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Handbook of What Works With Sexual Offenders: Contemporary Perspectives in Theory, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention 1st Edition Jean Proulx
Handbook of What Works With Sexual Offenders: Contemporary Perspectives in Theory, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention 1st Edition Jean Proulx
Edited by
Leam A. Craig
Forensic Psychology Practice Ltd, The Willows Clinic, UK
Centre for Applied Psychology, University of Birmingham, UK
School of Social Sciences, Birmingham City University, UK
Louise Dixon
School of Psychology, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
and
Edited by
Jean Proulx,
Franca Cortoni,
Leam A. Craig,
and
Elizabeth J. Letourneau
This edition first published 2020
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Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data
Names: Proulx, Jean, 1956– editor. | Cortoni, Franca, editor. | Craig, Leam A., editor. |
Letourneau, Elizabeth J., editor.
Title: The Wiley handbook of what works with sexual offenders: Contemporary Perspectives in Theory,
Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention / edited by Jean Proulx, Franca Cortoni,
Leam A. Craig, Elizabeth J. Letourneau.
Description: First Edition. | Hoboken : Wiley, 2020. | Includes index.
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ISBN 9781119439455 (cloth) | ISBN 9781119439370 (adobe pdf) |
ISBN 9781119439424 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Sex offenders. | Sex offenders–Psychology. | Sex offenders–Rehabilitation. |
Sex crimes–Prevention.
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LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019056776
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019056777
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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Index 509
About the Editors
Jean Proulx is a professor in, and the director of, the School of Criminology at the University
of Montreal, and Researcher at the International Centre for Comparative Criminology at that
university. Since 1987, he has also been active, both as researcher and forensic psychologist, in
treatment programs for sex offenders at the Philippe-Pinel Institute of Montreal, a maximum-
security psychiatric institution. His main research interests are the pathways in the offending
process, personality profiles, and sexual preferences and recidivism risk factors in sexual murderers,
rapists, pedophiles, and incest offenders. Over the past 30 years, he has published 10 books,
and more than 150 book chapters and peer-reviewed articles in French and in English.
Franca Cortoni is a registered clinical forensic psychologist and professor of criminological
psychology. Since 1989, she has worked with and conducted research on female and male
sexual offenders. She worked for many years with the Correctional Service of Canada
where she provided assessment and treatment services to incarcerated male and female
offenders, was director of an in-prison treatment program for high-risk sexual offenders,
and director of correctional research. In 2007, she moved to a full-time academic position
at the School of Criminology at the Université de Montréal. She is also a research fellow
at the International Centre of Comparative Criminology. Her research focuses on the
factors associated with the development of sexual offending behavior, risk assessment, and
treatment of both male and female sexual offenders. She has published extensively and
made numerous presentations at national and international conferences on both male and
female sexual offender issues. She is currently past-president of the Association for the
Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA).
Leam A. Craig, Ph.D., C.Psychol, CSci, MAE, FBPsS, FAcSS, EuroPsy, is a consultant
forensic and clinical psychologist and partner at Forensic Psychology Practice Ltd. He is a
visiting professor of forensic clinical psychology at the School of Social Sciences, Birmingham
City University, and hon. professor of forensic psychology at the Centre of Applied Psychology,
University of Birmingham. He is a chartered and dual registered [forensic and clinical]
psychologist, a chartered scientist, holder of the European Certificate in Psychology, and a full
member of the Academy of Experts. He was awarded fellowship of the British Psychological
Society and the Academy of Social Sciences for distinguished contributions to psychology
x About the Editors
and the social sciences. He has previously worked in forensic psychiatric secure services,
learning disability hospitals, and consultancy to prison and probation services throughout
England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, specializing in high‐risk, complex cases. He was previ-
ously consultant lead to three community forensic psychiatric hospitals for people with person-
ality disorders, learning disabilities, and challenging behavior. He is currently a consultant to
the National Probation Service on working with offenders with personality disorders. He acts
as an expert witness to civil and criminal courts in the assessment of sexual and violent offenders
and in matters of child protection. He has previously been instructed by the Salvation Army,
Catholic and Church of England Dioceses, South African Police Service, and currently receives
instruction from the United States Air Force European Defence Counsel. He has over 100
publications including 12 books published/in press. In 2013 he received the Senior Academic
Award by the Division of Forensic Psychology for distinguished contributions to academic
knowledge in forensic psychology and in 2018 the Emerald Literati Award for a Highly
Commended paper. In 2015 he co-authored a Ministry of Justice research-funded report into
the use of expert witnesses in family law and in 2016 he was appointed as chair of the British
Psychological Society, Expert Witness Advisory Group. His research interests include sexual
and violent offenders, personality disorder, and forensic risk assessment, and the use of expert
witnesses in civil and criminal courts.
