{"title":"Criminal Careers in the Making? Characteristics and Trajectories of Juveniles Charged With a Sexual Offense.","authors":"Christine Friestad, Torbjørn Skardhamar","doi":"10.1177/10790632251393988","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251393988","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The present study investigates the onset, persistence and diversity in sexual offending by exploring Norwegian registry data on the social and criminal trajectories of juveniles charged with a sexual crime before the age of criminal responsibility, compared to juveniles charged with other types of offenses. The sample consisted of all persons aged 15 during the period 1997-2005 (<i>N</i> = 388,814). Of those, 19,559 juveniles (5%) were charged with a crime, mostly (83%) of a non-violent nature. For the remaining 16.9% (<i>n</i> = 3,309), the charge involved violence, either non-sexual (<i>n</i> = 2,991, 15.3% of those charged) or sexual (<i>n</i> = 318, 1.6% of those charged). Proportional hazard models were used to investigate background characteristics and risk of recidivism. Early onset of offending was related to a more disadvantaged background. Juveniles charged with violent and sexual offenses were generally younger and had more charges against them than juveniles charged with any other crimes. Early sexual crime carried higher hazard rate (HR) of future sexual crime (HR = 3.6) than early violent (HR = 1.9) and other crimes (HR = 1.4). The risk of later violent crime was similar among those with early onset violent (HR = 2.8) and sexual (HR = 2.5) crime, and higher than for early onset general crime (HR = 1.7). Since violent crime has a higher base rate than sexual crime, violence is more dominant in the criminal careers of people with early onset sexual offending. However, the majority of adult sexual criminal charges are raised against persons without a juvenile criminal record.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"247-272"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12916855/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145453094","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
David Finkelhor, Deirdre Colburn, Ateret Gewirtz-Meydan, Jennifer E O'Brien, Lisa M Jones, Heather A Turner, Kimberly J Mitchell
{"title":"Youth-Produced Images Are the Majority of Child Sexual Abuse Materials: Categories of Youth and Adult Perpetrators From a Victim Based Study.","authors":"David Finkelhor, Deirdre Colburn, Ateret Gewirtz-Meydan, Jennifer E O'Brien, Lisa M Jones, Heather A Turner, Kimberly J Mitchell","doi":"10.1177/10790632261415819","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632261415819","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study examined dynamics of childhood sexual image abuse episodes prior to age 18, based on victim self-reports. An online sample of individuals aged 18-28 filled out a survey, yielding 3,254 episodes of image abuse that occurred prior to age 18. The majority (86%) of abusive episodes involved images that were produced by youth, either as victims or perpetrators. Less than 8% of episodes involved adult-produced images. Youth were identified as perpetrators in 30% of the episodes, and adults were perpetrators in 29%, with the remainder unidentified. Notably, even among adult-perpetrated episodes, 75% of the images had been originally produced by the youth victim. In cases of adult perpetrators, 59% were offline acquaintances. To better understand the diversity of image abuse experiences, we proposed a five-category framework. Adult perpetrator cases were subdivided into (1) adult image producers, (2) adult coercers of youth made images and (3) adult groomers of youth made images. Youth perpetrator cases were subdivided into (4) juvenile coercers, who pressured victims, and (5) juvenile betrayers, who misused images originally taken or exchanged voluntarily. The prevalence of youth-produced and youth-involved image abuse highlights the importance of prevention strategies tailored to school-aged youth.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"337-353"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12923637/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145918338","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Practice Survey of Canadian Forensic Sexual Behavior Programs.","authors":"Payton McPhee, Jordyn Monaghan, Skye Stephens","doi":"10.1177/10790632251377706","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251377706","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Forensic sexual behavior programs provide assessment and treatment services to individuals who have committed a sexual offense and/or who are at risk of sexually offending. In Canada, practices vary across these programs as publicly funded community-based forensic sexual behavior programs do not adhere to a federal standard of practice. Although several practice surveys have been developed in previous years to explore techniques within these programs, updated research is needed due to recent developments in the field. The present study provides a comprehensive overview of assessment, treatment, and preventive practices in Canada by surveying 16 publicly funded Canadian forensic sexual behavior programs. Results found that programs generally followed evidence-based practices when conducting risk assessments, although adherence to evidence-based guidelines showed greater variation for treatment. Additionally, 70.6% of surveyed programs reported providing prevention services to individuals who have not crossed a legal sexual boundary, although approaches to these services varied across programs. Findings from the present study allow for a stronger understanding of forensic sexual behavior program practices nationwide and have implications for clinical practice.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"354-375"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12916884/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145041126","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Samantha K Williams, Desiree L Elchuk, Skye Stephens
