Betrayed As Boys: Psychodynamic Treatment of Sexually Abused Men

In the growing professional literature on child sexual abuse, few books focus specifically on the experience of victimized boys and men. Interweaving vital elements of psychodynamic and trauma-oriented clinical practice, this much-needed volume examines how sexual betrayal affects boys, the ways they carry this hurt into adulthood, and how therapists can address the unique needs of men with sexual abuse histories. Exploring the impact of abuse on men’s emotional development, gender and sexual identity, and relationships, the book provides in-depth consideration of individual and group treatment issues. Numerous case examples draw readers into the direct experience of these clients and the clinicians who work with them and illuminate their continually shifting relational world.

Richard B. Gartner, PhD, trained as both a family therapist and an interpersonal psychoanalyst. A graduate of the William Alanson White Institute in New York City, he is now Director of the Institute’s Center for the Study of Psychological Trauma as well as founder and Director of the Sexual Abuse Program that operates under the Center’s auspices. He has written and spoken extensively on the treatment of men sexually abused as boys. Dr. Gartner is a consultant and supervisor at the Center for Abuse and Incest at the Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis, is on the editorial boards of Contemporary Psychoanalysis and the American Journal of Psychoanalysis, and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Organization on Male Sexual Victimization. He practices in Manhattan and Brooklyn.