Elizabeth J. Letourneau is professor, Department of Mental Health and director, Moore Center
for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Since 1988 she has engaged in research on child sexual abuse prevention, policy, and practice.
Dr. Letourneau held previous academic and research positions at the Medical University of South
Carolina and with the United States Navy. She currently serves on the U.S. National Academies
of Science Forum on Global Violence Prevention and the Maryland State Council on Child
Abuse and Neglect. She previously served on the World Health Organization Guidelines
Development Group for Responding to Child and Adolescent Sexual Abuse. Dr. Letourneau’s
research – published in 100 articles and chapters – has been cited in state and federal sex crime
cases, by state legislatures, and by international bodies, including the Australian Royal
Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. She is a long-time member
of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers, where she served as president and
co-authored guidelines on adolescent practice.
About the Contributors
In a provocative paper entitled “What Works? Questions and Answers about Prison Reforms,”
Martinson (1974) favored a skeptical attitude to the possibility of rehabilitation of delinquents
and criminals. As a consequence of this attitude, there was a shift in the criminal justice system
of several countries toward strategies such as long‐term incarceration of offenders to increase
public safety (Petrunic, 1994). After more than four decades of research in the field of forensic
psychology, it is now well established that Martinson’s pessimism was misplaced. In fact, there
is now a wide body of evidence that a variety of treatment and prevention programs are effec-
tive in reducing recidivism and favoring rehabilitation, in both delinquents and criminals
(Weisburd, Farrington, & Gill, 2017). More particularly, this conclusion is true in the special-
ized case of sexual aggressors (Hanson, Bourgon, Helmus, & Hodgson, 2009; Marshall &
Marshall, 2012; Schmucker & Lösel, 2008).
In the 1970s and the early 1980s, a major theme of empirical research in the field of
sexual aggression was the study of the sexual preferences and interests of these offenders
(Proulx, 1989). At that time, the main causative factors of the crimes of sexual aggressors
were considered to be their sexual preferences for children as a sexual partner, and for
coercive sexual behaviors with nonconsenting adult partners. Consequently, treatments
were developed to reduce these deviant sexual preferences, and to increase sexual interest
in consensual adult partners. In the 1980s and the 1990s, models of sexual aggression and
treatment evolved, and began to take into consideration other factors such as social skill
deficits, cognitive distortions, and the use of sex to cope with negative emotions (Marshall,
Laws, & Barbaree, 1990). Another major contribution to the field of sexual aggression
was the development of the self‐regulation model of relapse prevention (Ward, Hudson,
& Keenan, 1998). This model integrates a diversity of factors, identified in previous
empirical studies, into a model that takes into account the heterogeneity in sexual
offenders, as well as the temporal sequence that culminates in an assault (Proulx,
Beauregard, Lussier, & Leclerc, 2014). As a consequence, the field has moved on from a
“one size fits all” approach to multifactorial conceptualization, assessment, and treatment
of sexual aggressors. With that in mind, we elaborate a handbook that provides an over-
view of the state of the art in the field of research into sexual aggression.
This handbook comprises five sections. The first one presents the major theories that have
been developed to explain sexual aggression against women and sexual aggression again
xviii Introduction
References
Hanson, R. K., Bourgon, G., Helmus, L., & Hodgson, S. (2009). The principles of effective correctional
treatment also apply to sexual offenders: A meta‐analysis. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 36, 865–891.
