Childhood Experiences of Perpetrators of Child Sexual Abuse

Abstract

Cognitive-behavioral treatment may not be optimal for all perpetrators because it is not designed to facilitate recovery from early trauma and loss.

The Deepest, Darkest Secret

“…Being blamed or disbelieved also inhibits childhood abuse disclosure, as shown in numerous studies (e.g., Thomas & Hall, 2008). As children, participants in our own study of adult sex offenders provided clues that they were being abused, such as running away from home, setting fires, stealing, and suicide attempts (Thomas et al, 2013). But neither parents, teachers, nor police heeded these cries for help.…”

“…He had never spoken to a mental health professional about his secret-sexual abuse as a child-until he was arrested for possession of child pornography and taken to jail on December 11, 2013. I immediately thought of the sex offenders studied by my research team, who similarly kept their childhood secret until arrested for crimes against children as adults, thus never receiving any psychiatric treatment until convicted of their crimes (Thomas et al, 2013).…”

Psychiatric disorders and management of sexual offenders in the prison psychiatric consultation unit of Marseille

“…A history of physical and/or sexual assault (victimization) and also of neglect is very common among male sexual offenders as well as in the general prison population [10][11][12][13] and such a history may be a risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders in the long term [10,14,15]. Screening for a history of sexual violence and its multidisciplinary management is one of the key factors in building a treatment plan against recidivism [16][17][18][19].…”