Pathological Abnormalities in Sex Offenders

Sex offenders are described as a person who commits a crime involving a sexual act. They are people convicted for sexual crime in a criminal court. Sex offenders make a high percentage of the offender population and are considered special circumstance offenders. Sex offenders typically use sex as a coping mechanism. Juvenile sex offenders are those age from adolescences to an adult, who committed a sexual act without consent both physically and verbally.

In “Riding the Bull at Gilleys,” Scully and Marolla depict the psychopathological and the socio-cultural models of rape. The psychopathological model is a representation of what psychotherapist have used for years to explain the reasoning behind rape. With this model, rape is the result of an eccentric mental dysfunction, which symptoms include involuntary and uncontrollable sexual impulses. These sexual impulses may be temporary, repetitive, long lasting or brief. This model also implies that male sexual aggression is abnormal, therefore; psychologists do not seek any other rational explanation. Mainly, the psychopathological model ignores any correlational factors linking male sexual aggression to learned social behavior.

Many etiological theories exist attempting to explain the root causes of sexual offending. Although few provide substantial evidence and no definitive conclusions have been made, the social learning theory has been proposed to account for sex offending behaviors. Specifically, the social learning theory, or victim-to-victimizer theory, suggests sexually abused children learn these behaviors and are much more likely to perpetrate abuse when they’re older (Seto & Lalumiere, 2010). The following studies have provided substantial support for the social learning etiology. Through the use of a meta-analysis, Seto and Lalumiere (2010) concluded that sexual offending is tied to prior sexual abuse. Burton, Miller, and Shill (2002) discovered

Victims of sexual assault suffer from a wide variety of mental and emotional issues throughout their lives as a result of the experience. Results can range from depression, anger, feelings of loneliness, and difficulty when trying to formulate relationships of trust (Hyde 45). Victims experience a wide variety of psychological issues as a result of sexual crimes, which they will have to carry with them throughout their entire lives. Also, “Psychological problems can start later in life with changes in behavior- vague fears, feeling unprotected and helpless, nightmares, bedwetting, sleeping problems, fear to loss parents approval/love, need to please others, poor self esteem, anger, depression, withdrawal from activities, daydreaming, difficulty concentrating, behavior problems” (Hyde 47).

A pattern emerges where the scholarly literature exploring this topic is largely focused on males. Reason being is that it appears that males are the sex who are predominantly homosexual in their orientation (LeVay & Baldwin, 2012). However, the sensitivity within the discourse of sexual orientation arises when it is debated upon whether one 's sexual preference is innate at birth, hence a force of nature or biology, or if it is a result of culture, nurture or environmental factors (Emmanuele et al., 2010). Furthermore, an experimental design will be proposed to further examine this topic. Comparing the three chosen studies, it is evident that a biological and endocrinological perspective does account for sexual orientation (Kraemer et al., 2006; Manning et al., 2007; Miller et al., 2008). Of the studies that currently exist on this topic, data shows that prenatal testosterone levels are indicative of sexual orientation (Kraemer et al., 2006; Manning et al., 2007; Miller et al., 2008). This paper addresses a topic that is relevant in today 's society; a topic that has, for the most part, been written off as having any scientific roots (Emmanuele et al., 2010). This paper counters that belief and in reading this essay, it will be evident that biology and endocrinology have a much stronger influence on sexual orientation than previously thought.

There has been much level headed discussion concerning why individuals carry out sexual violations. To the extent to what causes individuals to wind up sex wrongdoers, there is no genuine response to this inquiry. No single component can completely decipher why somebody submits a sexual offense, however it is trusted that some blend of variables may join to increment sexual deviancy significantly. These components incorporate natural, fortuitous, ecological, and sociocultural parts of the individual, depicting the advancement of anomalous sexual expression through the same instruments by which traditional sexuality is likewise learned (Terry and Tallon). There are various sub-hypotheses which have been intended to clarify the onset of

Psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia have higher rates of mental illness and sexual offending, for example, incest offenders had a much higher rate of psychosis when compared to homicidal sex offenders (Galloway & Houston, 2008). Personality disorders and sex offenders were characterized by pervasive affective instability, poor impulse control, impairment of self-identity and a tendency towards engaging in unstable relationships associated with emotional crises underpinned by a fear of abandonment (Galloway & Houston, 2008). Comorbid conditions seen in those with a diagnosis of voyeuristic disorder or exhibitionistic disorder in addition to the sex offense include hypersexuality, ADHD, conduct disorder, higher rates of depression and substance use disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). There are psychiatric comorbidity of pedophilic disorder they include substance use disorders, depression, bipolar, anxiety disorder, and

