@article{ref1,
title="Contact sex offenders with adult and minor victims: psychopathological and criminological differences",
journal="Child abuse and neglect",
year="2024",
author="Soldino, Virginia and López-Pinar, Carlos and Carbonell-Vayá, Enrique J.",
volume="154",
number="",
pages="e106896-e106896",
abstract="BACKGROUND: Effective classification of individuals who commit sexual offences is important for their assessment, treatment, and risk management. Victim age has often been used as a distinguishing factor between perpetrators. <br><br>OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to analyse the distinctive psychopathological and criminological characteristics of contact sexual offenders with adult and minor victims. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: The study involved 97 adult males who were serving a prison sentence in Spain for at least one contact sexual offence against an adult or a minor. <br><br>METHODS: Researchers gathered data on criminological variables concerning the offender, victim, and modus operandi from prison records and interviews. Participants completed the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III) in a second session, and between-group differences were analysed. <br><br>RESULTS: Sex offenders with minor victims (SOMV) had significantly lower scores than sex offenders with adult victims (SOAV) on the Antisocial (r = -0.283, p = .005) and Sadistic (r = -0.209, p = .04) personality subscales, and on the Alcohol (r = -0.426, p < .001) and Drug dependence (r = -0.332, p = .001) syndrome subscales. SOAV were also more likely to use violence and/or intimidation, use a weapon, offend against female victims, offend against an intimate partner, commit their offences in public places, serve other ongoing prison sentences, and report a history of alcohol and substance abuse. SOMV were older and more likely to offend against family members. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that there are key differences between SOAV and SOMV that should be considered in tailored prevention programmes for each subgroup of offenders.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0145-2134",
doi="10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.106896",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.106896"
}