The Relationship Between Victim Age and Gender Crossover Among Sex Offenders

Abstract

Some child molesters abuse children of both genders. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between gender crossover and victim age. The authors hypothesized that offenders who molested children of both genders would be more likely to have very young victims and that offenders who molested very young children would be more likely to abuse children of both sexes than offenders with older victims. The sample consisted of 362 sex offenders being considered for civil commitment as sexually violent predators in Florida. Data were collected from file reviews. The relationship between victim age and gender crossover was examined using chi-square and multivariate logistic regression analyses. The proportion of offenders with victims of both genders significantly increased as the victims' ages decreased, and sex offenders with preschool-age victims were most likely to have abused both boys and girls. A sex offender with a victim 6 years of age or younger had more than 3 times the odds of having perpetrated sex crimes against both genders than a sex offender with only older victims. Sex offenders with victims of both genders had more than 3 times the odds of having preschool victims. The presence of a major mental illness increased the odds of gender crossover more than threefold. Pedophilia increased the odds of having victims younger than 6 more than 11-fold. Implications for practice are discussed.

Association between brain structure and phenotypic characteristics in pedophilia

“…More precisely, neuroimaging studies have demonstrated strong IQ/GM correlations for the angular gyrus in men (Haier et al, 2005) and have moreover disclosed its functional relevance for cued recall and episodic memory retrieval (Sestieri et al, 2011;Hayama et al, 2012). In general, the association of structural brain deficits with victim age is in line with prior research which showed that pedophilic men who sexually abused particularly young children are less discriminating with regard to victim gender (Levenson et al, 2008;Carlstedt et al, 2009) and may show more mental health problems (Kalichman, 1991;Firestone et al, 2005).…”

The Aetiology of Child Sexual Abuse: A Critical Review of the Empirical Evidence

“…Levenson et al . () found that offenders who victimised younger children were more likely to perpetrate against both genders than a CSA offender with older victims. There is also evidence to suggest that children who experience CSA in early childhood may be at higher risk of re‐victimisation (Barnes et al ., ).…”

The characteristics of registered sexual offenders in an Australian jurisdiction

“…These offenders can be identified by the presence of risk markers such as having male victims, having victims both within and outside of their family, and being of younger age. It is also important to note that a significant portion of sexual recidivism may represent crossover offending, that is, offending against a different victim type than earlier sexual offences, although findings have been variable (Cann, Friendship, & Gozna, ; Howard, Barnett, & Mann, ; Kleban, Chesin, Jeglic, & Mercado, ; Lin & Simon, ; Stephens, Seto, Goodwill, & Cantor, ; Levenson, Becker, & Morin, ; Sim & Proeve, ). Offenders with a history of adult victims have been shown to be less consistent in their offending behavior than those with a history of only child victims, with one study showing 37% of those who sexually re‐offend doing so against child victims (Vess & Skelton, ).…”

“…Offenders with a history of adult victims have been shown to be less consistent in their offending behavior than those with a history of only child victims, with one study showing 37% of those who sexually re‐offend doing so against child victims (Vess & Skelton, ). Having victims of younger age has also been shown to increase the odds of having both male and female victims (Carlstedt et al, ; Levenson et al, ). Therefore, limiting an investigation to known offenders with similar victim types may miss a substantial portion of potential perpetrators.…”