A diagnosis of sadism in sexual offenders is commonly regarded as indicative of high risk for violent reoffending. The purpose of the current two studies was to evaluate whether sadism is indeed associated with higher rates of violent (including sexual) reoffending. In Study 1 (meta-analysis), the rate of violent and sexual recidivism was assessed across seven samples of male sex offenders (total N = 2,169) as a function of diagnoses of sexual sadism. In Study 2 (N = 768) the outcome (violent recidivism yes/no) was regressed on sadism, along with behavioral indicators of sexually sadistic offending, and scores from violence risk assessment instruments. In Study 1 (meta-analysis), the overall risk of sadists compared with nonsadists with respect to violent (including sexual contact) reoffending was slightly elevated (by a factor of 1.18), yet not significantly increased. Similarly, the risk of sexual reoffending among sadists was slightly, but not significantly, higher than among nonsadists (factor 1.38). According to Study 2, only a measure of sadistic behavior, not the clinical diagnosis, was associated with violent reoffending. This association, however, was not present once age and customary risk assessment instruments for violence risk were included in the regression. A clinical diagnosis of sexual sadism and behavioral measures of sadism are related to the risk of violent reoffending in sexual offenders. These associations, however, are weak and do not hold once variables relevant for the prediction of violence are controlled for. At the individual level, the risk for future violence in sadists can therefore be adequately described by customary risk assessment instruments.

No abstract

En els onze anys de la publicació de l'original anglès de "La via de la imatge", la seva actualitat no ha fet més que créixer. Davant d'un creixent desequilibri sistèmic, creat per l'activitat humana, ens orienta cap a el necessari per restaurar l'equilibri. La via de la imatge ens aporta els fonaments d'un accés ric i profund a la psique: un enfocament basat en un coneixement objectiu de com traduir el significat d'imatges (imatges de somnis, imatges de fantasia, imatges de pel·lícules, de la literatura, de l'art i, fins i tot, dels titulars de la premsa) a un llenguatge que podem usar per a comprendre'ns a nosaltres mateixos i entendre el nostre món. Les propostes d'aquest llibre són sorprenents per les seves implicacions: • Hi ha una manera veritablement objectiva d'arribar a conèixer la psique humana • Podem regenerar a través del poder transformador de les imatges perquè les imatges són els portadors de l'energia de la psique • Cada un de nosaltres té un llenguatge pictòric personal que cal entendre perquè se'ns pugui comprendre • Cada imatge té un sistema de coordenades precises, una estructura innata, una sèrie de directrius objectives que ens informen sobre com podem procedir i actuar, ja sigui en l'entorn terapèutic o en la vida en general. Tota persona interessada en conèixer-se, a entendre els seus somnis, en saber com una teràpia pot i hauria de funcionar i com funciona el món de la nostra psique, trobarà en aquest fascinant llibre una guia per a la resta de la seva vida.

Background: Psychological sequels to criminal violence can be long lasting and severe. They are in many countries not sufficiently considered in court cases as an important circumstance that could be used to assess the severity of the crime, also guiding redress, compensation, and rehabilitation of the victim, and—in children—child custody considerations. So far, the focus of forensic assessment has often been limited to diagnostic categories, especially “posttraumatic stress disorder” (PTSD), a diagnosis that presently is subjected to rapidly changing definitions both in and between diagnostic systems. Other indicators such as quality of life (QoL) might be of equal importance as compared to clinical or research diagnostic categories to understand and evaluate the impact of a crime and the amount of help needed and, in the legal context, redress to be asked. Symptoms might differ depending on the crime encountered.Objective and Methods: QoL and general symptom patterns including a PTSD diagnosis were assessed in a group of 10- to 17-year-old minors with (n = 33) and without (n = 49) PTSD diagnosis who all had experienced sexual abuse, physical abuse, death of a parent, or their parents’ divorce, using standardized diagnostic instruments.Results: PTSD patients reported a significantly lower QoL than non-PTSD controls. Reported symptom patterns with potential impact on life, such as intrusive thoughts, differed between the victims of different crime types, with the highest rates of both intrusive symptoms and combined symptom profile in victims of sexual abuse. Data indicate that the changes between older and present criteria and between DSM and recently published ICD 11 might help identify different groups and symptom profiles.Conclusion: Specific trauma-related symptom profiles integrating the type of crime encountered and its individual impact on QoL may help improve future forensic assessment and guide compensation and rehabilitation plans. Carefully designed studies are now needed to further explore the use and forensic usability of complex indicators and the impact of violence in different forensic settings.