Marshall, W. L., Laws, D. R., & Barbaree, H. E. (1990). Handbook of sexual assault. Issues, theories and
treatment of the offenders. New York, NY: Plenum Press.
Marshall, W. L., & Marshall, L. E. (2012). Treatment of sexual offenders: Effective elements and appropri-
ate outcome evaluations. In E. Bowen & S. Brown (Eds.), Perspectives on evaluating criminal justice
and corrections (pp. 71–94). London, England: Emerald Publishing.
Martinson, R. M. (1974). What works? Questions and answers about prison reform. The Public Interest,
35, 22–54.
Petrunic, M. (1994). Modèles de dangerosité: Les contrevenants sexuels et la loi [Models of dangerous-
ness: Sexual offenders and the law]. Criminologie, 27, 87–125.
Proulx, J. (1989). Sexual preference assessment of sexual aggressors. International Journal of Law and
Psychiatry, 12, 275–280.
Proulx, J., Beauregard, E., Lussier, P., & Leclerc, B. (2014). Pathways to sexual aggression. Abingdon,
England: Routledge.
Schmucker, M., & Lösel, F. (2008). Does sexual offender treatment work: A systematic review of outcome
evaluation. Psychotheme, 20, 10–19.
Ward, T., Hudson, S. M., & Keenan, T. (1998). A self‐regulation model of the sexual offense process.
Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, 10, 141–157.
Weisburd, D., Farrington, D. P., & Gill, C. (2017). What works in crime prevention and rehabilitation:
An assessment of systematic review. Criminology and Public Policy, 16, 415–449.
Part I
Theories of Sexual Offenders
Jean Proulx, Section Coordinator
1
Theories That Explain Sexual
Aggression Against Women
Jonathan James and Jean Proulx
School of Criminology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada
Introduction
What leads some men to sexually assault a woman? Unfortunately, there is no consensus on the
developmental processes that underlie this behavior (Lussier, 2018a). This may be due in part to
the dominant approach to the analysis of sexual offending, that is, correctional psychology, which
focuses on the management of convicted sexual offenders’ risk of sexual recidivism. Consequently,
while effective tools do exist for the assessment of this risk, identification of the features of a sexual
offender’s life course that increased his likelihood of committing a sexual crime remains elusive.
Many studies of sexual offending have focused on the identification of characteristics that
are specific to sexual offenders, and have attempted to answer questions such as: Are these
individuals different from those who have never committed a crime? Are all perpetrators of
sexual crimes—particularly sexual aggressors against women—identical? And (the perennial)
are sexual offenders the same as other criminals?
This chapter presents the most noteworthy explanatory theories and models, and empirical
results, related to sexual aggression against women. For these purposes, “sexual aggression
against women” is defined as an extrafamilial sexual assault by an adult male against an adult
female (at least 16 years old) (for a discussion of theories related to marital rapists, see Proulx &
Beauregard, 2014a). In addition, while sexual offending against women is polymorphic, and
comprises sexual violence, sexual misconduct, and sexual exploitation, this chapter discusses
only rape and contact sexual aggression (see Figure 1.1). For a discussion of child sexual abuse,
sexual homicide, and noncontact sexual offenses, see Chapters 2, 17, and 21 of this book.
In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in the identification of neuroanatomical and
neurophysiological deficits in antisocial individuals, and in the relationship of these deficits to the
psychological functioning of these individuals. Antisocial offenders, especially sexual offenders,
have received particular attention (e.g., Beech, Carter, Mann, & Rotshtein, 2018; Raine, 2013).
The Wiley Handbook of What Works with Sexual Offenders: Contemporary Perspectives in Theory, Assessment, Treatment,
and Prevention, First Edition. Edited by Jean Proulx, Franca Cortoni, Leam A. Craig, and Elizabeth J. Letourneau.
