Response Inhibition in Pedophilia: An fMRI Pilot Study

Abstract

Background: The failure to inhibit pleasurable but inappropriate urges is associated with frontal lobe pathology and has been suggested as a possible cause of pedophilic behavior. However, imaging and neuropsychological findings about frontal pathology in pedophilia are heterogeneous. In our study we therefore address inhibition behaviorally and by means of functional imaging, aiming to assess how inhibition in pedophilia is related to a differential recruitment of frontal brain areas. Method: Eleven pedophilic subjects and 7 nonpedophilic controls underwent fMRI while performing a go/no-go task composed of neutral letters. Results: Pedophilic subjects showed a slower reaction time and less accurate visual target discrimination. fMRI voxel-level ANOVA revealed as a main effect of the go/no-go task an activation of prefrontal and parietal brain regions in the no-go condition, while the left anterior cingulate, precuneus and gyrus angularis became more activated in the go condition. In addition, a group × task interaction was found in the left precuneus and gyrus angularis. This interaction was based on an attenuated deactivation of these brain regions in the pedophilic group during performance of the no-go condition. The positive correlation between blood oxygen level-dependent imaging signal and reaction time in these brain areas indicates that attenuated deactivation is related to the behavioral findings. Conclusion: Slower reaction time and less accurate visual target discrimination in pedophilia was accompanied by attenuated deactivation of brain areas belonging to the default mode network. Our findings thus support the notion that behavioral differences might also derive from self-related processes and not necessarily from frontal lobe pathology.

Evidence for superior neurobiological and behavioral inhibitory control abilities in non-offending as compared to offending pedophiles

“…According to the finding that the VMPFC plays a critical role in inhibitory control [Bari and Robbins, ; Chikazoe, ] and, moreover, was reported to be altered in offending pedophiles [Kruger and Schiffer, ; Mendez and Shapira, ; Schiffer et al, ; Schiffer and Vonlaufen, ], we subsequently hypothesized that P + CSO as compared to both non‐offending groups would show different BOLD signal change during response inhibition in related medial prefrontal areas. Similarly, in P + CSO we expected aberrant BOLD activity in medial parietal regions [Habermeyer et al, ; Kärgel et al, ] when compared to P‐CSO and HC.…”

Pedophilia and other monosymptomatic psychopathologies

“…In 2013, by fMRI, researchers found that pedophiles had altered activities, especially in frontal areas (Wiebking, C. at al, 2013). In 2013 in an fMRI pilot study researchers concluded that, "Slower reaction time and less accurate visual target discrimination in pedophilia, was accompanied by attenuated deactivation of brain areas, belonging to the default mode network" (Habermeyer, B. at al., 2013). In 2015 researchers published detailed study on pedophiles and emphasized that through sMRI, fMRI have found REVIEW ARTICLE tools that can give us the possibility of confronting the data in 3D.…”

Paraphilias

“…Nevertheless, functional neuroimaging has been able to support neither the association of paedophilic behaviour with frontal lobe disorder [22], nor the hypothesis that paedophilic individuals show deficits in cognitive or perceptual categorization of sexual stimuli [21].…”