Group Of Sex Offenders Research Articles

Sexualization and lifestyle impulsivity: clinically valid discriminators in sexual offenders.

Following clinical observations in this study a comparison was undertaken between nonsexualized rapists, sexualized rapists, and pedophilic child molesters in terms of psychometric measures, criminological data, and DSM-IV diagnoses following the authors' hypotheses that nonsexualized and sexualized rapists differ in respect of psychiatric comorbidity and criminal history and sexualized rapists and pedophilic child molesters are more similar as regards to psychiatric comorbidity (anxiety, depression, and aggression) and criminal history variables than nonsexualized and sexualized rapists are. Preliminary findings confirmed the hypotheses: the authors found significant differences between paraphilic and sexualized sex offenders on one hand--regardless whether they had offended against minors or adults--and a group of sex offenders exhibiting a history of high lifestyle impulsivity on the other hand. From a psychiatric clinical point of view, paraphilic or sexualized rapists could be shown to resemble more the pedophilic child molesters. Therapeutic approaches should take these findings into account.

Characteristics of individuals petitioned for civil commitment.

This article explores the demographic and criminal characteristics of a group of sex offenders currently residing in a facility for civilly committed sex offenders. Legal and clinical records were used and data coded. This sample is compared to published data on a group of civilly committed sex offenders in another state. Results indicated that there were numerous similarities and some differences between the two groups. Further research needs to be conducted on civilly committed sex offenders in other states to better understand this population.

Aggression, Impulsivity, Plasma Sex Hormones, and Biogenic Amine Turnover in a Forensic Population of Rapists

The aim of the present study was to assess androgen plasma levels and biogenic amine metabolites in a sex-offender group as well as to investigate the relationship between the biological findings and the impulsive, aggressive, and suicidal profile of the offenders. Fiftyseven males convicted for rape and 25 normal males comprised the study sample. We found that although both testosterone levels and aggression-impulsivity scores were higher in the group of rapists, testosterone levels were not associated with the aggression and impulsivity scores. Nevertheless, aggression-impulsivity scores were clearly associated with luteinizing hormone levels. This association may indicate a hyperactive hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, possibly the result of a reduced serotonergic activity.

Juvenile sex offenders: toward the development of a typology.

Adolescent males who sexually offended against prepubescent children were contrasted with those who targeted pubescent and postpubescent females. As hypothesized, path analyses revealed that the former group had greater deficits in psychosocial functioning, used less aggression in their sexual offending, and were more likely to offend against relatives. Theorized relationships between developmental risk factors, personality mediators, and sexual and nonsexual offense characteristics were assessed in both groups of juvenile sex offenders. Deficits in psychosocial functioning were found to mediate the influence of childhood exposure to violence against females on adolescent perpetration of sexual and nonsexual offenses. Additional univariate analyses were conducted to further explore some associations among early risk factors, personality mediators, and outcomes. Childhood physical abuse by a father or stepfather and exposure to violence against females were found to be associated with higher levels of comorbid anxiety and depression. Noncoercive childhood sexual victimization by a male nonrelative was found to be associated with sexual offending against a male child. Clinical and theoretical implications of the findings are discussed.

Mode deactivation therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy: A description of treatment results for adolescents with personality beliefs, sexual offending and aggressive behaviors.