© 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Published 2020 by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
4 Jonathan James and Jean Proulx
Sexual homicide
Child sexual
abuse
Sexual indecency
Sexual Sexual
Sex offending
misconduct harassment
Sexual misconduct
in a context of
authority
Intenet child
luring and
cyberpredation
Sexual Prostitution
exploitation (recruiting, pimping)
Child pornography
(making, producing,
distributing)
Figure 1.1 Sex offending: a multidimensional viewpoint. Lussier and Mathesius (2018).
theoretical models. Finally, the many similarities between the neuropsychological profiles of
sexual offenders against women and nonsexual offenders suggest that there is no causal rela-
tionship between neuropsychological deficits and sexual offending against women (Joyal et al.,
2014). However, it is important to note that these results do not mean that all sexual offenders
against women have neuropsychological characteristics similar to those nonsexual offenders.
In fact, drawing that conclusion requires analysis of the heterogeneity of sexual offenders
against women, and, especially, of the differences between sexual offenders with deviant and
nondeviant sexual preferences (see Knight, 2010; Proulx & Beauregard, 2014b).
Marshall and colleagues (Fernandez & Marshall, 2003; Marshall & Moulden, 2001)
conducted several comparative studies to evaluate empathy deficits among sexual aggressors
against women. They reported that:
1. Sexual aggressors against women felt more empathy for women in general than nonsexual
offenders.
2. Sexual aggressors against women felt similar (Fernandez & Marshall, 2003) or less
(Marshall & Moulden, 2001) empathy for women who had suffered a sexual assault by
another man as did nonsexual offenders, and less empathy than noncriminals (Marshall &
Moulden, 2001).
3. Sexual aggressors against women felt less empathy for their victim than for other women.
4. Sexual aggressors against women felt less empathy for their victim than did nonsexual
offenders.
5. Sexual aggressors against women felt more hostility toward women than did nonsexual
offenders and noncriminals.
These results suggest that: (a) hostility toward women may be associated with sexual aggres-
sion (hostility toward women is also a risk factor for sexual recidivism; see Hanson, Harris,
Scott, & Helmus, 2007), and (b) the empathy deficit of sexual aggressors against women is
contextual and specific (e.g., triggered by anger against a woman), not structural and general-
ized. However, empathy deficits may be structural, and generalized, in sexual aggressors
against women who scored high for psychopathy (Knight & Guay, 2018; Yang, Raine, Narr,
Colletti, & Toga, 2009).
A consensus exists regarding the role of psychopathy in the sexual coercion of women
(Knight & Guay, 2018). For example, a meta‐analysis of the relationship between Psychopathy
Checklist—Revised (PCL‐R) scores and sexual recidivism revealed that a chronically unstable,
antisocial, and deviant lifestyle (PCL‐R Factor 2; Hare, 2003) is a good predictor of this type
of recidivism (Hawes, Boccaccini, & Murrie, 2013). While only a minority of sexual aggressors
against women are psychopaths (12.1–40.0%; e.g., Porter, Campbell, Woodworth, & Birt,
2001; Serin, Mailloux, & Malcolm, 2001), the prevalence in this group is higher than in the
general population (approximately 1.0%; Forth, Brown, Hart, & Hare, 1996; Hare, 1998)
and in sexual aggressors against children (5.4–6.3%; Brown & Forth, 1997; Porter et al.,
2001; Serin, Malcolm, Khanna, & Barbaree, 1994). It is also worth noting that the variation
of psychopathy among sexual aggressors against women may reflect differences in the security
level of the correctional institutions in which studies have been conducted or the predomi-
nance of certain types of aggressors in samples. For example, with regard to the latter point,
there is a consensus that psychopaths are overrepresented in samples of opportunistic sexual
aggressors against women (Brown & Forth, 1997; Knight, 2010; Proulx & Beauregard,
2014b). Finally, similar prevalences of psychopathy have been reported among sexual aggres-
sors against women and nonsexual offenders (35.9 and 34.0%, respectively; Porter et al.,
2001), suggesting that the sexual assault of women is an antisocial behavior reflecting a broader
antisocial tendency (Lussier, LeBlanc, & Proulx, 2005).
