Although a greater amount of attention on sexual crimes focuses on men as the offender, recently there has been an increased consciousness of females as sex offenders. Both type of offenders share some similarities and some differences. Among their similarities, we may find that both male and female sex offenders have been known to have some struggles in developing and preserving a long relationship. It has been known that both male and female offenders lack of social skills and confidence. This causes them to struggle greatly in a relationship. Both offenders also lack of problem-solving abilities. When they encounter a problem it is difficult for them to be optimistic or to minimize the negative effect it has. Both types of offenders also
Violent male sex offenders reported high rates of inmate-on-inmate victimization (Beck & Johnson, 2012). The longer the time served, the more likely that the rate of sexual victimization increased. The highest rates of misconduct were reported by state prisoners who served in 5 or more facilities. Almost 44 percent of male and 74 percent of female victims reported that victimization occurred in the first prison facility
Female Sex Offenders: To Be Or Not To Be A Double Standard? Society deems female sex offenders as less threating and less violent than others nevertheless, is there truly a double standard? The harsh reality of female sex offenders brings about a controversial debate both about the aggressor and the victim.
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.
Adding on to the general lack of responsibility that society places on female sex offenders for their crimes, there is one typology that appears to absolve the offender of any wrongdoing. Whether it is the Teacher/Lover typology developed by Matthews, Mathews, and Speltz or the current Heterosexual Nurturer typology developed by Vandiver and Kercher, there are many problems with the wording alone (). The key issue with both typologies is that it seems to describe a consensual relationship instead of a sexual assault. Gender double standards prove how these typologies are flawed. We classify a male adult teacher who is having intercourse with a young female student as a sex offender, yet we classify a female adult teacher who is having intercourse
Most research indicates that about ninety percent of juvenile sex offenders are male. However, there is also research indicating there may be a considerable underrepresentation of the female juvenile offender in data. According to Schwartz, Cavanaugh, Pimental, and Prentky, although the vast majority of sexually aggressive youth are male, the proportion that is female appears to be much greater than is commonly observed among adult sex offenders, which may indicate that abuse by adolescent females is reported at a significantly lower rate than abuse by male adolescents (2006). One explanation for this is that the general public tends to struggle with the idea that a young woman could be capable of such perverse behavior. It should also be considered that male victims may have more difficulty reporting a sexual crime against them when the perpetrator is someone that society has taught them is the inferior gender (Hendriks, Bijleveld 2006). As a whole, female abusers have been researched very little, and juvenile female abusers have been virtually ignored in the field of criminological study.
Stories of sex offenders have been increasingly a focus of attention by the criminal justice system over the past years. By legal definition, a sex offender “is a person who is convicted of a sexual offense (Sex Offender Law & Legal Definition),” an act which is prohibited by the jurisdiction. What constitutes as a sex offense or normal/abnormal sexual behavior varies over time and place, meaning that it also varies by legal jurisdiction and culture. In the United States of America, for example, a person can be convicted of wide range of sexual behavior that includes prostitution, incest, sex with a minor, rape, and other sex offenses (Sex Offender Law & Legal Definition). As the nature of sex crimes have long held the
The prison world is predominately male dominated. As the years go by, female incarceration levels have been rapidly increasing. The prisons in early days didn’t have to worry about dealing with two different types of inmates as there were not that many females incarcerated. While male and female inmates do have some similarities, they also have some distinct differences. The way they conduct themselves in prison are different; as are they way they interact with other inmates. Males typically are in prison for more violent crimes than women, making the maximum security prisons mainly male. Throughout this paper, these differences and a few similarities are discussed.
38). Furthermore, they claimed that female criminals were “monsters” (as cited in DeKeseredy, 2009, p. 38). These false images painted all female offenders with the same brush and served to dehumanize their characters. Furthermore, these theories negatively impacted the media and the public’s conception of female offenders. As a result female offenders were treated poorly, to say the least. To make matters worse, research in this area was conducted by males, dedicated for males, and served only to benefit males. For example, theoretical authors of this era were men who studied characteristics of males with respect to criminality. Women were thrown into the mixture of the alleged gender-neutral research, when what they needed was gender-sensitive studies. Even though these early theories inspired more accurate research, they served as a double edge sword to the female offender profiles.
