Citation

Grossi LM, Brereton A, Lee AFS, Schuler A, Prentky RA. Child Abuse Negl. 2017; 68: 81-95.

Affiliation

Fairleigh Dickinson University, School of Psychology (T-WH1-01), Metropolitan Campus, 1000 River Rd., Teaneck, NJ 07666, USA. Electronic address: rprentky@fdu.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.chiabu.2017.03.024

PMID

28414940

Abstract

The present study sought to determine whether the persistence of problematic sexualized behaviors (PSBs) committed by boys in the Massachusetts child welfare system would lend support to previous taxonomies categorizing offenders as early-onset/life course-persistent, adolescence-onset/adolescence-limited, or childhood-limited in their offending behavior. We examined the persistence of PSBs in a male sample (N=638; age range: two to 17), using a retrospective longitudinal archival design. Procedures involved a comprehensive archival review of records from the Department of Children and Families. Subsamples were established by trifurcating the sample based on age at the time of the boys' first documented PSB, resulting in age cohorts reflecting early childhood (age two to seven), middle childhood (age eight to 11), and preadolescence/adolescence (age 12-17).

RESULTS supported the hypothesis that youths who first exhibited PSBs in early childhood would produce higher sexual reoffense rates during each of three follow-up windows (i.e., three years, five years, and seven years) than youths who first exhibited such behaviors in middle childhood, or preadolescence/adolescence (p<0.01 for all group contrasts).

FINDINGS supported the distinctions of several taxonomies classifying youthful offenders in the juvenile justice system. Abuse reactivity, coping ability, and vulnerability to iatrogenic intervention effects are considered as some of many possible contributing factors.

Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Child welfare sample; Children; Desistance; Sexual recidivism; Taxonomy