NCJ Number
178481
Journal
Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health Volume: 9 Issue: 2 Dated: 1999 Pages: 156-167
Date Published
1999
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This study examined social and sexual functioning, before and after illness onset, in a national sample (England and Wales) of schizophrenic men who had been convicted of a contact sex offense against a woman.
Abstract
Two hypotheses were tested: that there are no significant differences in social and sexual functioning between white and Afro-Caribbean men with schizophrenia who have sexually assaulted women; and that men who have a history of contact sex offending antedating the onset of schizophrenia are more likely to have poor pre-onset social and sexual functioning compared with men who begin sex offending after illness onset. A search of Home Office records was completed for all 84 male restricted hospital order inpatients with schizophrenia who resided in any hospital in England or Wales during May 1997; all had an index conviction for a contact sex offense against a woman. Findings show that the sample had a significant deterioration in social and sexual functioning after the onset of schizophrenia. Afro-Caribbean men had better pre-onset social and sexual adjustment compared with white men, but underwent a deterioration to a similar extent after developing schizophrenia. Men who began sex offending before the onset of schizophrenia were more likely to have impairment of pre-onset social and sexual functioning compared with men who did not commit sex offenses after illness onset; however, controlling for other variables, only pre-onset social isolation remained significantly associated with sex offending before illness onset. Although the findings do not support the first hypothesis, they do provide evidence for the second hypothesis. The formulation of treatment programs for schizophrenic sex offenders requires careful consideration of pre-onset as well as current social and sexual functioning. 4 tables and 21 references