About 43.9% of sex offenders identified both male and female perpetrators as opposed to 9.6% of nonsexual offenders. These individuals were exposed to more severe forms of victimization with a longer duration. Sex offenders endured an average of 5.6 years of abuse while nonsexual offenders experienced 3.9 years. Through the use of logistic regression analyses, Burton, Miller, and Shill (2002) concluded that method of operation and gender of abuser accurately predicts whether an individual will sexually offend. The analysis correctly predicted and placed 78.3% of the sex-offending males into their correct groups.
Sexual assault is a major global issue; sexual deviance such as sexual assault definitely needs a lot of social attention from many different societies across the globe (Nelson, 2007, p. 7). It is a very serious problem that needs to be continuously addressed, through research, government programs, and new fundamental treatment possibilities. As a matter of fact, it is continuing to spread rapidly with a percentage of 25% of women and 15% of men in the United States have been affected by sexual assault (Nelson, 2007, p. 7). Due to rapid growth, public awareness should be made about the different types of sex offenders. The public should be aware of their distinct characteristics and possible treatment options. Public awareness is extremely important; it allows us to know the many different kinds of people that are in this world. Different kinds of people, including sex offenders, it’s important to know what measures one would have to take and the different possible options when faced with such issues (Nelson, 2007, p. 7).
Perception is not reality. The common assumption that the court system often treats female sex offenders differently than male sex offenders, the punishments of female sex offenders are more lenient than men who commit the same types of crimes, and the differences between male and female victims are all perception and not reality. Objective considerations to additional factors make the perceptions baseless. These additional factors solidify the factual differences between male and female sex offenders.
It is a common perception that men are more likely to commit crime than women and according to statistics in 2012, 85% of known offenders in England and Wales were males and women only represents 5% of the prison population. However in the last ten years, the number of females that have been prosecuted is thought to have risen by 6%.
In the United States, failure to adequately discriminate between and among sex offenses and the overuse of the label “sex offense” has led to the polarization and over criminalization of sex crimes and has resulted in a lack of reintegration options for these alleged criminals. The term “sex offender” needs to be reserved for those individuals who best represent the meaning of the term. (Colbert, 2011, p. 1) According to US Department of Justice, a sex offender is anyone convicted of an offense of a sexual nature under the law of any jurisdiction, this also includes juveniles fourteen years of age and older. (Colbert, 2011, p. 1) In the United States, the term sex offender is too broad and can be very misleading. There is a widespread misconception among society that the meaning of sex offender is pedophile and rapist, but a sex offender can be someone that was caught urinating in public or they can be underage teenagers having consensual sex. This lack of distinction between sex offenses results in a misinformed society and this absence of information in regards to sex offenses and the presence of the sex offender registry fuels society 's ignorance and heightened prejudices towards "sex offenses." The stigma that comes with the label "sex offense” persists beyond sentencing due to the parameters of the law, making reintegration of alleged criminals into society overbearing and near impossible. These registries are public record, however they only state partial information
We understand the need for and are prepared to provide necessary transparency for members of the public who want to know more about pedophiles, sexual assault, sex offenders, and the role that you can play in keeping your community protected. Unfortunately, sex crimes are not the exception in our country. Statistics indicate that one in every five girls and one in every seven boys are sexually abused by the time they reach adulthood (CSOM, 2006). “One in six adult women and one in 33 adult men experience an attempted or completed sexual assault. 1 in 6 female children and 1 in 20 boys are victims of sexual abuse” (NCVC, 2015). Sex offenses represent under 1% of all arrests, with adults accounting for about 80% of arrests and juveniles 20% (FBI, 2005). Males account for approximately 95% of arrests (FBI, 2005).
In viewing the information contained in the aforementioned articles, one can immediately understand the underlying reasons that women are committing more crimes than men. Through the mid-1990s, the arrest rates of both genders has increased steadily, with the male rate far exceeding that of females (Gross, 2009, pp. 84). However, in recent years, a shift has been seen, with the numbers of female offenders rising significantly, especially at the juvenile level, which significantly raises the likelihood of re-offending later in life. As such, an understanding of the differences between the sexes in terms of the reasoning behind their offenses has long been researched.