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ABSTRACT
The suite of cognitive-emotional symptoms that one experiences while subject to registration and/or community supervision for a sexual offence has recently been conceptualized as Post-Conviction Traumatic Stress (PCTS). In the current study, we present a thematic analysis of transcription data extracted from focus groups with 22 men in treatment for sexual offending. We first describe the main sources of their trauma (e.g. allegation, arrest, court, conviction, jail, prison, parole/probation, and registration). Next, we examine their reported manifestations of symptoms contained in the DSM-5 criteria for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). All the men described at least one symptom, and many endorsed symptoms in all four criteria categories. Commonly described indicators of PCTS included intrusive memories of the arrest; avoidance of certain people, situations, and environmental cues; negative thoughts about themselves and the future; hyperarousal triggered by reminders of arrest or prison; and fear of being re-arrested for a violation of probation or registration. Finally, implications for trauma-informed practice and future research are discussed.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 DSM-5 Criterion A suggests and assumes that the trauma of sexual violence results from being victimized. We note that in this study we did not ask whether committing an act of sexual violence was traumatic for our participants, but it certainly could be. Anecdotally, sex-offending treatment clients do report PTSD symptoms related to the commission of a sex offence. This topic should be explored in future research. However, events such as being arrested at gunpoint or encountering dangerous conditions while incarcerated would be consistent with Criterion A.