Sex offenders and sex crimes provoke a great deal of anxiety in our society, and over the past decade, lawmakers have passed a variety of social policies designed to protect the public from sexual victimization. The purpose of this study was to examine public perceptions about sex offenders and community protection policies. Data were obtained from a sample of 193 residents in Melbourne, Florida. It was hypothesized that the public holds some inaccurate beliefs about sex offenders, and that there is strong public support for community protection policies. It was found that community members believe that sex offenders have very high recidivism rates, view sex offenders as a homogeneous group with regard to risk, and are skeptical about the benefits of sex offender treatment. The hypothesis that public perceptions contradict empirical research was supported. Community members were overwhelmingly in favor of public disclosure of information about registered sex offenders, although they did not express as much support for residence restrictions. Implications for public policy, and for the media's role in shaping public perceptions, are discussed.

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Public Perceptions About Sex Offenders and Community Protection Policies

Contrary to popular belief, not all sex offenders who target children are pedophiles, and not all pedophiles commit sexual offenses. But what is unequivocal is that pedophilia, which is defined as a persistent sexual interest in prepubescent children, is an emotionally charged and controversial topic. Parents are understandably worried about the safety and well-being of their children and want to protect them from being sexually exploited. Mental health and criminal justice professionals want to learn more about the assessment methods and intervention techniques that are available to develop and implement effective policies and practices.In this book, author Michael C. Seto addresses key concerns and questions in dealing with these clinical populations: How can pedophilia be detected? What causes pedophilia and sexual offending against children, and what is the relationship between the two? How do we assess risk to sexually offend? Finally, what do we know about intervention and prevention to reduce the occurrence of sexual offenses against children? In addition to a comprehensive synthesis of theory and research, the author demonstrates how this knowledge informs current treatment practices with the inclusion of illustrative case examples, sample interview questions, assessment tools, and online resources.

Pedophilia and Sexual Offending Against Children: Theory, Assessment, and Intervention

Sexual abuse history among adult sex offenders and non-sex offenders: a meta-analysis.

Several states have enacted public policies that prohibit sex offenders who have abused children from living within close proximity to a school, park, day care center, or school bus stop. The purpose of this exploratory study was to describe the impact of residence restric- tions on sex offender reintegration and to better understand sex offenders'perceptions of these laws. A survey of 135 sex offenders in Florida was conducted. Most of the molesters who responded to the survey indicated that housing restrictions increased isolation, created finan- cial and emotional stress, and led to decreased stability. Respondents also indicated that they did not perceive residence restrictions as helpful in risk management and, in fact, reported that such restrictions may inadvertently increase triggers for reoffense. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

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The Impact of Sex Offender Residence Restrictions: 1,000 Feet From Danger or One Step From Absurd?

Can we profile sex offenders? A review of sex offender typologies

Crossover sexual offenses are defined as those in which victims are from multiple age, gender, and relationship categories. This study investigates admissions of crossover sexual offending from sex offenders participating in treatment who received polygraph testing. For 223 incarcerated and 266 paroled sexual offenders, sexual offenses were recorded from criminal history records and admissions during treatment coupled with polygraph testing. The majority of incarcerated offenders admitted to sexually assaulting both children and adults from multiple relationship types. In addition, there was a substantial increase in offenders admitting to sexually assaulting victims from both genders. In a group of incarcerated offenders who sexually assaulted children, the majority of offenders admitted to sexually assaulting both relatives and nonrelatives, and there was a substantial increase in the offenders admitting to assaulting both male and female children. Although similar trends were observed for the sample of parolees, the rates were far less dramatic. Parolees appeared to have greater levels of denial, had participated in fewer treatment sessions, and perceived greater supervision restrictions as a result of admitting additional offenses. These findings support previous research indicating that many sexual offenders do not exclusively offend against a preferred victim type.

Crossover Sexual Offenses

Developmental experiences of child sexual abusers and rapists.

Relationships between parents' use of corporal punishment and their children's endorsement of spanking and hitting other children

A model of sexual deviance is presented which illustrates that lack of empathy mediates the associations between childhood victimization experiences and adult risk for sexual offending against women and children. For 188 incarcerated sexual offenders, admissions of victims and disclosures of childhood experiences of abuse and early exposure to pornography were recorded from criminal history, a sexual history questionnaire, and polygraph examinations. Empathy was assessed using victim- and abuse-specific measures. Structural equation modeling was used to test a model that included the direct effects of childhood victimization on number and type of victims, as well as the mediated effects through lack of empathy. Offenders who reported child sexual abuse as children and early exposure to pornography displayed less empathy for children in abusive situations and they reported more child victims. Offenders who reported physical abuse displayed less empathy for women in abusive situations and they reported more...

Dominique Simons

Papers

Crossover Sexual Offenses

Developmental experiences of child sexual abusers and rapists.

Relationships between parents' use of corporal punishment and their children's endorsement of spanking and hitting other children

Childhood Victimization and Lack of Empathy as Predictors of Sexual Offending Against Women and Children

Using the Polygraph with Female Sexual Offenders