Confronting the incest secret long after the fact: a family study of multiple victimization with strategies for intervention.

All eleven adult females in one generation of an extended family had experienced childhood sexual abuse by either a father/uncle or an older cousin/brother. The sexual abuse had been a closely guarded secret of each victim for up to 20 years despite the fact that all of the women had close and frequent involvement in one another's lives. Protection of the young daughter of the cousin/brother provided the impetus for disclosure and a focal point of concern for the adult women whose sexual abuse had been initiated at approximately the same age as the girl. This family's case history is used as a vehicle to discuss intervention strategies for dealing with incest long after the fact with extended family networks.