This paper is a comparison of two groups of adolescent sexual offenders receiving different types of therapy; one group participated in Treatment As Usual (TAU), which is a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) based approach, and the other group engaged in Mode Deactivation Therapy (MDT). The data presented is reflective of treatment comparisons not a research protocol. The results are descriptive and not necessarily comparison research. MDT is an empirically based therapy, based on CBT, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT; Linehan, 1993), and Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP; Kohlenberg & Tsai, 1993), recently implemented in the Behavioral Studies Program, existing in Portsmouth, Virginia. MDT is a methodology that systematically assesses and expands underlying compound core beliefs that are a product of their unconscious experience merging with their cognitive processing, acceptance, balance, and validation. By addressing these beliefs, MDT examines underlying perceptions that may be applicable to setting in motion the mode related charge of aberrant schemas, that enable the behavior integration of DBT principles (Beck, 1996; Nezu et a], 1998). The MDT system also implements the Case Conceptualization method based an adaptation of the Beck (1996) suggested methodology of mode deactivation. Results suggest that MDT may be more effective in this treatment research than TAU, evident by reduced internal distress, resulting from various psychological disorders, and reduced sex offending risk. ********** The focus of MDT is based on the work of Aaron Beck, M.D., particularly his recent theoretical work, the system of (Beck, 1996, Alford & Beck, 1997). Other aspects of MDT have been included in the Behavior Analytic literature, such as Kohlenberg and Tsai (1993), Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP), as well as, Dialectic Behavior Therapy (DBT) (Linehan, 1993). The specific application of MDT is delineated by Apsche, Ward, and Evile (2002) in an article, which specified the applied methodological implications for MDT with specific typologies. The article also provided a theoretical study case study that illustrates the MDT methodology. Beck (1996) suggested that the model of individual schemas (linear schematic processing) does not adequately address a number of psychological problems, therefore the model must be modified to address such problems. Working with adolescents who present with complex typologies of aberrant behaviors, it was necessary to address this typology of youngsters from a more global methodology, to address their impulse control and aggression. Beck (1996) describes the notion as a network of cognitive, affective, motivational, and behavioral components. He further described as consisting of integrated sections or suborganizations of personality, that are designed to deal with specific demands. Beck continues to describe primal modes as including the derivatives of ancient organizations that evolved in prehistoric circumstances and are manifested in survival reactions and in psychiatric disorders. Beck (1996) also explains that the concept of charges (or cathexes) being related to the fluctuations in the intensity gradients of cognitive structures. Beck, Freeman and Associates (1990) suggested that cognitive, affective and motivational processes are determined by the idiosyncratic structures or schema that constitute the basic elements of personality. This is a more cognitive approach suggesting that the schema is the determinant to the mood, thought, and behavior. Alford and Beck (1997) explain that the schema typical of personality disorder is theorized to operate on a more continuous basis; the personality disorders are more sensitive to a variety of stimuli than other clinical syndromes. Mode Deactivation Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Further study of cognitive therapy emphasizes the characteristic patterns of a person's development, differentiation, and adaptation to social and biological environments (Alford & Beck, 1997). …

Empathy, Intimacy, Loneliness and Locus of Control in Child Sex Offenders: A Comparison Between Familial and Non-Familial Child Sexual Offenders

ABSTRACT There has been relatively little previous research examining differences between subgroups of child sex offenders. In this study, we compared a group of familial and non-familial child sex offenders attending a community based treatment program on a number of relationship dimensions thought to be important in explaining offending. No statistically significant differences were found between these groups on measures of general empathy, intimacy and loneliness, although non-familial offenders were found to have higher levels of cognitive empathy and a more internal locus of control than familial offenders. These findings are discussed in terms of their possible implications for service delivery.

A social learning theory comparison of the sexual victimization of adolescent sexual offenders and nonsexual offending male delinquents

Objective: This paper tests hypotheses based on Garland and Dougher’s (1990) formulation of the “victim to victimizer” relationship which is a social learning theory etiological approach to adolescent sexual offending. Method: Two hundred sixteen adolescent sexually victimized sexual offenders and 93 adolescent sexually victimized nonsexual offending delinquents from three Michigan sexual offender treatment facilities participated in an anonymous cross-sectional survey regarding their sexual victimization and offending as well as a social desirability measure. Results: When comparing the two groups, nonsexually offending delinquents and sexually offending delinquents, the latter were found to have: closer relationships with their perpetrators; a higher chance of having a male perpetrator(s); a longer duration of sexual victimization; more forceful sexual victimization; and the experience of penetration as part of their sexual victimization. Logistic regression showed that the gender of the perpetrators being both male and female and the forcefulness of the perpetrators were the best predictors of being in the sexual offender group. Conclusions: The social learning theory hypotheses were generally supported. Further multivariate research on this theory is warranted.

