
Martine HébertUniversity of Quebec in Montreal | UQAM · Department of Sexology
Martine Hébert
Ph D in psychology
About
615
Publications
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Introduction
Research Interests:
- Profiles of sexually-abused children
- Risk factors and consequences of dating violence and revictimization
- Trajectories of resilience in children and youth victims of interpersonal violence
- PTSD and complex PTSD in children and youth
- Evaluation of prevention and intervention programs
Publications
Publications (615)
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is identified as a significant risk factor for later victimization in the context of adult intimate relationships, but less is known about the risk associated with CSA in early romantic relationships. This paper aims to document the association between CSA and teen dating victimization in a large representative sample of Qu...
Background: PTSD symptoms are frequent in child victims of sexual abuse. Yet, authors have argued that early trauma could lead to alterations in development that go far beyond the primary symptoms of PTSD and have proposed Complex PTSD as an alternative diagnosis encompassing difficulties in affect regulation, relationships and self-concept.
Object...
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a widespread adverse experience that has multiple detrimental impacts in the long-term, affecting mental, sexual, and physical health of survivors. In addition, CSA may impede interpersonal functioning, and be associated with a heightened risk of revictimization. Recent review articles have summarized the possible risk f...
Objective:
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is associated with long-term negative consequences in adolescents, but some survivors display resilience. The purpose of this study was to delineate profiles of adaptation in adolescent victims of CSA and to examine their associations with individual and environmental-systemic protective factors.
Method:
As pa...
Dating violence victimization (DVV) is a prevalent public health problem with harmful consequences among adolescents. Pornography use has been identified among the factors associated with DVV. However, most studies have relied on cross-sectional designs, limiting the ability to determine temporal relationships between these variables. The present s...
Background: Studies have identified the use of coping strategies as a key predictor of psychological outcomes in
sexually abused children. However, given contradictory results in past studies, the association between approach
strategies and the socio-emotional functioning of child victims remains to be clarified. Moreover, the flexible use
of appro...
La violence dans les relations amoureuses des adolescent·es (VRA) représente un enjeu de santé publique associé à plusieurs conséquences néfastes et chroniques sur le plan de la santé mentale et physique. La prévalence alarmante de cette problématique souligne la nécessité de déployer des stratégies préventives efficaces dès l’adolescence. Malgré l...
L’agression sexuelle (AS) à l’enfance est associée à plusieurs conséquences, telles que des problèmes de comportement extériorisés et intériorisés. En plus de l’environnement social et familial, l’environnement scolaire est susceptible d’influencer le développement de l’enfant (Pérez-González et al., 2017). Peu d’études ont exploré l’impact du fonc...
Background
The sense of parental competence refers to one’s judgment of one’s own parenting abilities and plays a critical role in parental functioning. Studies have shown a link between childhood interpersonal traumas and a lower sense of parental competence. Yet, psychological neglect, a more subtle but still devastating childhood trauma, and its...
Dating violence is a deleterious relational dynamic that affects around one-third of adolescents. It is well documented that dating violence can persist over time, occurring within the same relationship or across multiple relationships. Self-esteem could be a key factor in understanding the mechanisms of violence continuity, potentially acting as a...
Little is known about somatic complaints in school-aged child victims of sexual abuse and the associated risk factors. Given that somatic symptoms can lead to functional impairment and decreased health-related quality of life, identifying associated factors in the child’s environment is essential. This study aimed to identify personal, family, and...
Physical dating violence is a widespread problem in adolescence, which often occurs during conflict escalation. Given that individual reports may be subject to many biases, including data from both partners is essential to yield a more accurate portrait of adolescent dating relationships. This study sought to examine within-dyad agreement rates as...
This study aimed to delineate profiles of self-regulation among sexually abused children and their association with behavior problems using a person-centered approach. A sample of 223 children aged six to 12, their parents, and teachers were recruited in specialized intervention centers. Latent profile analysis revealed four profiles: (1) Dysregula...
Cumulative childhood trauma (CCT; e.g., sexual abuse, neglect) has been consistently associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration. However, we know little about the processes involved in this association. Although emotion dysregulation has been identified as a mechanism explaining the CCT–IPV association in men survivors, it is also...
