NCJ Number
177074
Journal
Child Abuse Review Volume: 7 Issue: 6 Dated: November/December 1998 Pages: 420-434
Date Published
1998
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This article discusses ways to assess the likelihood of recidivism for a sex offender who has victimized a family member, so as to determine the risk for admitting the offender back into the family.
Abstract
Sources of information for assessment include data on offending rates for various categories of sex offenders, the presence or absence of factors research has found to be related to recidivism, information from the offenders obtained from skilled interviewing strategies, observation of the offenders in a variety of situations, direct physiological measurement of sexual arousal under various stimuli, and information from relatives and friends of the offender. There is a high degree of consensus among professionals about the focus and goals of treatment for sex offenders. This article outlines 13 goals that should be achieved by a rehabilitated sex offender. They include admission of the full extent of the abuse, the taking of full responsibility for the offending, demonstration of genuine empathy for the victim, demonstration of remorse for the offense, and recognition of and ability to manage cognitive distortions. Two key factors identified as mediating treatment effect are locus of control and level of fixation. Those offenders with an external locus of control are less likely to benefit from treatment. Level of fixation refers to the strength of deviant sexual interest in children. Those individuals who have no sexual interest in adults and who are only able to relate to children are likely to re-offend. 1 figure and 28 references