The parental bonding experiences of sex offenders: a comparison between child molesters and rapists

Objective: It has often been hypothesized that because of a lack of early satisfactory attachments, sex offenders grow up unable to form relationships with adults, which makes them susceptible to pursue intimacy in maladaptive ways. This research aims to empirically examine the parental bonding patterns for a group of sex offenders, comparing child molesters and rapists. Method: Seventy-six men convicted of a sexual offense (57 child molesters and 19 rapists) completed the parental bonding instrument (PBI), and were assessed by means of a semi-structured clinical interview. Results: Affectionless control style of parental bonding was highly prevalent amongst the sex offenders. There was some suggestion that low parental care was associated with childhood abuse and disturbances, particularly for child molesters. High overprotection in mothers was linked with parental separation and sex play with male peers in childhood. Conclusions: There is a need to replicate the study with non-sexual offenders as a comparison group, and to establish whether the PBI provides a useful adjunct to studies of adult romantic attachment in sex offenders.

Juvenile Male Sexual Offenders: The Quality of Motivation System of Assessment and Treatment Issues

ABSTRACT A group of juvenile male sexual offenders (n = 100) completed the Quality of Motivation Questionnaire (QMQ) upon entry into a residential treatment facility. The concepts of Quality of Motivation (QM) Theory are presented to explain the QMQ scores. The scores include Disclosure Level, Sources of Motivation, Skills, Life Style Characteristics and Power. The results indicate abnormal motivation scores in the area of Disclosure Resistance, Depression, Primary and Learned Sources of Motivation, and all of the Maladaptive Skills Scores. Recommendations of treatment issues for therapists are prioritized according to QM Theory and presented in a treatment plan format called the Personal Development Plan (PDP). Implications for further research with the QMQ include outcome measurement of changes and comparison with non-offender groups.

Personality and deviant sexual fantasies: an examination of the MMPIs of sex offenders.

A sample of 228 sex offenders and nonsex offender controls were divided into two groups, based on the presence or absence of deviant sexual fantasies, as determined by their replies to the Clarke Sex History Questionnaire Fantasy Scales. The sex offenders were divided into six groups based on sexual preferences and criminal history. There were 14 heterosexual pedophiles, 23 homosexual pedophiles, 51 exhibitionists, 17 incest offenders, 24 sexual aggressives, and 57 multiple/miscellaneous offenders as well as 42 nonviolent nonsex offender controls. A 2 (fantasy group) x 7 (sex offender group) multivariate analysis with age and education as covariates was used to compare the MMPI validity scales (L, F, and K) and the 10 clinical scales as dependent variables. Deviant fantasizers had more clinically significantly scores on the F, Psychopathic Deviate, Masculinity-Femininity, Paranoia, and Schizophrenia Scales compared to nondeviant fantasizers, regardless of group membership. Results suggest that deviant fantasizers may be more socially alienated and less emotionally stable than nondeviant fantasizers, although few were diagnosed as psychotic. The sex offender and control groups showed considerable overlap on mean MMPI Scales. The groups tended to differ in level of depression and extent of persecutory ideas, but the multivariate sex offender group effect was not statistically significant when problems of inhomogeneity of variance were corrected. There was no interaction of fantasy groups and sex offender groups, indicating that the two factors can be considered independently.

Cognitive/behavioral treatment for sexual offenders: an examination of recidivism.

