Florida Child Welfare Case Manager Certification Practice Exam

Which phase is not part of the sexual abuse cycle?

1. Engagement

2. Secrecy

3. Suppression

4. Recovery

The correct answer is: Recovery

The sexual abuse cycle typically involves four phases engagement, secrecy, abuse, and disclosure. In each cycle, the abuser engages with potential victims, creates an environment of secrecy around the abuse, carries out the abuse, and keeps the victim from disclosing the abuse. The cycle will continue until the victim is able to break the cycle by disclosing the abuse to a trusted individual or receiving support and entering the recovery phase. Therefore, the phase that is not part of the sexual abuse cycle is recovery. This choice is incorrect because it is a necessary step in addressing and healing from the effects of sexual abuse, but it is not a part of the cyclical pattern of abuse. Additionally, the other three options (engagement, secrecy, and suppression) all describe actions or behaviors that are present in the sexual abuse cycle.