Background: Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is associated with detrimental consequences in children, including lower academic performance. However, studies have rarely explored the diversity of longitudinal academic profiles among CSA victims. Objectives: The objectives of this study were (1) to identify trajectories of academic performance in CSA vic...
The aim of the present study was to determine the level of use of coping strategies by school-aged victims of child sexual abuse (CSA) according to their clinical scores on dissociative, depressive and anxiety symptoms as reported by children and parents. A total of 527 children aged 6 to 12 years were recruited. Coping strategies and depressive sy...
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is linked to heightened levels of medically unexplained symptoms. Research indicates that victims of CSA display alexithymia and dissociation symptoms. Alexithymia and dissociation may potentially contribute to developing somatic complaints in CSA victims. They represent mechanisms through which psychological distress is av...
This article presents the first systematic review and meta-analysis of the prevalence and correlates of different forms of intimate partner violence (IPV) among women and men in Mexico. To identify studies, a comprehensive search strategy was developed and executed across 11 databases (Academic Search Complete, APA PsycInfo, CINAHL, Cochrane CENTRA...
This article describes the development of an instrument used to evaluate the perceived self-efficacy of school staff in addressing dating violence (DV) among youth. The study employed a mixed exploratory sequential design. First, a series of items was elaborated upon based on the scientific literature on self-efficacy and material from 15 semi-stru...
The SPARX team responded to the scarcity of training available to school staff concerning dating violence prevention by developing an innovative asynchronous online training program as one facet of their broader initiative. This mixed-methods study aimed to fill the existing gap in the literature regarding the factors influencing the transfer of le...
Background
Sexual distress (eg, feeling distressed, unhappy, frustrated, stressed, dissatisfied, or bothered about their sexuality) is a central concern reported by patients seeking sex therapy, and might be related to sexual self-esteem and mindfulness disposition, yet research is needed to examine the links among those variables within the specif...
Several repercussions have been linked to teen dating violence, including self-silencing. Self-silencing refers to an excessive worry about the partner’s needs and opinions, which can lead to neglecting one’s well-being. However, the mechanisms by which dating violence, especially sexual victimization, affects self-silencing are understudied. Moreo...
Transition to parenthood can be challenging on mental health even more so for individuals who have experienced childhood trauma. The use of flexible strategies, such as processing the traumatic event while being able to distract oneself, maintaining optimism, and focusing on moving beyond the event, could be a potential protective factor against di...
Sexual assault victims are at major risk of being infected by sexually transmitted infections (STI). This article aims to examine and compare the prevalence of eight STIs (e.g., chlamydia, gonorrhea, hepatitis B, HIV/AIDS, human papillomavirus) among victims and non-victims of sexual abuse. A national cross-sectional study was conducted in Haiti, u...
Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is prevalent in low and middle-income countries, such as Haiti.
However, there is little research on its association with mental health problems such as psychological distress and
depression. Although there is evidence that men may experience IPV, few studies have investigated mental
health difficulties a...
L’agression sexuelle pendant l’enfance peut engendrer des conséquences importantes, et ceci se révèle d’autant plus vrai lorsque les formes de violence s’accumulent dans la vie des enfants. La recherche a permis de mieux comprendre l’influence de facteurs proximaux et distaux pouvant favoriser le rétablissement des jeunes victimes ou lui nuire. Par...
A dyadic examination of the impact of jealousy and trust on control in adolescent dating relationships.
Dating violence is highly prevalent among teenagers and victims are likely to suffer from health consequences. Despite growing research on dating violence determinants, neighbourhood-level factors have been overlooked. This study aimed at (1) estimating associations between neighbourhood sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., socioeconomic status,...
L’agression sexuelle en enfance (ASE) est associée à des conséquences relationnelles à l’âge adulte, notamment le risque accru d’être revictimisé·e·s par un·e partenaire intime. En effet, les femmes survivantes d’ASE sont près de trois fois plus à risque d’être revictimisées que les femmes non-victimes. L’ASE s’accompagne typiquement d’autres types...
La majorité des études se sont concentrées sur les conséquences néfastes associées à l’agression sexuelle (AS; Hailes et al., 2019). Pourtant, bien que certains facteurs de protection soient susceptibles de contribuer au bien-être (Hamby et al., 2018), ceux-ci nécessitent d’être explorés davantage auprès des personnes victimes d’AS.