Recent research in the treatment of sexual offenders suggests that comprehensive cognitive/behavioral approaches may yield lower recidivism. This study reviewed such a program, existing in Jackson County, Oregon, since 1982. Offenders were mandated into this community-based program upon conviction of a felony or misdemeanor sexual offense, and averaged 2-3 years of participation. A group of offender who participated in the Jackson County program between 1985 and 1995 was identified through archival data from the Oregon Department of Corrections. The data revealed success or nonsuccess in treatment, and any new convictions for sexual or nonsexual offenses. A control group of nonsexual offenders in Jackson County, and a group of sexual offenders in Linn County who did not have access to any treatment program were also studied. As hypothesized, those Jackson County offenders who successfully completed treatment had lower recidivism rates than those who were unsuccessful in the program. The observed effect of the program was particularly strong for offenders who remained in treatment for 1 year or more. When review was restricted to those participants, the reoffense rate for Jackson County offenders was reduced by over 40% when compared with Linn County offenders.

A comparison of the neuropsychological profiles of adult male sex offenders and non-offenders with a learning disability

The present study compared the neumpsychologlcal pmfiles of a group of adult male sex offenden with a laming disability (n-42) with a group of adult male non-offenders with a learning disability (n-42) using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - Revised (1986). The groups wen matched for full-scale IQ. Thc study found that the non-offender group had significantly higher Verbal 1Q scorn than the sex offender group. No significant differences wen found for Performance IQ. The non-ofinder group was also found to have significantly hlgher scores on the Vocabulary sub-test than the sex offender group and the sex offender group was found to have significantly higher scores on the ObJecr Assembly subtest than the non-ofinder group. Finally. the sex offender group was found to have a significantly lower Verbal IQ than Performance IQ. No significant Verbal-Performance discrepancy was found for the non-offender group. Possible implications of these findings are dlscusscd.

Alcohol expectancies in convicted rapists and child molesters.

BACKGROUND: Previous findings suggest that cognitive factors and expectancies related to drinking can mediate subjective sexual arousal as well as aggression in men. Our aim was to investigate the drinking habits and alcohol-related expectancies that might predispose men to sexually aggress in two groups of sexual offenders. METHOD: Men convicted of rape (n = 10) were compared with men convicted of child molesting (n = 10) and with control subjects (n = 31). Current drinking habits (while not in prison) were assessed by self-report, and the extent of alcohol abuse was mapped by the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST; Selzer, 1971). Cognitive expectancies related to alcohol use were explored by the standard Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire (AEQ; Brown et al., 1980). RESULTS: The majority of the men who committed rape (70%) but only a third of the men convicted of child molesting were diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder. Alcohol abuse was common in men convicted of both rape and child molesting and the men convicted of rape expected significantly more positive effects from drinking than the control group. Both sex offender groups were the only groups to express significant alcohol-related cognitive expectancies linked to arousal and aggression. Expectancy patterns were directly linked to the antisocial personality characteristics. CONCLUSION: Alcohol abuse is common in men who commit both rape and child molesting. Heavy drinking and the anticipation of alcohol effects such as sexual enhancement, arousal and aggression may facilitate sexual aggression in offenders with antisocial personality disorder.

Empathy in Sexually Offending and Nonoffending Adolescent Males

Empathy development is believed to be an important element in adolescent sex offender treatment. Adolescence is a time of considerable self-absorption among adolescent boys. This study investigates levels of empathy among adolescent offenders in comparison with their nonoffending counterparts. Participants were 23 male sex offenders and 23 male nonoffenders between the ages of 13 and 18. Participants were administered Davis's Interpersonal Reactivity Index as a measure of empathy. The sex offender group scored significantly lower in empathy on the overall score. There was some variation on the individual subscales. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

The big 5 dimensional personality approach to understanding sex offenders

Although previous research has reported that the incarceration of sex offenders does not significantly reduce re-offending, there is no adequate theory guiding remedial programs for this population. The aim of the present study was to examine whether normal personality variation provides useful theoretical insight into the nature of sex offences against children. The Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R), a measure of the five-factor model (FFM) of personality, was administered to 64 males incarcerated for child sex offences. Sex offenders were categorised into different offender groups comprising incest within the immediate family, incest within step-family and extra familial offence. A comparison group of 33 non-offender males also completed the NEO PI-R. Results indicated that the sex offender groups were significantly higher in Neuroticism and significantly lower in Extraversion and Conscientiousness compared to the non-offender group. Significant differences between the sex offender groups and comparison groups for NEO PI-R facets were also found. The implications of these findings in terms of early identification and treatment are discussed.

