Sex Offenders — Cure or Management?

Abstract

A variety of biological, psychoanalytical and behavioural treatment strategies have been employed to treat sex offenders. Whilst these may produce short-term benefits, their efficacy in reducing long-term recidivism is uncertain. It is possible that treatment, as generally understood, is too ambitious an aim for this group of people and better results could be expected by employing a management strategy that includes treatment as well as life-long vigilant supervision. This can only be achieved if psychiatric services, which are used in continuing care, get involved in the management of sex offenders.

Sexual offence recidivism: prediction versus understanding

“…Kaul (1993), for example, cites a 1960s follow-up of over 2900 Danish sex offenders (Christiansen, 1965) in which just 10% were convicted of another sex offence over a period of 12 to 24 years, although time at risk does not appear to have been considered in this study. A more recent UK report found that only 7% of a randomly selected sample of over 900 sex offenders (men with either current or past convictions for sex offences) released from prison in 1987 were reconvicted of a sex offence over the next four years (Marshall, 1994).…”

Treatment Outcome Study: Seventeen Years After Sexual Offender Treatment

“…Even after successful treatment, results cannot be entirely certain unless offenders are followed for their entire lifetimes (Kaul, 1993). It is probable that we have been deceived by some of our patients, but it is our belief that some of the cross-checking of state and country police records, in addition to the questionnaires and personal interviews, may have helped us catch deceptions.…”