Unwanted Childhood Sexual Experiences Questionnaire

Abstract

The Unwanted Childhood Sexual Experiences Questionnaire (UCSEQ) is a brief, 13-item instrument designed by Michael R. Stevenson to systematically document the age and extent of a respondent’s unwanted sexual experiences encountered during childhood with adults. The scale focuses specifically on behaviors defined as unwanted rather than using terms like sexual abuse or victimization, a strategic choice intended to mitigate potential reporting bias from the respondent.

The 13 items are organized conceptually into three distinct categories based on the level of physical contact involved: minimal contact (Items 1–3), moderate contact (Items 4–8), and maximal contact (Items 9–13). These items were adapted from an earlier, larger questionnaire developed by David Finkelhor (1979) and have been utilized in subsequent academic studies regarding childhood sexual experiences.

Keywords

Unwanted Childhood Sexual Experiences, Child Sexual Abuse, Psychological Measurement, Sexual Victimization, Retrospective Reporting, Questionnaire, Stevenson.

Authors

Michael R. Stevenson (Ball State University).

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the UCSEQ is descriptive and archival: to accurately document the occurrence and timing of specific unwanted childhood sexual experiences. It serves as a tool for researchers to gather detailed, non-biased data on prevalence rates and the ages at which these experiences occurred, differentiating between various levels of contact.

A key definitional element enforced by the questionnaire is the definition of an “adult” as someone who is at least five years older than the respondent. This strict definition helps maintain consistency in reporting and focuses the data collection on interactions involving a significant age and power differential.

Construct

The UCSEQ measures the construct of retrospective reporting of specific, discrete behaviors related to non-consensual or unwanted sexual interactions occurring before the age of 16. It is not intended to measure a latent psychological trait or a singular continuum of pathology, but rather the objective presence and timing of specific external events.

The structured categorization of behaviors—from invitations to anal intercourse—allows researchers to analyze the distribution of different forms of child sexual abuse (CSA) in a sample population, enabling finer distinctions in trauma severity and prevalence than broader measures might allow.

Validity

Since the UCSEQ is designed as a checklist for documenting events rather than a traditional psychometric scale, its validation focuses primarily on concurrent validity and consistency with established epidemiological findings. Stevenson and Gajarsky (1992) demonstrated the measure’s validity by showing that frequencies of unwanted sexual experiences reported by college students using the UCSEQ were consistent with established rates found in earlier seminal studies by Finkelhor (1979, 1984) and Groth (1979).

While some variation was observed, particularly a slightly higher percentage of men reporting unwanted sexual experiences compared to some previous estimates, the results remained highly consistent with other significant research in the field (e.g., Popen & Segal, 1988), supporting the instrument’s ability to capture prevalence rates accurately across genders.

Reliability

The UCSEQ was explicitly designed not to function as a unified psychometric scale intended to measure a single underlying construct. Therefore, standard measures of internal consistency, such as reliability coefficients (e.g., Cronbach’s alpha), have not been directly assessed or reported. Its utility rests solely on its ability to document the occurrence of specific, discrete behavioral events.

Researchers utilizing the UCSEQ must understand that the items are intended to be independent markers of exposure to specific behaviors, not components of a summated scale score. The focus remains strictly on documentation rather than the psychometric properties typically associated with clinical assessment instruments.

Factor Analysis

Formal factor analysis has not been conducted or reported for the UCSEQ, as the 13 items are grouped conceptually based on the level of physical contact (minimal, moderate, maximal) and are not intended to represent underlying latent factors. The structure is based on behavioral typology rather than statistical grouping.

Instrument

Test Type: Retrospective Event Checklist / Research Questionnaire

Format: Self-report, checklist format requiring age specification for each item.

Language Available: English (Original research context).

Population Group: Clinical and Non-clinical populations.

Age Group: Adults reporting on experiences prior to age 16 (primarily used with college student samples in initial validation).

Population Details: Initial validation utilized samples of college students.

Test Methodology: Respondents indicate the age or ages at which each specific unwanted sexual behavior occurred. Completion time is typically less than 5 minutes.

Keywords

Childhood trauma, Sexual coercion, Finkelhor, Stevenson, Revictimization, Sexual abuse measurement, College sample.

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A (Information not provided in source.)

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A (Information not provided in source.)

Correspondence Address: Michael R. Stevenson, Ball State University.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The scale was developed and utilized in studies dating back to the early 1990s (Stevenson & Gajarsky, 1992), drawing items from earlier work by Finkelhor (1979). Information regarding formal permissions and licensing fees for current use is not provided in the original source material, suggesting it may be available for academic research use pending contact with the author.

References

Finkelhor, D. (1979). Sexually victimized children. New York: Free Press.

Finkelhor, D. (1984). Child sexual abuse: New theory and research. New York: Free Press.

Fromuth, M. E. (1986). The relationship of childhood sexual abuse with later psychological and sexual adjustment in a sample of college women. Child Abuse and Neglect, 10, 5–15.

Groth, N. A. (1979). Sexual trauma in the life histories of rapists and child molesters. Victimology: An International Journal, 4(1), 10–16.

Popen, P. J., & Segal, H. J. (1988). The influence of sex and sex-role orientation on sexual coercion. Sex Roles, 19, 689–701.

Stevenson, M. R., & Gajarsky, W. M. (1992). Unwanted childhood sexual experiences relate to later revictimization and male perpetration. Journal of Psychology & Human Sexuality, 4, 57–70.

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Items of the Unwanted Childhood Sexual Experiences Questionnaire

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

It is now generally realized that most people have sexual experiences as children and while growing up. By “sexual” it is meant any behavior or event that might seem “sexual” to you. Please try to remember the unwanted, that is, sexual experiences that were forced on you or done against your will by an adult (someone at least five or more years older than you), while growing up. Indicate if you had any of the following experiences before the age of 16.

1. An invitation or request to do something sexual. Age(s)        

2. Kissing and hugging in a sexual way. Age(s)        

3. An adult showing his/her sex organs to you. Age(s)        

4. You showing your sex organs to an adult. Age(s)        

5. An adult fondling you in a sexual way. Age(s)        

6. You fondling an adult in a sexual way. Age(s)‌

7. An adult touching your sex organs. Age(s)

8. You touching an adult person’s sex organs. Age(s)

9. An adult orally touching your sex organs. Age(s)

10. You orally touching an adult person’s sex organs. Age(s)

11. Intercourse, but without attempting penetration of the vagina. Age(s)

12. Intercourse (penile-vaginal penetration). Age(s)

13. Anal intercourse (penile-anal penetration). Age(s)