En utilisant le...
Past studies have highlighted the lack of independent formal complaint mechanisms as one of the most significant barriers to reporting interpersonal violence (IV) in sport. Some countries have since implemented complaint mechanisms specific to sport settings. Evaluations of similar mechanisms in other sectors could inform the development and implem...
Although the high prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Haiti is well-documented, its association with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among adolescents and young adults remains unexplored. Using a representative sample of adolescents and young adults from IPV and PTSD in Youth in Haiti 3 rural and urban areas across the 1...
Dear readers, I am pleased to introduce the 2023 Issue of the International Journal of Child and Adolescent Resilience (IJCAR). This issue includes: two regular articles on trauma and maltreatment and associated impacts; three brief reports on varying aspects of hardships and resilience in different populations; and one theoretical paper about a na...
Examining the relationship between the perpetration of control and other forms of teen dating violence.
Empirical studies reveal that interpersonal violence victimization is a highly prevalent phenomena in youth and is associated with a host of difficulties, including mental, physical, and behavioral issues. Sleep, a developmentally fundamental process, is implicated in these unfavorable effects. Despite this, little is known about the interplay betw...
Différentes stratégies de sensibilisation et de prévention des violences dans les relations intimes ont été déployées dans les dernières années auprès des adolescent.e.s et ont pu démontrer leur efficacité pour réduire ces violences. Cependant, peu d’entre elles se sont attardées spécifiquement aux jeunes de niveau collégial et ont misé sur les tec...
Child maltreatment is a global concern that profoundly affects individuals throughout their lives. This study investigated the relationships between various forms of child maltreatment and behavior problems involving internalization and externalization during adolescence. Data obtained from a diverse sample of 1802 Canadians aged 14–18 years was us...
Gender-based violence (GBV), particularly intimate partner violence (IPV) and non-partner sexual violence (NPSV), is a widespread and preventable problem. This issue affects not only individuals but also communities and entire societies. The bystander approach has shown promise as an intervention to prevent GBV by engaging community members. Using...
Background: Adolescent dating violence (ADV) is a major public health concern experienced by more than half of adolescents. Previous studies have found considerable diversity in patterns of ADV and suggest that its various forms often occur concurrently and reciprocally within adolescent dating relationships. While multiple robust distal correlates...
Amid adolescence, youth are developing the relational skills necessary to form and maintain positive intimate relationships. Sexual assertiveness is a key skill that could be related to couples’ sexual outcomes (i.e., sexual satisfaction, sexual concerns, and sexual function). However, dyadic studies are lacking, and associations between sexual ass...
Dating disagreements consist of divergences between partners’ opinions or needs. When left unresolved, dating disagreements may escalate into conflicts and even sometimes, to dating violence perpetration (DVP). Several risk factors have been documented for conflicts and DVP in adolescents, such as stress, attachment insecurities, and prior DVP, but...
Contexte : Les recherches actuelles révèlent que 20 % des femmes et 14 % des hommes sont victimes d’agression sexuelle (AS) avant l’âge de 18 ans (Moody et al., 2018). Parmi les conséquences observées chez les enfants, on rapporte des symptômes de dissociation, d’anxiété et de dépression (Hailes et al., 2019). L’utilisation de différentes stratégie...
Studies on child sexual abuse (CSA) have mostly focused on female survivors. However, men are not spared from this type of abuse, as one in 10 men report having experienced CSA before the age of 18. Some adult male victims of CSA, in trying to cope with their history of sexual abuse, overinvest in typically masculine behaviors, such as aggression a...
This study aims to evaluate the potential contribution of the 16 strengths from the resilience portfolio (Grych et al., 2015) (the interpersonal, self-regulatory and meaning-making strengths) in the prediction of complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) and subjective well-being in a sample of sexually abused victims. A total of 726 people (61...
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a worldwide phenomenon that has been linked to deleterious consequences. Adverse life events, such as sexual abuse, can compromise the development of emotional competencies, an important dimension of children's psychosocial development. This study aimed at evaluating emotion recognition competencies in sexually abused an...
Sexual assertiveness is often conceptualized as an individual’s ability to express one’s own sexual needs, desires, and limits. Given that sexual assertiveness is embedded in interactions and can affect not only both partners’ sexual well-being but also relationship satisfaction, dyadic approaches are needed to investigate sexual assertiveness nego...
