Ch. 12 Sex Offenders

Question 1

Sex Offenders

Answer 1

SEX OFFENDER – person convicted of certain sex offense crimes including (but not limited to):

• Sexual assault/rape
• Sexual harrassment
• PEDOPHELIA – molestation of a child
• Indecent exposure
• child prostitution
• incest
• There is NO sex offender profile
  
  • Often are people we know
  • come from all walks of life
  • all ages
  • all different Socioeconomic Status and education
  • Leaders and politicians
  • Most offenders hae no psychological

SEXUAL SOCIALIZATION – plays a crucial role in sexual assault – how people acquire knowledge and skills and dispositions with regard to sex.

Sex offenders DO SHARE some COMMON CHARACTERISTICS: (not all sex offenders have these. And not all those with these characteristics are necessarily sex offenders)

• Past History
• Cognitive beliefs
• Environmetnal stiumili
• Reincorment of behavior
• Deviant sexual arousal, interest, or preferences – significant driving force behind sexual offenses
  
  • Linked to Ricidivism
• Cognitive distortions – Offenders rationalize that what they do isn’t such a big deal, that the victims aren’t hurt or they deserve it or whatever.
  
  • Not unique to sex offenders. But there are specific types of distortions that sex offenders use.
  • Pro-offending attitudes have a high Ricidivism.
• Social, interpersonal, & intimacy deficits – they have difficult having healthy relationships with others
• Victim empathy deficits – don’t care about the victims
• Poor self–management skills
• History of maltreatment (verbal & physical) – not all, but many sex offenders were sexually abused themselves.
  
  • But not everyone who has been abused becomes a sex offender. It is NOT an excuse.

THREE PERSONALITY TRAITS associated with SEX OFFENDERS:

1. High sexual Drive
2. Antisocial behavior
3. Calous Antisocial behavior

Other Disturbing facts:

• 2018 about 734,000 rapes and sexual assaults were reported to the police – every 73 seconds in America
• Majority of victims are under age 30
• 1 in every 6 American women will be the victim of rape or attempted rape
• 90% of rape victims are female
• women between 16-19 are 4x more likely than anyone in the general population to be raped
• female college students are 3x more likely to be raped
• college age men are 5x more likely to be victims of rape or assault than noncollege males
• about 10% of rape victims are male
• Victims later report PTSD and other conditions, chronic pain, ect. after such an attack
• Victims of sexual assault are 2-4x more likely to later develop psychological problems.
  
  • PTSD, substance abuse, depression, etc.
• Relious, youth and military organizations have been caught up in sex abuse scandals.

Question 2

Sex Offenders (Recidivism)

Answer 2

Static factors that PREDICT SEXUAL RECIDIVISM

• Young age of onset of sex offending – the earlier they start, the worse the outcome
• Prior convictions for sex offenses
• Unrelated, unfamiliar victims
• Deviant sexual interests, or preferences
• Unmarried
• Antisocial personality disorder
• Psychopathy

Other NONSTATIC Variables (tend to change over time) that PREDICT SEXUAL RECIDIVISM:

• Problems with intimacy or problems with an intimate relationship
• Incresased hostility
• Emotional identification with children
• Lifestyle instability, impulsivity (job loss, substance abuse)
• Attitudes that justify antisocial behavior
• Demostrating noncompliance with supervision or treatment
• preoccupied with sexual

Question 3

Pedophilia

Answer 3

The LACK of a specific PROFILE for sex offender makes it difficult to treat.

• Trying to identify SUBTYPES, makes it more possible to develop more effective interventions and therapies.

PARAPHILIA – any condition that involves recurring sexual fantasies or urges that involve the following for at least 6 months:

• non-human objects (shoes, chairs, whatever)
• specific behaviors, such as inflicting pain on themselves or their partner
• sexual fantasies that involve children and other nonconsenting persons.

PEDOPHELIA – clinical term for a child molester.

• Is a type of paraphilia
• Modus Operandi (mode of operation) for a pedophile
  
  • Typically try to gain the trust of the victim (offering them candy or ice cream or whatnot).
  • May work in schools or camps
  • Online sexual predators
    
    • Target young adolecents because they are more accessible than young children on the internet
• Common Offender Characteristics for PEDOPHILES
  
  • Predominately male (87%)
  • Alcohol abuse
  • High rate high school dropout / failure
  • Unstable work histories / occupations
  • Lower socioeconomic strata
  • 75% over the age of 30
• RAPISTS share many of these characteristics with PEDOPHILES, but there are TWO major ways they differ:
  
  1. Age of their victims
  2. Age of the perpetrators
  • Age of RAPISTS = 75% < 30
  • Age of PEDOPHILE = 75% > 30
• There are some Juvenile Sex offenders who tend to:​
  
  • be socially isolated
  • choose younger victims
  • More likely to have been a victim themselves
  • more likely to suffer from depression
• Female Juvenile Sex Offenders
  
  • 8% of all juveniles arrested for sex offenses
  • Probably underreported because their victims tend to be < 5 years old.

Question 4

Finkel and Araji (1986) 4 Theory Types for Pedophilia

Answer 4

These theories attempt to explain the source of PEDOPHILIA. They do not work in isolation, but rather cross over and work together.

• EMOTIONAL CONGRUENCE – Childish interests, emotional needs, feel most comfortable with children.
  
  • Pedophiles see themselves as children
• SEXUAL AROUSAL – Sexually aroused to atypical stimuli.
• BLOCKAGE – Unattainable sexual & emotional gratification with adults, so they revert to children with whom they feel greater comfort.
• DISINHIBITION – Poor self-regulation or self-control

Question 5

Antisocial Personality Disorder

Answer 5

• Many Prison inmates have APD. they are 10x more likely to have APD than the general population.
• Prisoners are much more likely to be diagnosed with disorders
• HOWEVER, People become criminals not because they had disorders but because they were raised in environments that reward criminal behavior.
• Those with APD are not necessarily criminal
• Many with APD are law-abiding and successful in their careers even thought hey may treat others in a very callous and insensitive manner.