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":"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}
Chloe I Pedneault, Chantal A Hermann, Danielle M L Hawthorn, Kevin L Nunes
{"title":"Attitude Toward Sexual Aggression Against Women (ASAW) Scale: Development and Structural Validity.","authors":"Chloe I Pedneault, Chantal A Hermann, Danielle M L Hawthorn, Kevin L Nunes","doi":"10.1177/10790632251334754","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251334754","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We developed a new measure designed to facilitate research on the potential role of men's attitude toward sexual aggression against women in gender-based sexual violence: the Attitude toward Sexual Aggression against Women (ASAW) scale. We created a large pool of items, in which participants were asked to evaluate how bad it would be if they engaged in various sexually aggressive behaviors in a variety of scenarios. Three independent samples of men recruited from online panels (<i>N</i> = 380, 149, and 322) completed these items. Based on their responses, we retained 13 non-redundant items that had the most variance and covered a wide range of sexually aggressive behaviors (e.g., unwanted sexual touching; non-consensual sex), tactics (e.g., threatening to damage her reputation; using physical force), and contexts (e.g., the woman previously agreed to some sexual activity; the woman is intoxicated). An exploratory factor analysis found that all 13 ASAW items loaded strongly onto one factor, which suggests a unidimensional structure. If future research finds evidence for the construct validity of its scores, potential uses for the ASAW include risk assessment, treatment-related attitude-change, and research into the potential causal role of attitudes in sexual aggression against women.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"23-44"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12722572/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144027149","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":"Typologies of CSEM Offending in South Korean Court Judgments.","authors":"Bojeong Kang, Byungbae Kim, Soo Jung Lee","doi":"10.1177/10790632251389167","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251389167","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This research aimed to develop a typology of individuals adjudicated for child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) offenses in South Korea, based on court judgments under Article 11 of the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth Against Sex Offenses. A total of 135 judgments from district courts (courts of first instance in South Korea) spanning 2014 to 2023 were systematically collected and examined through latent class analysis (LCA). The LCA results revealed three distinct subgroups of offenders-<i>Versatile Sextortion, Physical Exploitation, and Coercing Younger Victims</i>-each exhibiting unique offending profiles and behaviors. Significant differences between the groups were also found for several factors, such as the age of the victim, instances of sextortion, and the additional creation of CSEM. This study constitutes an initial empirical exploration of CSEM offenses in South Korea, provides evidence of a heterogenous group, and has substantial implications for crafting customized intervention strategies for people who commit CSEM offenses.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"78-102"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145293670","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}
Daniel King, Reneta Slikboer, Marie Henshaw, Denny Meyer, James R P Ogloff
{"title":"Unmasking the Men Who Produce Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM): Criminal Diversity and Sociodemographic Characteristics.","authors":"Daniel King, Reneta Slikboer, Marie Henshaw, Denny Meyer, James R P Ogloff","doi":"10.1177/10790632251377705","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251377705","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) production poses a grave and evolving threat, causing revictimization through the circulation of material for years. The availability of online technology has enabled sophisticated methods of CSAM production and police evasion. The aims of this study were to explore the sociodemographic features of those with a history of CSAM production, explore criminal sub-types of those who produce CSAM, and explore the sociodemographic and criminal features of possible sub-types. Men who came to police attention for CSAM production offenses between 2004-2019 in Victoria, Australia (<i>n</i> = 741) were included. A hierarchical cluster analysis revealed two distinct criminal profiles: (1) a group with <i>specialist</i> offense histories, which were sexually focused (<i>n =</i> 455) and (2) a group with a <i>generalist</i> (<i>n</i> = 286) offending history, including sexual and non-sexual offenses. The frequency of CSAM production offenses across the sample period almost doubled with an increasing number of individuals with a <i>generalist</i> criminal history coming to the attention of police, whilst the number of those with a <i>specialist</i> criminal history remained largely stable. Uncovering these two distinct criminal profiles is a pivotal step toward understanding the nuanced characteristics of individuals responsible for producing CSAM.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"883-909"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12552758/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145001390","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}
Melissa O'Donaghy, Kelly M Babchishin, Grace Culp, Rachael Zarbl, Alexis G Hinkson
{"title":"An Efficient Measure of Sexual Interest in Children: The Revised Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interests (SSPI-2).","authors":"Melissa O'Donaghy, Kelly M Babchishin, Grace Culp, Rachael Zarbl, Alexis G Hinkson","doi":"10.1177/10790632251350625","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251350625","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study examined the convergent, divergent, predictive, and incremental validity of the Revised Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interests (SSPI-2) in a sample of 264 men adjudicated for sexual offenses against at least one child under the age of 15. We found evidence of construct validity as the SSPI-2 had small to medium correlations with phallometric testing (<i>r</i> = .31), recorded pedohebephilic diagnoses (<i>r</i> = .52), and attitudes tolerant of sexual offending against children (<i>r</i> = .23), in addition to small and non-significant correlations with the PCL-R (<i>r</i> = -.07), VRAG-R (<i>r</i> = -.09), BARR-2002R (<i>r</i> = -.06), and conduct disorder (<i>r</i> = -.07). As indicated by DeLong tests, the SSPI-2 was a better predictor of 5-year sexual (<i>Z</i> = -2.44) and non-contact sexual recidivism (<i>Z</i> = -2.46) than the SSPI. The SSPI-2 also added incremental predictive accuracy to risk tools such as the BARR-2002R, PCL-R, VRAG-R, and Static-99R. Overall, our findings suggest that the SSPI-2 is a valid measure of sexual interest in children and may be useful as a screening tool to help inform prioritization and management.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"950-975"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12552764/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144508349","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}
Mirthe G C Noteborn, Martin Hildebrand, Jelle J Sijtsema, Jaap J A Denissen, Stefan Bogaerts
{"title":"Construction and Validation of the Implicit Theories of Sexual Offense Questionnaire (ITSOQ) in a General and (sub)Clinical Population Sample.","authors":"Mirthe G C Noteborn, Martin Hildebrand, Jelle J Sijtsema, Jaap J A Denissen, Stefan Bogaerts","doi":"10.1177/10790632251326555","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10790632251326555","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study developed and assessed the psychometric properties of a questionnaire assessing Implicit Theories (ITs) of sexual offense (Polaschek & Ward, 2002; Ward & Keenan, 1999), named the Implicit Theories of Sexual Offense Questionnaire (ITSOQ). We used existing cognition questionnaires to create a potential item pool, and selected items based on item properties (e.g., mean, <i>SD</i>, range) from three male general population samples (<i>n</i> = 427) and three (sub)clinical population samples (<i>n</i> = 69), i.e., pedophilia-supportive forum users (<i>n</i> = 20), and sexual (<i>n</i> = 28) and violent (<i>n</i> = 21) forensic mental health system clients. A principal component analysis for the general population sample supported a four-component solution for the ITSOQ, including two victim-specific ITs (Factor 1: Children 14-16 years, Factor 2: Women), a sexual social desirability index (SSDI; Factor 3), and a component reflecting the antisocial uncontrollability IT (Factor 4). Analyses indicated measurement invariance, and higher scores for the (sub)clinical population were found for the antisocial uncontrollability and SSDI factors, with low to moderate effect sizes. Additionally, (small) associations between self-reported sexual interest in children and adults and the victim-specific child and women factors were found. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.</p>","PeriodicalId":21828,"journal":{"name":"Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment","volume":" ","pages":"910-949"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12552757/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144037791","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}