Youth narratives of love are shaped by romantic experiences through observation of others’ romantic relationships, and by media commonly conveying romantic beliefs. Since past reports have linked romantic beliefs to dating violence (DV), studies need to explore narratives of love by youth who report DV victimization experiences to identify specific...
Study objectives:
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is associated with negative consequences on both physical and mental health. It has been found to influence child and adolescent sleep, which is an important developmental factor, which also influences mental and physical health. However, the literature examining this topic is plagued by methodological li...
School staff plays a central role in youth sexual education, making them critical actors in dating violence (DV) prevention initiatives. However, since most of them did not benefit from specific training in sexual education, they often report feeling challenged in their role as a sex educator. To optimize the scope of actions to prevent DV, the SPA...
The prevalence of child sexual violence remains overwhelming, particularly among Indigenous populations, despite increased awareness. Therefore, implementing efficient initiatives is crucial in preventing and reducing sexual violence rates among these groups.This study aimed to examine the processes involved in the implementation of a sexual violen...
Dating violence during adolescence is a major public health issue: it is highly prevalent and extensive research has documented its physical and psychological consequences, yet very little has focused on its sexual consequences. The present study investigated the longitudinal associations between dating violence victimization (psychological, sexual...
Victims of child sexual abuse (CSA) are a heterogeneous population. Several characteristics may influence the outcomes associated with this adverse childhood experience, including personal (e.g. age) and CSA characteristics (e.g. relationship to the perpetrator). This study relied on a person-centered approach to account for this heterogeneity and...
Les violences sexuelles en contexte conjugal (VSC) sont répandues et associées à des conséquences négatives importantes sur le bien-être des femmes. Plus de 33% des femmes ayant séjourné dans une maison d’aide et d’hébergement pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale (VC) rapportent avoir subi des VSC. Ces violences sont souvent invisibilisées et...
Cyber-dating violence (cyber-DV) is a prevalent issue among adolescent girls that can have negative consequences including post-traumatic stress symptoms and suicidal ideations and attempts. In the aim to reduce its prevalence and impacts, researchers are increasingly relying on the identification of risk and protective factors associated with cybe...
Purpose
Conflicts in adolescent dating relationships occur weekly and are challenging for this population. Adolescents use constructive strategies (CS) for conflict resolution, but also resort to destructive strategies (DS, i.e., withdrawal, conflict engagement, and violence), which contribute to conflict escalation. Fortunately, DS are not used in...
Sur la base des expériences et des recommandations d'adolescentes victimes de violences sexuelles en contexte de relation amoureuse, nous avons identifié cinq principes-clés à mettre en place dans les contextes d'éducation à la sexualité afin de mieux adapter les pratiques à leurs besoins.
//Based on the experiences and recommandations of adolesce...
Les études antérieures rapportent des résultats mitigés concernant les différences de genre quant à la capacité des adolescent.e.s à exprimer leurs besoins, désirs et limites dans la sphère sexuelle. Cette étude qualitative vise à documenter la négociation des besoins, désirs et limites sexuels lors d'interactions où des dyades étaient invitées à d...
Objective: To foster resilience through reducing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in pregnant mothers with child maltreatment (CM) histories, it is important to understand factors impacting their well-being. This study explored whether CM predicted the severity of PTSD symptoms and symptom clusters during pregnancy and change in sympto...
Les écrits révèlent que l’agression sexuelle (AS) est associée à plusieurs conséquences négatives chez les enfants, dont les symptômes dépressifs. L’utilisation de différentes stratégies d’adaptation (coping) influencerait la sévérité des symptômes. Ainsi le recours à des stratégies d’évitement serait lié à davantage de détresse. Néanmoins, les rés...
The need for autonomy and independence in adolescence is so fundamental that it can be difficult for youth to seek help when they experience difficulties. To date, few studies have documented profiles of help-seeking strategies among adolescents and young adults. The aims of the study were to: (1) identify distinct help-seeking profiles, and (2) il...
Introduction
School staff play a central role in youth sexual health education (SHE), making them critical actors in dating violence (DV) prevention initiatives. However, since most school staff do not benefit from specific training on SHE, they often report feeling challenged in their roles as sex educators. The mention of a lack of self-efficacy...
