Assessment of Deviant Arousal in Adult Male Sex Offenders With Developmental Disabilities

Abstract

Ten individuals, residing in a treatment facility specializing in the rehabilitation of sex offenders with developmental disabilities, participated in an arousal assessment involving the use of the penile plethysmograph. The arousal assessments involved measuring change in penile circumference to various categories of stimuli both appropriate (adult men and women) and inappropriate (e.g., 8-to 9-year-old boys and girls). This approach extends the existing assessment literature by the use of repeated measurement and single-subject experimental design. Data from these assessments were analyzed to determine if clear and informative outcomes were obtained. Overall, three general patterns of results emerged. Some participants showed differentiated deviant arousal or higher levels of arousal to specific inappropriate stimuli (deviant is a term used in the existing sex-offender literature to describe this type of arousal). Other participants showed undifferentiated deviant arousal, in which case they showed nonspecific arousal to inappropriate stimuli. The remaining participants showed no arousal to inappropriate stimuli but did show arousal to appropriate stimuli. Implications for assessment, treatment, and future directions are discussed.

Replications and Extensions in Arousal Assessment for Sex Offenders With Developmental Disabilities

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Three adult male sex offenders with developmental disabilities participated in phallometric assessments that involved repeated measures of arousal when exposed to various stimuli. Arousal assessment outcomes were similar to those obtained by Reyes et al (2006). Additional dataanalysis methods provided further information about sexual preferences, thus replicating and extending previous research.

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“…that may confound experimental results. In contrast to much of the previous research, Reyes et al (2006) 2011, 44, 369-373 NUMBER 2 (SUMMER 2011 conditions under which arousal is likely. The purpose of the present study was to replicate and extend the assessment methodology of Reyes et al by evaluating the utility of additional data-analysis techniques to provide more detailed information about the arousal assessment outcomes.…”

A multiple‐stimulus‐without‐replacement assessment for sexual partners: Purchase task validation

“…Finally, practical and ethical concerns (cf. Reyes et al, , 2011) required that the present study examine hypothetical choices. The hypothetical purchase task has been extensively validated as a measure of reward validation (Roma et al, ), including demonstration that responding on the hypothetical purchase task is essentially the same as responding for real rewards (e.g., Amlung & MacKillop, ).…”

“…Emerging lines of research have focused on the behavioral processes that contribute to risky sexual behavior (e.g., sex without a condom, sex with multiple partners) in youth (Lawyer, ; Lawyer & Schoepflin, ; Lawyer, Williams, Prihodova, Rollins, & Lester, ) and individuals addicted to alcohol (Jarmolowicz, Bickel, & Gatchalian, ) or other drugs (Herrmann, Hand, Johnson, Badger, & Heil, ; Jarmolowicz et al, ; Johnson & Bruner, ; Johnson, Johnson, Herrmann, & Sweeney, ). These studies frequently use pictures of potential sexual partners as antecedent stimuli (Herrmann et al, ; Jarmolowicz, Lemley, Asmussen, & Reed, ; Johnson & Bruner, ; Johnson et al, ; Reyes, Vollmer, & Hall, ; Reyes et al, ) or reinforcers (Lawyer, ). Thus, a systematic and validated tool for assessing preference among potential sexual partners may facilitate our understanding of the processes that contribute to these risky sexual behaviors.…”

The Influence of Presession Factors in the Assessment of Deviant Arousal

“…Although not typically used in previous studies, recent research has demonstrated the utility of using a single‐subject design approach to the phallometric assessment of sex offenders with developmental disabilities (e.g., Reyes, Vollmer, & Hall, 2011; Reyes et al, 2006). Using a single‐subject design necessarily involves collecting repeated measures of arousal during the assessment process, which can offer several advantages over traditional approaches that usually involve only limited exposure to the assessment stimuli.…”