Although lack of empathy may favor sexual offending against women, it is not systematically
found in all sexual aggressors against women. Some sexual aggressors against women fail to
recognize the gravity of their behaviors and the negative consequences of these behaviors on
their victim’s psychological functioning, which raises the possibility that they have deficits
related to the processing of information about their social environment (Hanson & Scott,
1995; Marshall, Hudson, Jones, & Fernandez, 1995).
Theories That Explain Sexual Aggression Against Women 7
• Women as sex object (70% of the sample interviewed): Women are constantly sexually recep-
tive to men’s needs but are not always consciously aware that they are.
• Entitlement (68%): Men must satisfy their sexual needs and have the right to punish women
who refuse sexual contact.
• Women are unknowable (65%): Women are fundamentally different from men, with minds
so inherently alien that men cannot easily grasp how they work.
• Dangerous world (19%): The world is a hostile and threatening place.
• Male sex drive is uncontrollable (16%): Male libido is inherently uncontrollable, and women
must provide men with reasonable sexual access.
These results, together with those obtained from studies of sexual murderers (see Beech,
Fisher, & Ward, 2005; James, Beauregard, & Proulx, 2019), suggest that: (a) almost all sexual
aggressors against women hold at least one of Ward and colleague’s implicit theories described
above, and (b) some implicit theories are overrepresented among some types of sexual
8 Jonathan James and Jean Proulx
aggressors against women (e.g., dangerous world and male sex drive is uncontrollable appear to
predominate among sadistic sexual aggressors).
To date, there have been few empirical studies of the cognitive distortions of sexual aggres-
sors against women. Nevertheless, the results suggest that the sexual assault of women is the
consequence of deficits in the perception or processing of information in social contexts. The
discrepancy between the cues generated in a social environment and the response of the sexual
aggressor are thought to be associated with difficulties establishing and maintaining healthy
and stable interpersonal relationships.
lower for loneliness, intimacy deficits, anxiety, and stress (Garlick, Marshall, & Thornton,
1996; Segal & Marshall, 1985a, 1985b, 1986), have a greater number of negative schemata
toward others, and have higher self‐esteem (Ward, McCormack, & Hudson, 1997), than
sexual aggressors against children.
The patterns described in the preceding sections suggest that sexual aggressors against
women, and nonsexual offenders, are more similar than different with regard to intimacy def-
icits and attachment styles. There appear to be no differences in their social skills, their percep-
tion and evaluation of their intimate relationships, and their investment in their intimate
relationships (Segal & Marshall, 1985a, 1985b, 1986; Ward et al., 1996, 1997). Moreover,
the prevalence of a dismissing attachment style is similar in the two groups, which suggests that
this insecure attachment style should be considered a risk factor for offending in general rather
than for a specific propensity for sexual aggression (Ward et al., 1996, 1997). It should be
noted that sexual aggressors against women tend to be lonelier than nonsexual offenders
(Garlick et al., 1996), which supports Marshall’s (1989) initial hypothesis.
In light of the preceding observations, future studies should attempt to clarify the role of
intimacy deficits in the process leading to the sexual assault of women, while taking into
consideration the heterogeneity of this category of sexual aggressors. The preceding sections
have demonstrated that the sexual assault of women is the product of multiple psychological
deficits located at the surface level of symptomology (Ward & Beech, 2006). The deficits of
intimacy, neuropsychology, empathy, or cognition described above are all incapable of explain-
ing on their own what leads some men to sexually assault a woman. Accordingly, to better
understand the phenomenon of sexual aggression, models that integrate all these factors,
rather than analyze them in isolation, have been developed. The rest of this chapter will pro-
vide an overview of the best‐known explanatory models and multifactorial theories of sexual
aggression, and typologies of sexual aggressors against women.
personal agency (i.e., intentional mental states), in order to take into account the fact that the
symptoms that can lead to sexual aggression (deviant sexual preferences, emotional problems,
cognitive distortions, social difficulties) are interrelated and play a functional role in a person’s
psychological life.
