NCJ Number
177920
Journal
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 14 Issue: 4 Dated: April 1999 Pages: 372-395
Date Published
1999
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This article reviews the law and law reforms pertinent to sex offenses in Germany, the incidence of sex offenses, national survey studies, sex offender treatment, and a recently begun research project on the psychotherapy process for the treatment of sex offenders.
Abstract
The law reforms of 1969 and 1973 were significant, as they moved away from moralizing judgments about sexual behavior and focused on preventing damage to victims. In September 1993, a new law was introduced to prosecute sexual acts with minors committed by Germans abroad. This law aims at preventing pedophile sex tourism as well as child prostitution in Third World countries by threatening potential offenders with imprisonment for up to 15 years. National survey studies show that between 1987 and 1991, 690,000 women were victims of sexual violence, compared to only 60,000 cases reported to the police in the same time period. Two- thirds of sexual violence against women occurred within the family or the household; yet sexual violence committed by husbands is rarely brought to the attention of the police. The most common form of treatment for sex offenders is still punishment according to the stipulations of the penal code. This punishment may consist of a fine, a probation order, or incarceration. Treatment approaches other than punishment include various kinds of psychotherapeutic approaches that depend on the various kinds of psychotherapeutic approaches that depend on the expertise of the therapist, social therapy, antiandrogen treatment with cyproterone acetate, psychopharmacology, and surgical castration (rarely). Within the general prison system, the chances of a sex offender receiving specific treatment are low. 2 notes, 6 figures, and 37 references