Introduction This is a report of a cross-sectional study on paraphilia-associated sexual arousal patterns (PASAP) among men in a metropolitan city in Germany, EU. Aim To determine the prevalence of PASAP during sexual fantasies, fantasies accompanying masturbation, and real-life sociosexual behavior. Methods In a cross-sectional study, self-reported sexual history data were collected by questionnaire from 367 volunteers recruited from a community sample of 1,915 men aged 40–79 years. Main Outcome Measures The Derogatis Symptom Checklist—Revised (SCL-90–R) and the Life Satisfaction Questionnaire (LSQ; German original, Fragebogen zur Lebenszufriedenheit, [FLZ]) were administered to obtain a general subjective health measure and a measure of general as well as sex life satisfaction. The Questionnaire on Sexual Experiences and Behaviour was administered to comprehensively assess all relevant sexo-medical data. Results The percent of men that reported at least one PASAP was 62.4%. In 1.7% of cases, PASAP were reported to have caused distress. The presence of PASAP was associated with a higher likelihood of being single (odds ratio [OR] 2.6; 95%; confidence interval [CI] 1.047–6.640), masturbating at least once per week (OR 4.4; 95%; CI 1.773–10.914), or having a low general subjective health score (OR 11.9; 95%; CI 2.601–54.553). Pedophilic PASAP in sexual fantasies and in real-life sociosexual behavior was reported by 9.5% and 3.8% of participants, respectively. Conclusion The findings suggest that paraphilia-related experience can not be regarded as unusual from a normative perspective. At the same time, many men experience PASAP without accompanying problem awareness or distress, even when PASAP contents are associated with potentially causing harm to others. In view of the relevance for sex life and relationship satisfaction, presence of PASAP should be assessed in all sexual medicine consultations. Future research should focus on conditions in which PASAP reach clinical significance in the sense of mental disorders.

The Berlin Prevention Project Dunkelfeld (PPD) aims to prevent child sexual abuse (CSA) by targeting men who fear they may sexually abuse children, and who seek help without being mandated to do so. This article aims to demonstrate that a pedophilic or hebephilic sexual preference is very common among these men, to show how these men can be reached, and to document their determination to find help. The target group was informed of the project and encouraged to respond via a media campaign. A telephone screening was conducted over the first 18 months. Of the 286 who completed the screening (60.1% of the respondents), 84.3% (N ¼ 241) were interviewed by a clinician. Of the interviewees, 57.7% (N ¼ 139) and 27.8% (N ¼ 67) expressed a sexual preference for prepubescent and pubescent minors, respectively, and 10.8% (N ¼ 26) for mature adults. The remaining 3.7% (N ¼ 9) could not be reliably categorized. As (potential) child molesters with a respective sexual preference can be reached via a media campaign, efforts to prevent CSA ought to be expanded to target this group.

Little is known about factors that distinguish men who act upon their self-identified sexual interest in prepubescent or pubescent children from those who do not. Even less is known about pedophiles or hebephiles who are not involved with the criminal justice system. In this study, a sample of 155 self-referred pedophiles and hebephiles was recruited from the community. All participants met DSM-IV-TR criteria for pedophilia (or paraphilia not otherwise specified for those who were sexually attracted to pubescent children). Two sets of group comparisons were conducted on sociodemographic variables and measures of dynamic risk factors. The first set was based on recent activity and compared men who had committed child pornography only or child sexual abuse offenses in the past six months with men who remained offense-free during the same period. The second set was based on lifetime offense history (excluding the most recent six months) and compared child pornography offenders with child sexual abuse offenders and men who had committed both kinds of offenses. Overall, there were more similarities than differences between groups.

No abstract