An evaluation of self-report measures of cognitive distortions and empathy among Australian sex offenders.

The modification of deviant cognitions and the enhancement of victim empathy are central components in many treatment programs for sex offenders. There appear to be three broad problems with self-report measures of these factors: variations in the psychometric evaluation of measures; the transparency of items and thus the likely influence of social desirability; and the difficulty of determining which measures are specific to particular types of sex offenders. The aim of this study was to investigate these three issues among child molesters (CMs), and men convicted of sex offences against adults (ASOs). Data were collected from 36 CMs and 31 ASOs and from two comparison groups (33 men convicted of nonsexual offences and 40 nonoffenders from the community), to assess the reliability (internal and test-retest) and validity (discriminant, construct, and face) of measures, the influence of sexual social desirability on responding and the specificity of measures to both sex offender groups. Collectively, the results raise issues related to the assessment of sex offenders that require further investigation. They also have theoretical implications about the relationship between cognitive and emotive processes among sex offenders.

A Cautionary Note Regarding Nicholaichuk et al. (2000)

The treatment outcome study by Nicholaichuk, Gordon, Gu, and Wong (2000) used a novel method for identifying a comparison group of untreated sex offenders (i.e., drawing from existing criminal history records). A potential problem with their approach is that older records would be expected to include a disproportionate numbers of recidivists. Such an artifact is identified in Nicholaichuk et al.'s (2000) study; nevertheless, their data continue to suggest a small, positive effect for treatment even after eliminating the cases in which bias is most likely.

Profiles of Psychopathy in Incarcerated Sexual Offenders

The authors investigated whether psychopathy would contribute to the understanding of the heterogeneity of sexual violence. Using the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised, presence of psychopathy, callous personality (Factor 1), and chronic antisocial conduct (Factor 2) were examined in a diverse sample ( N = 329) of incarcerated sex offenders and nonsexual offenders categorized according to the nature of their crimes. Mixed rapist/molesters and rapists were more psychopathic than child molesters, although all sex offender groups showed elevated Factor 1 scores. A high proportion (64%) of offenders who had victimized both children and adults were psychopathic, indicative of a criminal whose thrill seeking is directed at diverse sexual victims (appropriately called a sexual psychopath). Furthermore, there were different factor scores and an interaction between factor scores and offense type. These profiles have implications for treatment and a comprehensive theory of sexual violence.

Research on parental sensitivity, trust, intimacy and adult romantic attachment as predictors for sexual delinquency

Some important authors in the field of sexual delinquency stress the importance of inadequate attachment in the aetiology of sexual abusive behaviour. This contribution reports on parental sensitivity, trust, intimacy and adult romantic attachment in a group of sexual offenders (exhibitionists, child molesters and child rapists) and a matched normal control group. Based on the analyses, it appears that parental sensitivity, trust, intimacy and adult romantic attachment significantly differentiate between sexual delinquents and the control group. There is no significant relationship between the different categories of sexual offenders, except for the variable adult romantic attachment. Furthermore, it was found that parental sensitivity, trust and the adult romantic attachment style contribute independently to the explanation of sexual delinquent behaviour. The results tend to be important for the prevention and the treatment of sexual delinquent behaviour.

An examination of the role of neuropsychological deficits in mentally disordered sex offenders

The present study examines the neuropsychological model of sexual offending proposed by Flor-Henry (1987) in relation to a group of mentally disordered sex offenders and a control group of mentally disordered non-sex offenders. The model predicts that the sex offender group would show specific left fronto-temporal dysfunction as compared with the control group. The results, while in the predicted direction, failed to reach statistical significance. Implications and limitations of the study are discussed.