{"title":"A Meta-Analysis of Atypical Sexuality, Psychopathy, and Recidivism Associated With Victim Age Polymorphism.","authors":"Samantha K Williams, Desiree L Elchuk, Skye Stephens","doi":"10.1177/10790632261415817","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632261415817","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Victim age polymorphism describes a pattern of sexual offending in which individuals target victims from multiple distinct age categories (e.g., both child and adult victims). Research on victim age polymorphism and its association with risk-related domains - namely atypical sexuality and antisociality - and recidivism is mixed, potentially due to methodological differences across studies (e.g., how victim age is classified). This meta-analysis (<i>k</i> = 23, <i>N</i> = 12,333) examined associations between victim age polymorphism, the two main risk-related domains (atypical sexuality, antisociality), and recidivism. Meta-regression and the between-level <i>Q</i> statistic were used to examine various methodological differences that might contribute to disparate findings. Results indicated that victim age polymorphism was associated with multiple paraphilias, psychopathy, and recidivism. Moderator analyses were limited due to the small number of studies and did not consistently explain the variation in effect sizes. Overall, individuals who are polymorphic share more clinically relevant similarities to individuals who offend exclusively against adults than those who exclusively offend against children. These findings suggest that a greater focus on generalist criminogenic needs (e.g., antisociality) may be warranted in the management of individuals who are polymorphic.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"273-312"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12916886/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146041723","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Constructing Offender Typologies From Judicial Data: A Clustering Analysis of Sextortion Cases.","authors":"Fangzhou Wang, Weiping Pei","doi":"10.1177/10790632261434143","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10790632261434143","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sextortion is a form of digitally facilitated sexual abuse that causes severe psychological, financial, and social harm, particularly to minors and marginalized adults. This study presents the first quantitative typology of people who commit sextortion, based on a clustering analysis of 111 U.S. judicial cases. Four distinct subtypes of offenders were identified: adult-focused financial sextortion; minor-focused CSAM-related sextortion; technologically sophisticated coercion of minors, sometimes resulting in fatal outcomes; and adult-focused hybrid sextortion that escalates from online manipulation to in-person exploitation. These subtypes differ in motivation, technical capacity, victim profiles, and sentencing outcomes, with the most technologically advanced group paradoxically receiving more lenient sentences. Overall, the findings extend existing typologies and highlight the need for differentiated investigative, prosecutorial, and policy responses to address the varied tactics and harms of sextortion.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"10790632261434143"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-03-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147445054","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alexander Seiser, Reinhard Eher, Daniel Turner, Martin Rettenberger
{"title":"The Discriminatory Power of Correlates of Admission of Sexual Interest in Children (CASIC) in a Sample of Individuals Convicted of Child Sexual Exploitation Material (CSEM) Offenses.","authors":"Alexander Seiser, Reinhard Eher, Daniel Turner, Martin Rettenberger","doi":"10.1177/10790632261433010","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632261433010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Correlates of Admission of Sexual Interest in Children (CASIC) is a six-item proxy measure of sexual interest in children in individuals involved with child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) based on behavioral characteristics. Originally developed to replace the sexual interest item of the Child Pornography Offender Risk Tool (CPORT) when information is missing, some evidence suggests that the CASIC may also be useful for broader risk assessment purposes. This study examined the ability of the CASIC to identify CSEM recidivism among individuals with a history of CSEM offenses. In a sample of 126 individuals incarcerated for CSEM offenses and released from the Austrian prison system between 2002 and 2019, the CASIC total score was associated with CSEM recidivism (Harrell's <i>C</i> = .75, 95% CI [.63, .87]). This association remained consistent in a subsample with fixed 5-year follow-up periods (<i>n</i> = 103, AUC = .77, 95% CI [.64, .89]). Our findings highlight the ability of the CASIC to reliably assess sexual interest in children as a risk factor for CSEM offending, which may support risk management and treatment planning.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"10790632261433010"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147435630","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Distinguishing Pedohebephebophilic Actors and Non-Actors: A Meta-Analysis.","authors":"Agatha Chronos, Sara Jahnke","doi":"10.1177/10790632251389171","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251389171","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Distinguishing factors between pedohebephebophilic actors and non-actors remain a critical area of research for understanding offending behavior and developing targeted interventions. This meta-analysis synthesizes evidence on motivating, facilitating, situational, and other factors that differentiate individuals who have committed sexual offenses against children from those who have not. Following PRISMA guidelines, systematic searches were conducted across PsycNet, ProQuest, Web of Science, PubMed, and PSYNDEX, supplemented by manual searches. Data were analyzed using fixed and random effects models. From 2,185 records screened, 34 studies from 22 datasets met inclusion criteria. We conducted meta-analyses for 50 potential distinguishing factors. The strongest effect sizes were discovered for intelligence (<i>g</i> = -.86), stigma (<i>g</i> = .61), male sex (<i>g</i> = .51), age (<i>g</i> = .48), therapy attendance (<i>g</i> = .43) and interest (<i>g</i> = .43), and sexual (g = .38) and non-sexual (g = .38) adverse childhood experiences. The average quality score was 11.13 (<i>SD</i> = 1.82) out of maximum score of 16. Findings provide support for some motivating, facilitating, situational, and other factors distinguishing pedohebephilic actors from non-actors. These findings offer opportunities for improved risk assessment, prevention strategies, and therapeutic interventions, however, they are limited by the cross-sectional nature of the results.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"127-162"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12804425/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145490422","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Chloe I Pedneault, Danielle M L Hawthorn, Kevin L Nunes
