sexual offending Flashcards
offences outlined by the sexual offences act 2003
rape = penetration without consent by the penis
assault by penetration
sexual assault
voyeurism and upskirtingg
age of consent and offences against children
16
penetration, sexual contact, inciting children is illegal when victim is under 13
when perpetrator is 18 or older = illegal when victim is under 16
issues with age of consent when it comes to research
what is criminal in one country may not be criminal in another
how common is sexual violence
multi country studies show that global victimisation vary considerably (WHO, 2012)
- lifetime prevalence of sexual partner violence reported by women aged 15-49 ranged from 5% to 59%
- 0.3% to 12% of women reported by non partner since age of 15
meta-analysis puts global rates of child sexual absue at 4-19% for boys and 11-22% for girls (Stolenborgh et al, 2014)
Wortley 2009 - common misconceptions about sexual abuse
myth: parents should worry about stranger danger
- 56.5% of CSA perps lived with victim
- 36.9% knew child
- only 6.5% were strangers
- 69% of offences happened in the home
myth: organised paedophile rings are responsible for large amount of sexual offences
- 8% talked to other individuals who sexually offended
- 4% were members of what could be considered a paedophile group
myth: gat people pose greater risk to children
stated orientation:
- 76% female only
- 8% male only
- 13% both
victims:
- 72% female
- 28% male
what is the definition of paedophilia, hebophelia, ephebophila, and teleiophilia
a sexual preference for children, usually of prepubertal or early pubertal age (WHO 1997)
paedophilia is not child molestation
hebophelia = around puberty
ephebophilia = adolescent
teleiophilia = adult
what is child molestation
contact sexual offence against a child, whether they have paedophilic interest or not
often divided into interfamilial/extra familial
measuring problematic sexual interest
traditionally measured by measuring arousal
less direct methods are now being developed:
- looking at reaction times to stimuli
(in other words, do people get distracted by small stimuli they find sexually pleasing)
there is also a link with indecent images of children
- people apprehended for indecent images of children show greater paedophilic arousal than people apprehended for contact offences (Seto et al 2006)
sexual offending perpetrated by women? issue of under-reporting
mainly a male perpetrated crime
meta analysis of results spanning 12 countries suggests that women account for:
- 2.2% of sexual offences reported to the police
- but 11% in victim surveys
many co-offend with a male co-perpetrator
victims overwhelmingly male
considerably lower rates of pedophilia
society may see female abuse as less harmful
factors implicated in sexual aggression towards adults typically characterised by:
- hostile masculinity
- sociosexual orientation
- endorsement of rape myths
- alcohol use
- antisociality
- sadism
biological theory of sexual offending
latest research appears to point to pre-natal influences on sexual offending
- especially as a possible cause for the risk factor of paedophilia
- but also evidence for genetic influence on child molestation and rape
ecological theory of sexual offending
refers to social context of individual
own history of abuse:
- 35% male abusers had been victims
- 11% male non abusers had been victims
cultural norms facilitating sexual violence:
- rape myth acceptance
group processes:
- multiple perpetrator rape
- rape in war
clinical risk factors
- deviant arousal
- emotional problems, regulating behaviour
- social difficulties, need for intimacy/control
- offence-supportive cognitions
what are offence-supportive cognitions
beliefs that affect how individuals see the world (about themselves, victims, and world)
what is desistance?
opposite of recidivism
slowing down of, or complete cessation of offending behaviour