The ITSO has several strengths. First, it integrates several theories that have been validated
empirically. Second, by taking into consideration the diversity of potential interactions bet-
ween causal factors at different levels of functioning, it allows identification of multiple path-
ways to sexual aggression. Third, it reintroduces a biological perspective—frequently neglected
in attempts to explain criminal behavior—that situates sexual aggressors in cultural, social,
psychological, and biological terms. Fourth, it provides a systematic and multifaceted frame-
work for the evaluation and treatment of sexual aggressors. And finally, it offers a new and
promising perspective, by suggesting that sometimes problems have single causes, localized in
specific functional systems: “for example, an offender may articulate offense‐supportive state-
ments which appear to stem from offense‐supportive implicit theories (the perception and
motivation system), but which are actually the function of impression management strategies
instead (motivation/emotional and action selection and control systems)” (Ward & Beech,
2006, p. 61). Consequently, “it may make more sense to allocate individuals to groups based
of the type of functional systems compromised rather than upon the basis of their surface
symptoms” (Pennington, 2002, in Ward & Beech, 2006, p. 340). Although the ITSO pro-
vides a coherent framework for the understanding of the diversity of pathways leading to
sexual aggression, it has not been empirically validated.
Sexual
learning
Social
offending
ACTIONS
Figure 1.2 Schematic illustration of the Integrated Theory of Sexual Offending (ITSO). Ward and
Beech, (2016).
Theories That Explain Sexual Aggression Against Women 11
Antisocial
Behavior
Aggression
Physical/
Verbal Abuse Sexual
Coercion
Callous/
Unemotional
Aggressive
Sexual Sexual
Fantasy
Abuse
Sexual
Fantasy
Figure 1.3 Knight and Sims‐Knight’s (2003) three‐component theoretical structural model of sexual
coercion against women.
12 Jonathan James and Jean Proulx
behaviors, as a result of insensitivity and lack of empathy. These antisocial behaviors favor the
emergence of coercive sexual behaviors, either directly, or indirectly through recourse to
deviant sexual fantasies.
Thus, Knight and Sim‐Knight’s etiological model considers sexual aggressors against women
antisocial individuals focused on the gratification of their immediate needs, and emphasizes
the role of psychopathic traits and hypersexuality. Although this model demonstrates that
sexual deviance and general deviance may lead, independently or jointly, to the sexual assault
of a woman, several studies have called into question the existence of its two distinct etiological
processes: (a) physical and/or verbal abuse leading to general deviance, and (b) sexual victim-
ization leading to sexual deviance.
Exposure Exposure
Deviant
Victimisation Criminogenic Victimisation
sexual
models
models
Authority-
Pornography
conflict
Impersonal
Reckless
sex General
Sexualisation
deviance
Compulsivity Overt
Covert
Nonsexual
violence
Rape Deviant sexual
humiliation interests
Rape
Figure 1.4 General‐specific model of the criminal activity of sexual aggressors against women. Lussier,
Proulx, and Le Blanc (2005).
U Hig
ce/C hS
len
h Vio exu
aliz
Hig atio
n
Sadistic
y
ivit
uls
Angry
hI
Vindictive
Hig
Low S.C.
Low S.C.
y
ivit
uls
Opportunistic
mp
High S.C.
wI
Lo
High S.C.
Lo
wS
exu
aliz U
atio ce/C
n len
Vio
Low
Figure 1.5 Revised rapist typology indicating speculative placement for three major components of the
typology (impulsivity, sexualization, and violence/callous‐unemotional). Knight (2010).
The primary motivation of sadistic sexual aggressors was to act out their fantasy world in
which they rape, torture, and kill women. They carefully planned their assaults, which were
characterized by a level of coercion that was not only more than necessary to overcome their
victim’s resistance, but also ritualistic. In fact, their violent behaviors were the expression of
their deviant sexual fantasies (i.e., torture, bondage, humiliation, mutilation) and their anger
against women. Their victims were seriously injured, and a high proportion of them died or
were killed. Sadistic sexual aggressors had social skills deficits and led an antisocial lifestyle that
began in adolescence. Knight (2010) concludes that some sadistic aggressors are psychopathic,
while some others are avoidant and schizoid (see also Longpré, Guay, & Knight, 2018; Proulx
& Beauregard, 2014b).
