Emotional configurations and repair energy after child sexual abuse assessed using mixed methodology

Evidence on child sexual abuse (CSA) suggests that emotional responses are organised into functional systems rather than isolated states; this study examines how they are configured, coexist and what practical meaning they acquire in everyday life. A mixed methodology with a convergent design was used: quantitatively, prevalences and emotional co-occurrences were analysed to identify bridges between axes; qualitatively, thematic analysis of in-depth interviews was carried out; both components were integrated by triangulation. A total of 194 adults with a history of CSA (quantitative) and 9 in-depth interviews (qualitative) participated. The results place danger–control as the organising core associated with vigilance and avoidance; they show that self-assessment (guilt/shame) acts as a hinge and, after reattribution, activation is transformed into boundary energy (anger/rage) that makes it possible to say ‘no’ and restore agency; results also indicate that the bodily integrity axis (disgust) reorders the relationship with the body and intimacy; and they describe a temporal rhythm in waves (control–emotional breakdown–reactivation). The discussion proposes distinguishing between maintenance cycles and levers of openness, with applied implications for a protect–repair–restore itinerary, interventions sensitive to the moment, and the inclusion of bodily components to reduce rituals and expand choice.