INCEST VICTIMS: A CASE STUDY.

Incest is considered as a sexual activity between two individuals who are closely related in blood like sister to brother, father to daughter, uncle to niece, cousin to cousin, son to mother, etc. Specifically, this means having a sexual intercourse with family members without permission or ?doing sexual intercourse by force?. In this present society, incest has become rampant but underreported due to fear of destroying the good image of the family; due to shame inasmuch as incest is known to be forbidden or taboo between two blood- related individuals; and due to guilt because of committing an offense, or a wrong doing that is against the law of man and God. Many cases of incest (or familiar sexual abuse) involve children. Those categories of incest are molestation, rape, and assault, based upon the degree of harm to the child (Mayer 1983). In these categories, incest may include not only intercourse, but also the fondling and sexual petting of a child by an abuser. In a majority of these cases, the child does not suffer physical signs of abuse such as vaginal tears or a bleeding rectum; however, the abused child is still left with feelings of betrayal and emotional scars (McCabe 2003). This research study focused on the victims of incest from Nueva Ecija Home for Girls in Palayan City. It aimed to get the victims? descriptions in terms of age, sex, no. of siblings, and relationship to the perpetrators. Furthermore, this study was also designed to assess their insights with regard to their Environmental Security, Parental Role, Emotional State, and Mental State.