The burden of blame: Self-blame after sexual victimization and its relation to identity

Sexual victimization is a pervasive issue with profound psychological effects. One critical factor influencing post-assault outcomes is self-blame, which can manifest as behavioral (blaming one’s actions) or characterological (blaming one’s core self). Research has shown that self-blame is more strongly associated with sexual assault than with non-interpersonal traumatic events; however, comparisons between sexual assault and other interpersonal traumas remain underexplored. Furthermore, the relationship between specific types of self-blame and different trauma types has not been thoroughly examined. This distinction may be important, as each form of self-blame is linked to different psychological outcomes. Self-blame has been associated with several negative psychological outcomes, however, has not yet been evaluated in its relationship to identity disturbances. This study explores how self-blame, and its different types may be related to different trauma types, and how self-blame is associated with identity disturbances, specifically one’s self-concept and identity distress. The results reveal a novel connection between self-blame, event centrality, and identity disturbances. Characterological self-blame, as compared to behavioral self-blame, was associated more with negative trauma outcomes, including identity disturbances. Results also suggested that interpersonal traumas elicited the most self-blame in general, as well the most characterological self-blame, while no differences were found between types of interpersonal trauma types. The findings of this study emphasize the connection of traumatic experiences to identity disturbances, as well how self-blame for traumatic experiences underlies this relationship.