{"title":"Attitude Toward Sexual Aggression Against Women (ASAW) Scale: Evidence of Discriminant and Incremental Validity.","authors":"Chloe I Pedneault, Danielle M L Hawthorn, Kevin L Nunes","doi":"10.1177/10790632251393993","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251393993","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We tested the discriminant and incremental validity of scores on the Attitude toward Sexual Aggression against Women (ASAW) scale, a self-report measure that asks men to evaluate (very bad to not at all bad) a range of sexually aggressive behaviors against women. An online panel of 647 men completed the ASAW scale and self-report measures of other offense-supportive cognitions (rape myth acceptance, cognitive distortions, and beliefs regarding rape) and sexually aggressive behavior (past sexual aggression, likelihood of engaging in sexually aggressive behavior, and likelihood to rape). We hypothesized that (a) the ASAW would be distinct from other measures of offense-supportive cognition and (b) the ASAW would be independently associated with sexual aggression after accounting for the other measures. Supportive of discriminant validity, exploratory factor analyses revealed that ASAW items clustered together to form a distinct factor from other measures of offense-supportive cognition. Supportive of incremental validity, hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that the ASAW explained an additional 5% of the variance in past sexually aggressive behavior (ΔR² = .05, <i>p</i> < .006) and 4-6% of the variance in likelihood of engaging in sexual aggression (ΔR² = .04-.06, <i>p</i> < .006) after accounting for other measures of offense-supportive cognition. If future research finds further support for the construct validity of its scores, the ASAW should be used to study the potential causal role that attitudes may play in sexual aggression against women, and whether changing them can reduce the likelihood of engaging in this type of behavior.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"45-77"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12722583/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145496770","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ashley Dhillon, Lauren Gonzales, Laura B Lopez-Aybar
{"title":"Community Member Attitudes Toward Sexual Offenses and Trauma-Oriented Care: A Qualitative Exploration.","authors":"Ashley Dhillon, Lauren Gonzales, Laura B Lopez-Aybar","doi":"10.1177/10790632251343813","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251343813","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>High rates of trauma are documented among individuals convicted of a sex offense. Public attitudes toward these individuals tend to be negative and often shape legislative responses and policies regarding sex offending sentencing and treatment. However, less is known regarding whether public attitudes may consider trauma and its relevance as a potential treatment target for those convicted of a sex offense. This study explored community member attitudes toward individuals convicted of a sex offense with histories of trauma. 295 participants were recruited via Prolific and responded to qualitative questions assessing their attitudes about the link between trauma and sex offenses, and whether trauma should influence sentencing and treatment outcomes. Analyses revealed main themes, including (1) Role of Childhood Trauma; (2) Outcomes and Management; and (3) Differences Between Individuals Convicted of Sex Offenses with versus Without Trauma History. Findings underscore the complexity of public attitudes toward this population and suggest trauma-informed interventions for those who commit sex offenses may receive public support if they also include emphasis on accountability for criminal sex behaviors. Implications highlight the need for trauma-informed interventions and public education to reduce stigma and support sex offending rehabilitation.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"103-123"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144151772","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Child Sexual Abuse Material Users on the Darknet: Psychiatric Morbidities Related to Offence Behavior.","authors":"Johanna Lätth, Malin Joleby, Allison McMahan, Timothy J Luke, Christoffer Rahm","doi":"10.1177/10790632251347562","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251347562","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Individuals engaging in child sexual abuse often present pedophilic interest, but the other psychiatric morbidities among undetected users of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) are largely unknown. We mapped the psychiatric profile of 160 mainly male and primarily non-convicted anonymous Darknet-recruited adult CSAM users. The participants' psychiatric morbidities were analyzed descriptively, and correlations between sexual pathologies known as risk factors for committing child sexual abuse (paraphilias, hypersexuality) and CSAM offense behavior (viewing time, content) were examined in a series of exploratory linear regression models. Pedophilic interests, hypersexuality, autism traits, ADHD, and depression were commonly reported. Further, hypersexuality was associated with CSAM viewing time (<i>r</i> = .295, <i>b</i> = 0.07, <i>p</i> = .001), zoophilic interest was associated with CSAM severity (<i>r</i> = .195, <i>b</i> = 0.46, <i>p</i> = .003) and both zoophilic and pedophilic sexual interest were associated with the age of the youngest child in CSAM viewed (<i>r</i> = -.218, <i>b</i> = -0.56, <i>p</i> = .01 and <i>r</i> = -.273, <i>b</i> = -1.01, <i>p</i> < .001). We conclude that CSAM users presented sexual pathologies, some related to their CSAM-use behavior, as well as multiple other mental health needs.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"3-22"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12722556/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144183152","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}