The assessment and treatment of deviant sexual arousal with adolescents who have offended sexually

Abstract

The available data suggest that only a minority of adolescents who commit sexual crimes demonstrate deviant sexual arousal to younger children and/or sexual violence. However, deviant sexual arousal is a risk factor for repeated sexual offending, and it is frequently an important target in specialised treatment programmes. This paper provides a review of the various techniques that have been used to measure deviant sexual arousal with adolescents who have offended sexually, including the penile plethysmograph, unobtrusively measured viewing time, and self-report. Common treatment approaches used to address deviant sexual arousal such as behavioural techniques, thought-stopping, and mindfulness are also discussed. Suggestions for building the capacity for future sexual health are offered, given the lack of empirical support for most of the commonly used treatment approaches used to modify or control deviant sexual arousal with adolescents.

Keywords:

• Adolescents who offend sexually
• assessment
• deviant sexual arousal
• sexual interests
• treatment

Additional information

Notes on contributors

James Worling

The views expressed here are the author's, and they may not represent those of the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services