The association exists, but seems to be mediated by links with physical abuse (which has a stronger association with dissociative experiences) and comorbidity with other psychiatric problems (probably PTSD).
Mulder et al. 1998 found that among the individuals with dissociative symptoms (6.3% of 1,028 individuals) "the rate of childhood sexual abuse was two and one-half times as high, the rate of physical abuse was five times as high, and the rate of current psychiatric disorder was four times as high as the respective rates for the other subjects. Logistic regression modeling showed that physical abuse and current psychiatric illness were directly related to a high rate of dissociative symptoms but sexual abuse was not."
Nash et al. 1993 concluded that "Abuse was associated with greater use of dissociation, but covariance analysis revealed this effect to be accounted for by family pathology."
Zlotnick et al. 1995 found "physical neglect, witnessing sexual abuse, and witnessing physical abuse were associated with higher levels of dissociative symptoms" among sexually abused women. Instead, a "close relationship with either a parent, sibling, extraparental adult, or friend did not have a mediating effect on the degree of adult dissociative symptoms."
Lipschitz et al. 1996 found: "Dissociative symptoms were significantly related to ethnicity and multiple episodes or combined types of abuse in childhood and adulthood. In terms of the characteristics of childhood abuse, numerous episodes of physical abuse (P = .01) and father-perpetrated sexual abuse (P = .02) were significantly related to the degree of dissociation."
Gast et al 2001 found a significant positive relationship was found between the severity of childhood trauma and dissociation.
Macfie et al 2001 found for 45 maltreated children, assessed for sexual abuse, physical abuse, and neglect and 33 nonmaltreated children that "maltreated children, especially physically abused children and sexually abused children, demonstrated more dissociation than did nonmaltreated children. Moreover, during the preschool period maltreated and nonmaltreated children followed different trajectories such that dissociation increased for maltreated children but did not do so for nonmaltreated children.
Draijer & Langeland's findings indicate that dissociation, although trauma-related, is neglect-related as well. Highest dissociation levels were found in patients reporting cumulative sexual trauma (intrafamilial and extrafamilial) or both sexual and physical abuse. In particular, maternal dysfunction was related to the level of dissociation. Dissociative symptoms was best predicted by reported sexual abuse, physical abuse, and maternal dysfunction.
See also Sar et al. 1996
Ferguson & Dacey 1997 have found an association of psychological abuse with dissociation.
Dancu et al. 1996 have considered comorbidity with PTSD. See also Smith 1996. Mulder et al. 1998 have found that "the influence of sexual abuse was due to its associations with current psychiatric illness and with childhood physical abuse."
Miller et al. 1993 have found "Dissociative experiences were also significantly more common in the bulimic group overall, and higher still for bulimic women who reported sexual abuse as children". Comorbidity with eating disorders has been found also by Herzog et al. 1993.
The association of dissociation with sexual abuse was found also by Keaney & Farley 1996, Chu & Dill 1990.