Dear readers, I am pleased to introduce the 2022 Issue of the International Journal of Child and Adolescent Resilience (IJCAR). This issue includes: six regular articles on varying aspects of hardships and resilience in different populations; three scoping review papers on trauma and maltreatment; two clinical interventions surrounding the COVID-19...
Sexual dating violence (DV) is common among female adoles- cents, and victims may experience other forms of DV (physical, psychological, and cyberviolence) and report a history of child sexual abuse (CSA). Heterogeneity of these victimization experi- ences could influence how adolescent girls’ cope. We aimed to identify distinct profiles of victimi...
Le test du trouble du jeu vidéo sur Internet (IGDT-10; Király et al., 2015) est une mesure récente du trouble du jeu vidéo utilisant les critères proposés dans le Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). Cependant, les études examinant sa validité auprès d’échantillons de jeunes Canadiens français font défaut. D...
Sexual dysfunctions (SD; e.g., female sexual interest/arousal disorder, erectile disorder, female orgasmic disorder, delayed ejaculation, genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder, etc.) affect up to a third of individuals, impairing sexuality, intimate relationships, and mental health. This study aimed to compare the prevalence of SDs and their sexu...
The consequences associated with child sexual abuse are well known. However, factors exacerbating child behavior problems following sexual abuse (SA) deserve further attention. Self-blame following the abuse has been identified as a predictor of negative outcomes in adult survivors, however there is limited evidence regarding the impact of self-bla...
Many adolescents experience violence in the context of dating and romantic relationships. Neighborhoods can influence dating violence by offering certain resources which can provide social support and opportunities for social participation, but knowledge about these effects is still limited. The purpose of the current study was to (a) assess the as...
Purpose: The unveiling of child sexual abuse (CSA) can elicit symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in nonoffending
parents. The impact of disclosure is stronger for mothers who have already experienced interpersonal trauma, such
as CSA or intimate partner violence (IPV). Alexithymia often serves as a coping mechanism in the aftermath o...
Présentation de vulgarisation scientifique
Martel, N., Girard, M., Dussault, É., Hébert, M., Godbout, N. (2023). Être dans le moment présent pour vivre moins de détresse sexuelle. BistroBrain, Février 2023. Montréal, QC, CA.
A large body of research reveals that child sexual abuse is an adverse experience associated with many negative socioemotional and behavioral consequences during adolescence. Notably, adolescent victims of child sexual abuse are more likely to engage in delinquent behavior, which has importance for their adaptation later in life. While research on...
Objective:
To investigate prospective associations between type of child abuse (physical, sexual, both), timing (childhood, young adulthood, both), and welfare receipt into middle-age.
Methods:
Database linkage study using the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Kindergarten Children cohort born in 1980 and government administrative databases (N = 3020...
Introduction:
Child sexual abuse remains a worldwide concern with devastating consequences on an individual's life. This longitudinal study investigates the associations between child sexual abuse (official reports versus retrospective self-reports) and subgroups by perpetrator identity (intrafamilial and extrafamilial), severity (penetration/atte...
Adolescents and young adults are particularly at risk of experiencing or perpetrating cyber dating violence (CDV) in their romantic relationships. However, it remains difficult to understand the motivations behind tolerating or perpetrating CDV in romantic relationships. Romantic attachment and beliefs may be an interesting avenue to explore among...
La présente étude vise à valider la version canadienne-française du Parental Stress Scale auprès d’un premier échantillon de 473 parents et à confirmer sa structure factorielle auprès d’un deuxième échantillon composé de 378 parents issus de la communauté québécoise ayant un nourrisson. Les participants ont répondu au questionnaire traduit de l’ang...
Canadian guidelines suggest using a positive, empowering, comprehensive, and safe approach to provide sexual health education (SHE). However, when they do so, decision-makers and educators often favour sexual risk prevention initiatives rather than positive aspects of sexuality. Furthermore, youth often criticize the gap between what they learn in...
Objectives: Mindfulness has been conceptualized through five facets, the combination of which can yield different mindful-ness profiles. Impeded mindfulness has been linked to childhood interpersonal trauma (CIT) and relational difficulties in adulthood. Exploring profile distinctions on these outcomes is crucial to better understand each profile's...