One emergent theme to arise was the connection participants experienced working with both sex offenders and victims, as Participant 1 described, “you get the balance, you get the full sort of picture or you get the full experience or impact from both parties so you don’t become too skewed in a way”. The reasons behind this appeared to be that although the work was very different with both groups, with the programme for sex offenders being very evidence based compared to that of the victims, by working with victims and witnessing their trauma and the impacts of the abhorrent crimes, provides one half of the picture, which then helps when the participants are working with sex offenders, because as

There has been much debate about why people commit sexual crimes. As far as to what causes people to become sex offenders, there is no real answer to this question. No single factor can fully interpret why someone commits a sexual offense, though it is believed that some combination of factors may combine to increase sexual deviancy dramatically. These factors include biological, circumstantial, environmental, and sociocultural aspects of the person, describing the development of abnormal sexual expression through the same mechanisms by which conventional sexuality is also learned (Terry and Tallon). There are a number of sub-theories which have been designed to explain the onset of sexual deviancy. However, because no one can pinpoint the dynamics of sexual deviancy, different theories have been developed to study and account for the development of sexual aggression and behavior. An explanation of the main theories is offered below:

There are typologies specific to female sex offenders, because they are less likely to sexually reoffend in comparison with male offenders. Nevertheless, male offenders are less likely to commit sexual assaults with the co-offender or even a group (Williams & Bierie, 2015). Females taking an active role in the abuse are frequently engaged in direct sexual contact with the victim. The passive participation of women does not end with the direct sexual contact, but in this case, they observe the abuse without intervening (Mancini, 2014). The major difference between the female and male offenders’ typologies is in the presence of a co-offender, the motivation of the offense, and the age of the

Sex offences are still primarily conducted by male offenders, however there has been an increase in sexual offences carried out by female offenders being reported over the last vicennial. Turvey teaches us that the increasing arrests of women who have been charged with a sexual offence, is most likely linked to an increase in victim willingness to report the crime (2012). Unlike male offenders who are often driven by sexual arousal, studies show that female offenders are more often drawn to their victims out of loneliness or a need for emotional attachment. Societal double standards between males who are viewed as aggressors and females who often are perceived as nurturing caregivers is has played a part in the limited research that has been conducted on female sex offenders.

Most psychological research on the personalities of pedophiles consists of only clinical descriptions and case presentations. Bell and Hall represented the clinical approaches to the study of the personalities of pedophiles. They analyzed the dreams of a pedophiles and made suggestions about their characteristics. “ The inference from their case report was that pedophiles have a basic character disorder shown by schizoid and passive traits as well as a severe dread of adult sexuality.”(Bell & Hall 1971).

There have been hundreds to thousands of treatments that have been conducted, some similar and others drastically different. In this paper, I will go over just a few of the more important types of treatments. Brown et al, (2017) demonstrates three types of treatments. Pharmacological treatment, behavioral therapy, and most importantly cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). With pharmacological treatment’s their purpose is to reduce sex drive. The most common types of drugs used are antiandrogen, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and gonadotropic releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists. to go into more detail antiandrogen’s like cyproterone acetate (CPA) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA)

Empathy is defined as the ability to share another’s emotional state or context (Eisenberg and Strayer, 1987). This construct has been found to increase prosocial behavior and reduce aggression in children and adolescence (Eisenberg and Miller, 1987). A growing body of research exists in the field of empathy development, but relatively less studies have been done which focusses on individuals with a history of antisocial behavior and aggressive conduct. Earlier researches on empathy and antisocial behavior in offender populations (e.g., Aleksic, 1976; Ellis, 1982; Rotenberg, 1974) often differed in the operational definitions of empathy, with emphasizing on cognitive components and others on affective

Some argue, "the reality is that the overwhelming majority of offenders have a psychiatric illness, and to argue that sexual offenses are symptoms of some diagnostic category, only provides them with an excuse to minimize their responsibility for their own behavior." (Briggs 15). Others maintain that there are genetic and developmental factors which contribute to pedophilia being a disorder, although this theory has not yet been proven.