Sex Offender Preoccupation Paper

The laws for sex offenders should be changed for many reasons. This is a very controversial subject, and tempers flare easily and often for good reason. Due to the plethora of opinions on this subject it is hard to determine what is right and what is wrong.

There is a spread of co-occurring disorders (CODs) seen in offenders who have committed sex crimes they include mood, substance abuse, obsessive-compulsive, antisocial, avoidant, narcissistic, paranoid personality disorders, impulse control, anxiety, and eating disorders (Guidry & Saleh, 2004). In a study done by Guidry and Saleh (2004) prevalence rates of the above mentioned CODs they include 82% were diagnosed with a mood disorder, 50% with an anxiety disorder, anxiety disorders were diagnosed at close to 40% with social phobia being the most common (Guidry & Saleh, 2004). There clinical syndromes seen in non-sexual offenders they include mania, somatoform,

Sex offenders have been a serious problem for our legal system at all levels, not to mention those who have been their victims. There are 43,000 inmates in prison for sexual offenses while each year in this country over 510,000 children are sexually assaulted(Oakes 99). The latter statistic, in its context, does not convey the severity of the situation. Each year 510,000 children have their childhood's destroyed, possibly on more than one occasion, and are faced with dealing with the assault for the rest of their lives. Sadly, many of those assaults are perpetrated by people who have already been through the correctional system only to victimize again. Sex offenders, as a class of criminals, are nine times more likely to repeat their

Now the original question asked was, “Why do sex offenders do the things they do?” No single factor or combination of factors can fully explain why someone offends sexually, though some factors may combine to increase people’s tendency to offend. The field of sex offender management has yet to find a clear explanation or cause for sexual offending behavior; however, despite many unanswered questions, research has produced a number of important findings about the etiology of sexual offending:

There also is a noted link to recidivism and repeat offending. In over half of early case studies completed it was found that alcohol was a factor. Either the offender was classified as an alcoholic or was drinking at the time of the event. In addition, this was even more indicative when it came to the grouping of child molesters where the numbers were again over half but on the higher end of almost seventy percent. The highest group of offenders where alcohol was mentioned involved incest abusers. (Aarons et Al. 1978 541-548). Later research has further supported this information in groups of inmates that had taken the MAST and the DAST. It was noted that again there was a high reported correlation between reported alcohol abuse among those convicted of sexual offenses. “This was almost ten times the rate of other violent offenders.” When looking at research throughout the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom offenders that were surveyed included rapists, child molesters, and exhibitionists. The highest level of alcohol abuse was noted with the population of child molesters. It is compelling that such data is there and often disregarded in the realm of treatment. (Abracen, Looman, Fazio, Kelly, Stripe 20; Kraanen, Emmelkamp

To the ordinary citizen, when a person breaks the law, they are titled as a criminal and receive a direct punishment from the state for their wrongdoing. This punishment is seen as straightforward and simple when in reality it is far from it. For instance, if a person were to be convicted of burglary and received a punishment of 6 years in a state penitentiary, the average citizen would think nothing of it. In reality, that punishment carries much more weight as time goes along with extended “invisible” punishments called collateral consequences. These punishments are not seen by the average citizen because they manifest outside of traditional sentencing and can stay with the offender permanently. Some of these consequences are restrictions

The purpose of sex offender treatment is to alter the deviant sexual arousal patterns, addressing social skills deficits that result in deviant behavior, to challenge the beliefs that facilitate sex-offending behavior, and to develop strategies to prevent sexual reoffending. To resolve the above mentioned problems involves the use of both medication and behavioral based treatment models. Medications that are used to decrease sexual deviant behavior include synthetic progesterone derivatives such as medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and cyproterone (CPA), luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist leuprolide acetate (LHRH), Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), and serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) (Fong, 2006; Dolan, 2009). Dolan

The purpose of this literature review is to discuss the importance of sexual offender treatment, to compare and contrast research points regarding treatment, and to address the validity of the peer reviewed articles. Every year 6,000 sex offenders enter treatment (Waldram, 2008). Various therapeutic treatment options are offered, and the primary focus is to rehabilitate and change behavior. The body of research reveals different therapeutic treatment models and discusses the purpose and effectiveness of each model. This paper will also discuss some of the challenges of implementing therapeutic treatment schemas as viable alternatives to treat sex offenders. Lastly, the research will also examine the impact of treatment as it relates to

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:

Sexual assault is one of the fastest growing violent crimes in America. Approximately 20% of all people charged with a sexual offense are juveniles. Among adult sex offenders, almost 50% report that their first offense occurred during their adolescence. (FBI, 1993) There are many different opinions, treatment options and legislation to manage the growing numbers of juvenile sex offenders. In today’s society the psychological and behavioral modification treatments used to manage juvenile sex offenders is also a growing concern. To understand and determine the proposed treatment methods, several related issues will need to be reviewed such as traditional sex offender therapy methods like cognitive therapy and alternative therapies like

When working with this specific population mental health professionals are often called on to evaluate and manage sex offender’s behavior. There are also times when individuals may be asked to give an opinion as to if the offender will repeat the behavior. Often times people that work with this population are referred to as (SOSs) Sex Offender Specialists. They have a specific group of diverse training and background. Some of these trainings incIude but are not limited to cognitive-behavioral, psychopharmacological, and therapeutic orientations.

Until the mid-1980s the treatment of sex offenders was conducted primarily in civil commitment programs in a few state hospitals, prisons, and outpatient clinics scattered around the country. Sex offenders were often treated using a variety of psychodynamic and client-centered techniques. A major shift in the field came in 1983 with the publication of an article that presented for the first time a relapse prevention model designed for sexual offenders (Pithers, Marques, Gibat, & Marlatt, 1983). Pithers and Marques adapted the work pioneered by Marlatt for alcoholics. Relapse prevention is essentially a self-control model that teaches the individual to identify and recognize a unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, and situations that precede and lead to relapses. Relapse in the case of sex offenders is a re-offense. This pattern has a “signature” quality to it. It is tailored to the cognitive, affective, and situation markers that are unique for each individual. Once the pattern is fully understood, the individual learns

There is a general agreement in the literature that it is in the interests of both the general public and sex offenders that a comprehensive evaluation of the efficacy of sex offender treatment programmes is established. However largely due to the lack of homogeneity amongst offenders a degree of uncertainty remains as to the most effective model. The literature is inconclusive with regard to specifying an exact exemplar for a sex offender. It is therefore largely accepted that; regulated evidenced based assessment tools with a high degree of reliability and validity are used in treatment programs. Additionally these programs must target particular traits to be effective. This literature review

Since the present study is based on retrospective approach and the interpretation of secondary data as a means to extract empirical information to successfully validate the claim of this thesis. The secondary data will undergo intense interpretation and analysis to validate use of pharmaceutical intervention is essential in a sex offender treatment program. In addition, aid in developing a questionnaire that will assist risk factors to associate the needs for offenders to undergo medication management to effectively control their high sexual preoccupation and using sex to cope with

The treatment for sexual offenders is done in a three principal approach which is cognitive behavioral approach, psycho-educational approach, and pharmacological approach. The cognitive behavioral approach gives emphasis on altering the habits of the offended relating toward sexual offending and “deviant patterns of arousal”. (CSOM) This means altering the daily habits of the offender which may be everything they had known previously to incarceration. The second principal of psycho-educational focuses on altering the offender’s state of mind toward their victims and attempts to instill the understanding of how they inflicted harm with their actions. With psychology there is never a set time on how long a set goal will be reached. Times vary between individuals and can sometime never reach their desired outcome. In conjunction with those previous principals the offenders are also treated under the pharmacological