Risk assessment of sexual offenders

Abstract

With the frequency of acts of sexual aggression in our community increasing, clinicians are now under greater pressure to make predictions concerning the propensity of sexual offenders to re‐offend. Thus, the development of accurate and valid tools for assessing sexual recidivism, along with the identification of predictive variables on which such tools are based, has become a focus of research. This article reviews the literature identifying predictors of sexual recidivism and examines the various approaches that may be employed by mental health professionals in the assessment of risk of sexual offenders.