Guest Editors' Introduction to the Special Issue on Australasian Research on Sexual Abuse

Abstract

We were delighted when Howard Barbaree asked us to edit a special issue on Australasian research for Sexual Abuse. A chance, we thought, to showcase some of the exciting talent we have in this part of the world. However, once we got down to the task of selecting the papers to include in the special issue, a problem emerged. Rather than a lack of possible papers, there was simply too much good work going on in Australia and New Zealand to include in one issue. In the end we decided to pursue certain themes and to base the selection of work on three domains: etiology, cognition, and what we have termed, human goods. These themes seem to reflect much of the systematic or programmatic research occurring in the two countries, and in this sense are fairly representative. However, we apologize to the excellent researchers whose work was not selected and look forward to seeing it included in the next special edition of Sexual Abuse! Interestingly, an important trend that emerged from the papers was the perception that therapists should apply more flexible and ideographic approaches to the treatment (and research into) of sexual offenders. From this perspective it is important to regard sexual offenders as unique individuals with varying levels of risk and needs rather than assuming the validity of a one size fits all model.