Relationship Factors in Sex Offender Couples: A Pilot Study in an Outpatient Setting

Abstract

Research indicates that sex offenders’ relationships are often unstable and superficial. Sex offenders are portrayed as showing little empathy toward their partners and being incapable of sharing intimacy. This study aimed to explore sex offenders’ intimate relationships and identify potential stabilizing factors in an outpatient setting. In an exploratory pilot study, the authors used standardized instruments to assess 17 heterosexual sex offenders and their intimate partners. Results indicate that both partners rate high in attachment anxiety. The authors found a high level of correlation between both partners with regard to attachment avoidance. The sex offender couples demonstrate similarly low scores for “dominance, pugnaciousness, and aggression” in intimate relationships, and the female partners revealed high neuroticism and conscientiousness scores.

Notes

A systematic method in social sciences involving the discovery of theory through the analysis of data.

RQ-2 secure with ECR-R anxiety r = –.47 and with ECR-R avoidance r = –.52; RQ-2 dismissing with ECR-R anxiety r =.29, RQ-2 preoccupied with ECR-R anxiety r =.46 and avoidance r =.29; RQ-2 fearful with ECR-R anxiety r =.55 and avoidance r =.54; Spearman rho p <.001 for all calculations.

The nonclinical validation sample consisted mostly of students but also of other professions of both genders; 69.6% were in a relationship, the overall satisfaction with the relationship on a scale from 0 to 10 was M = 7.6, SD = 2.7.