Treatment for Non-Contact Sexual Offenders: What We Know and What We Need

Abstract

Much of the research on treatment of sexual offenders is focused on contact sexual offenses, which include physical contact with a victim. Conversely, there is a dearth of literature on effective psychological interventions for individuals who commit non-contact sexual offenses. This paper briefly reviews the research on the characteristics and risk of some of the main types of non-contact sexual offenders (i.e., online, voyeuristic, exhibitionistic) before critically examining the psychological treatment literature in this area. Suggestions for future research are provided.