Pedophilia: Psychiatric Insights

Abstract

Sex offenses against children are considered the worst of cnrnes, even arnong cnminals thernselves. Attitudes have changed frorn blaming the victim to holding the perpetrator responsible for the actions. The prevalence of such offenses continues unabated despite the stigma for the offender and the irreparable trauma to the victim. Society and the medical and legal comrnunities have to present a more feasible definition ofthe problern, addressing specifically the acts that fdl under the term ofpedophilia. A plan needs to be formulated by various disciplines working together for the common goal of identifj4ng the most effective method to deal with the victims and perpetrator and also to lower the incidence and recidivism rates. Different psychological and biological tests have been devised for investigations but fall short of the desired purpose. Various treatment modalities have been suggested and tried, but much work still needs to be done in that area.

Police interviews with suspected child sex offenders: does use of empathy and question type influence the amount of investigation relevant information obtained?

“…There could also be internal conflict as the guilt and shame they feel may make them want to talk, but if they talk they are less likely to be released. Sex offenders also find it difficult to be open and honest in an interview situation given the social condemnation and disgust often felt towards them (Bahroo, 2003;Gudjonsson, 2006). This could be due to uncertainty regarding the possible outcome of the interview, which may in turn cause the sex offender to be anxious.…”

Identifying Pedophilia

“…Moreover, the pedophilic action may be only watching a naked child (voyeuristic pedophile) or exposing oneself to the child (exhibitionist pedophile). Pedophilic action which involves touching may vary from only gentle touching of the child (frotteuristic pedophile) to penetration (Bahroo, 2005). Fagan et al (2002) also categorized their sexual actions regarding pedophiles' approach.…”

“…Studies also showed that around "25-40% of men attracted to children prefer boys" (Blanchard et al, 2000). While pedophilic individuals' primarily sexual interest is usually in boys who are older than 8 years old, child molesters are usually attracted to girls aged between 8 to 10-years-olds (Bahroo, 2005). Seto (2002) stated that pedophiles have multiple victims, low level of force or threat, and are unlikely to engage in nonsexual offenses.…”

“…This intimate relationship with child also prevents children from reporting crime. When this strategy does not work, blackmailing, threatening, particularly threatening to kill children's family, frequently is used as a second technique to keep children silence (Bahroo, 2005). Seto (2010) emphasized that many pedophilic individuals also possess several images of prepubescent children and frequently use child pornography.…”

The Utility of the Diagnosis of Pedophilia: A Comparison of Various Classification Procedures

“…For example, numerous studies have demonstrated that a significant proportion of offenders are able to suppress penile responses (Howes, 1998;Kalmus & Beech, 2005;Marshall & Fernandez, 2000). Furthermore, the interpretation of arousal is difficult, as some offenders may not be aroused to a certain stimulus, while others may be aroused to deviant stimuli but are not known to be sexual offenders (Bahroo, 2003). Therefore, the problems with low responding (O'Donohue & Letourneau, 1992), along with the lack of reliability (Barbaree, Baxter, & Marshall, 1989) and validity (Hall, Proctor, & Nelson, 1988), have led some researchers to question the utility of this procedure with sexual offenders (Marshall & Fernandez, 2000).…”