural inclusion in the body of current literature. It concludes that in order to close these gaps, a more thorough, trauma-informed framework that places an emphasis on early intervention, encouraging disclosure settings and easily available support services within the Maltese context is needed.