October 6, 2025
Contact us at: 800.444.4834
Contact us at: 800.444.4834
October 22, 2025
Over the past 30 years, there has been an explosion of research about the long-term impact of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) on adult functioning and well-being. These impacts are extensive, with negative repercussions documented in mental health, physical health, academic achievement, and social functioning. When retained to assess the long-term economic damages associated with childhood sexual abuse, experts at Vocational Diagnostics, Inc. (VDI) rely on the breadth of available research and extensive clinical experience to develop opinions regarding the impact of CSA on educational attainment, employment outcomes, and future medical/psychological treatment needs.
CSA can alter physiological functioning and can affect cognitive functioning, with many victims developing psychiatric disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).[1] PTSD is associated with the inability to concentrate, hypersensitivity to stress, and avoidance behaviors, all of which can negatively impact an individual’s ability to engage in their education and/or maintain employment. In addition, CSA has been linked to increased psychosocial issues, such as difficulty sleeping, personality and mood shifts, and damaged personal relationships.[2] In turn, extensive psychological and psychiatric treatment are typically required to address these issues and teach victims to healthily cope with trauma-related symptomatology.
VDI has been retained in several cases to evaluate the impact of CSA on long-term outcomes, specifically the economic damages associated with a change in an individual’s level of functioning as a result of the CSA, including their ability to work and earn wages. This involves disentangling the myriad of factors that can impact functioning, which is accomplished by carefully reviewing medical records, speaking with treatment providers and retained medical/psychological experts, and interviewing the plaintiff, when possible. Our experts use their clinical training and experience to establish rapport with plaintiffs who are often wary of speaking about these sensitive issues in order to understand the complex and comprehensive impact of their traumatic experiences. In these evaluations, we ask not only about changes in their psychological functioning and physical health, but also about more nuanced topics, such as changes in their academic performance, career expectations, and social interactions.
In analyzing the impact of CSA on earning capacity, we consider both educational attainment and employability. According to Wilson (2010),[3] history of childhood sexual and physical abuse is associated with lower educational attainment. However, strategies such as altered school schedules, more one-on-one time with teachers, individualized education plans (IEPs), increased test-taking time, and extended deadlines can increase the likelihood that survivors of CSA are able to complete their education.
Increased educational attainment is associated with higher earning capacity; however, at all levels of educational attainment, survivors of CSA often experience disruptions to their employment, including time off for treatment, diminished performance, and periods of unemployment. These employment-related consequences can lead to diminished earning capacity when comparing individuals with a history of CSA to their education- and demographic-matched peers who have not experienced CSA.[4]
All of these aspects are then factored into a comprehensive plan that details the plaintiff’s medical and vocational needs through the remainder of their life expectancy. Through the development of a Life Care Plan (LCP), our experts ensure that each plaintiff has access to the medical and psychological services required to assist in mitigating the negative impact of CSA and maintain their health and well-being throughout their life. In fact, as noted in a 2009 meta-analysis,[5] adults “who were sexually abused as children tend to use health care services more frequently than non-abused adults.”
Handling cases for victims of abuse appropriately and professionally is of the utmost importance to our staff at VDI. Through countless hours of research, development of thousands of life care plans, and decades of analyzing earning capacity, we provide thorough, unbiased, and factually accurate assessments of plaintiffs’ damages claims.
[1] Khoury, L., Tang, Y., Bradley, B., Cubells, J., & Ressler, K. (2010). Substance use, childhood traumatic experience, and posttraumatic stress disorder in an urban civilization population. Depression and Anxiety, 27(12), 1077-1086.
[2] Afifi, T., MacMillan, H., Boyle, M., Cheung, K., Tailieu, T., Turner, S., & Sareen, J. (2017), Health reports child abuse and physical health in adulthood. Government of Canada, S.C.
[3] Wilson, D. (2010). Health consequences of childhood sexual abuse. Perspectives in Psychiatric Care, 46(1), 56-64.
[4] Loya, Rebecca. (2014). Rape as an Economic Crime. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2015, Vol. 30(16) 2793-2813.
[5] Irish, L., Kobayashi, I., & Delahanty, D. (2009). Long-term physical health consequences of childhood sexual abuse: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 35(5), 450-461.
