A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Sexual Recidivism Among Adolescent Sex Offenders

Nisbet, Ian A; Wilson, Peter H.; Smallbone, Stephen

doi:10.1177/107906320401600304

Cited by 120 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…This hypothesis raises issues about focusing solely on the risk of sexual offending in adulthood as an outcome measure for JSOs. Previous recidivism studies with JSOs have found that if these youth do reoffend, it is most likely a nonsexual crime (e.g., Caldwell, 2002;Hendriks, 2006;McCann & Lussier, 2008;Nisbet, Wilson, & Smallbone, 2004 (81.3%) persisted their nonsexual offending in adulthood. The study, therefore, suggests that an intervention scheme that does not take into consideration both their delinquent involvement and their sexual offending may not have the desired effect in preventing recidivism (also see Hendriks, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Developmental Taxonomy of Juvenile Sex Offenders for Theory, Research, and Prevention

Lussier

Berg

Bijleveld

et al. 2012

Criminal Justice and Behavior

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The current study investigates the offending trajectories of juvenile sex offenders (JSOs) across and beyond adolescence. In doing so, the study examines the number, the rate, and the shape of nonsexual and sexual offending trajectories in a sample of JSOs followed retrospectively and prospectively from late childhood to adulthood. Using semiparametric group-based modeling, the study reveals the presence of five distinctive nonsexual offending and two sexual offending trajectories: adolescent-limited and high-rate slow desisters. The study does not find strong evidence of synchronicity between nonsexual and sexual trajectories, suggesting that the current taxonomy of antisocial behaviors may offer a limited perspective on sex offender types. Furthermore, sexual trajectories do not differ much across sex offender types, suggesting that the findings might be generalized to child and peer abusers. The study findings offer supporting evidence for the presence of two distinct JSO types with important implications for theory, research, and interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Developmental Taxonomy of Juvenile Sex Offenders for Theory, Research, and Prevention

Lussier

Berg

Bijleveld

et al. 2012

Criminal Justice and Behavior

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“…The present study does not address sexual offender recidivism, as none of the youths had pre-treatment sexual offenses. However, the extant research strongly suggests that youth with sexual behavior problems, including youth with charges for sexual offenses, are unlikely to commit future sexual crimes, particularly when they have completed empirically validated interventions (Borduin, Henggeler, Blaske, & Stein, 1990;Borduin & Schaeffer, 2001;Caldwell, 2002;Letourneau et al, in press;Nisbet, Wilson & Smallbone, 2004;Reitzel & Carbonnell, 2006;Walker, McGovern, Poey, & Otis, 2004;Worling & Curwen 2000). Policies that require lengthy incarceration or residential treatment, that sentence children and adolescents as adults, or that impose postsentence-completion restrictions on children and adolescents (e.g., in the form of indeterminate civil commitment, sex offender registration, and community notification) fail to recognize the tremendous potential of these youths--with the help of their families and evidence-based interventions--to overcome early mistakes and even early but serious criminal acts (Letourneau & Miner, 2005;MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Treatment Outcome and Criminal Offending by Youth With Sexual Behavior Problems

2008

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Children and adolescents treated for general delinquency problems and rated by caregivers as having sexual behavior problems (N = 696) were compared with youth from the same sample with no sexual behavior problems (N = 1185). Treatment outcome through 12-months post-treatment follow-up and criminal offense rates through an average 48-month post-treatment follow-up were compared for both groups. It was hypothesized that youth with any sexual behavior problems (SBP) would improve significantly over time but would continue to evidence greater psychopathology than youth with no sexual behavior problems (NSBP). These hypotheses were supported. Specifically, both groups evidenced significant improvement on parent-reported treatment outcomes, although the SBP group exhibited more behavior problems, relative to the NSBP group through follow-up. It was further hypothesized that youth with sexual behavior problems would not differ from youth with no sexual behavior problems in rates of future sexual or non-sexual offenses. These hypotheses were also supported. Specifically, SBP group membership was not a significant predictive factor in analyses modeling future offending in general or future person offenses. Few youth in either group had sexual offenses (1.5% and 1.9% for the SBP and NSBP groups, respectively). The importance of these findings for clinical and policy decision-making is discussed.The scientific literature on children with sexual behavior problems is limited, but of exceptionally high quality. There have, for example, been multiple randomized clinical treatment trials (Bonner, Walker & Berliner, 1993, 1999 Cohen & Mannarino, 1996, 1997Pithers & Gray, 1993;Pithers, Gray, Busconi, & Houchens, 1998) and, recently, a 10-year follow-up from one of those trials (Carpentier, Silovsky & Chaffin, 2006). The results of these and other treatment outcome studies collectively support short-term, sexual behaviorfocused cognitive-behavioral (CBT) interventions that substantively include children's caregivers (Carpentier et al., 2006; Cohen & Mannarino, 1996, 1997 Deblinger & Heflin, 1996;Silovsky, Niec, Bard, & Hecht, 2005). In a 10-year follow-up, Carpentier and colleagues reported that youth treated with CBT committed significantly fewer sexual offenses than youth treated with play therapy. Importantly, the rate of future sexual offending by the CBT condition was indistinguishable from a sample of children originally presenting with non-sexual psychiatric problems (Carpentier et al., 2006). Taken together, these results do much to dispel concerns that children with sexual behavior problems follow a developmental path that leads them through adolescent sexual offending and on to adult sexual predatory behaviors-a pathway suggested by retrospective studies linking adult (or adolescent) sexual offending to adolescent (or childhood) sexual misbehavior (Abel et al., 1987; Burton, 2000; Zolondek, Abel, Northye, & Jordan, 2001). Letourneau, & Silovsky, 2002, p. 208). To date, most research on SBP, including the rand...

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“…The findings regarding sexual and non-sexual re-offending of JSO-C compared to JSO-A are conflicting and still remain unclear (Hart-Kerkhoffs et al, 2009;Kahn & Chambers, 1991;Nisbet, Wilson, & Smallbone, 2004;Parks & Bard, 2006;Skubic Kemper & Kistner, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Offender Types and Criminality Dimensions in Male Juveniles Convicted of Sexual Offenses

et al. 2011

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Cornelia (2012By analyzing nine offender characteristics, four victim characteristics and six offense characteristics, the best evidence was found for the victim age based type. The co-offender status and the crime history types were less well supported. However, all three types were related to each other and did not provide a comprehensive characterization of JSO. Therefore, an additional principal component analyses was performed searching for basic dimensions of juvenile sexual delinquency and leading to the following factors: "single offender with severe molestation of a related child", "persistent general delinquent with migrant background", "older offender with alcohol use and familial constraints", "multiple and aggressive offender with social adversities" and "offender with unselected and multiple victims". These five dimensions reflect different relevant factors of sexual offending behavior in male juveniles and may have further impact on forensic and clinical practice.

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A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Sexual Recidivism Among Adolescent Sex Offenders

Cited by 120 publications

References 30 publications

A Developmental Taxonomy of Juvenile Sex Offenders for Theory, Research, and Prevention

A Developmental Taxonomy of Juvenile Sex Offenders for Theory, Research, and Prevention

Treatment Outcome and Criminal Offending by Youth With Sexual Behavior Problems

Offender Types and Criminality Dimensions in Male Juveniles Convicted of Sexual Offenses

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