The Effectiveness of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) on Shame and Feeling of Guilt among Women with Sexual Abuse experience in Childhood

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of EMDR on Shame and Feeling of Guilt among Women with Sexual Abuse experience in Childhood.

In this research, a single-case experimental design, type of non-concurrent multiple baseline designs was used. The statistical population consisted of all women with Sexual Abuse experience in Childhood referred to Ahvaz counseling centers. The sample research consisted of 3 women among women were selected according to the results of the PTSD Checklist (Weathers, 1993) with cut of point of 50 and with purposeful sampling method. To evaluate the Shame and Feeling of Guilt, the State Shame and Guilt Scale (SSGS) were used. The protocol of EMDR was carried out in three phases of basic lines, intervention, and follow-up. The data were analyzed using visual drawing, the reliable change index (RCI) and the formula of improvement percentage.

The findings indicated that in the treatment phase the women experienced 27.13% improvement in Shame and 26.19% in Feeling of Guilt.

The research findings illustrated that EMDR is effective on the decreasing of shame and feeling of guilt of the women with childhood sexual abuse by recovering traumatic memories and gradually turning them into healthy cognitive and emotional schemas.