The primary motivation of the pervasively angry sexual aggressors against women was
intense anger. However, these aggressors also vented their anger in nonsexual contexts, against
both men and women. Their antisocial lifestyle began in adolescence, and was dominated by
violent crime. Their sexual crimes were not planned and involved a high level of verbal and
physical coercion, even when the victim did not resist. Their victims were seriously injured and
a significant proportion of them died or were killed. According to Knight (2010), pervasively
angry sexual aggressors have a personality profile characterized by psychopathic and border-
line (emotional dysregulation) traits. They have no deviant sexual preferences.
Theories That Explain Sexual Aggression Against Women 15
The primary motivation of opportunistic sexual aggressors against women was unfettered
sexual gratification regardless of the consequences for the victims. Their sexual crimes reflected
not only their lack of empathy but also an antisocial lifestyle. Their sexual assaults were impul-
sive, unplanned, and largely conditioned by situational factors. Opportunistic sexual aggressors
used instrumental violence, that is, the minimal amount of force necessary to subdue their
victim. According to Knight (2010), opportunistic sexual aggressors of women have an antiso-
cial‐narcissistic personality profile, and become angry when they lose control of the assault due
to strong victim resistance. In addition, these aggressors have neither deviant sexual fantasies
nor deviant sexual preferences (Knight, 1999, 2010).
The sexual nonsadistic aggressors had rape fantasies in which they dominated and controlled
women. There were no sadistic or retaliatory components in their fantasies. However, they
had cognitive distortions that supported domination of males over females. These aggressors
carefully planned their crimes. They usually used instrumental violence, and some desisted if
their victim strongly resisted. The lifestyle of these aggressors was marked by a variety of both
deviant and nondeviant sexual activities. Apart from their sexual crimes, they manifested few
antisocial behaviors. Sexual nonsadistic aggressors are not psychopathic, but no other person-
ality traits have been reported to describe them. Knight and Prentky (1990), however, men-
tioned that these aggressors have “a feeling of inadequacy about their masculinity and masculine
self‐image” (p. 46).
Vindictive sexual aggressors against women had an intense misogynistic anger, and women
were in fact the exclusive targets of their anger. Their assaults were unplanned, and involved a
high level of verbal and physical coercion. Their lifestyle included few antisocial behaviors, and
no deviant sexual interests. Vindictive aggressors are not psychopathic. However, Knight
(2010) concluded that they had an avoidant‐schizoid personality profile, and that they shared
some characteristics with sadistic sexual aggressors against women.
Knight and Sims‐Knight’s (2003) classification of sexual aggressors against women is based
on a solid empirical basis (factorial analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis) and has been validated
by several studies. Overall, these validation studies have confirmed the concurrent validity of
the classification. Knight and Sims‐Knight’s classification has allowed the demonstration of the
heterogeneity of sexual aggressors against women on multiple scales. Moreover, the MTC:R4
clarifies the role of various psychopathic traits in sexual aggression against women and is con-
gruent with empirically validated etiological models (see Knight & Sims‐Knight, 2003, 2011).
In fact, both the typological and etiological models converge on the same three core traits
central to their structures: sexualization, callous‐manipulativeness, and impulsive‐antisocial.
However, while Knight and Sims‐Knight’s classification takes into consideration the heteroge-
neity, personality profiles, and motivations of sexual aggressors against women, it does not take
into consideration the life‐course characteristics that may trigger sexual aggression.
with such a personality profile have low physical and psychological self‐esteem and believe that
people they meet, especially women, reject and humiliate them. Such cognitive distortions
trigger negative emotions (i.e., anger, humiliation, anxiety, suffering) that dominate their inner
worlds. In reaction, they isolate themselves and withdraw into a world of sadistic fantasies that
are used during their compulsive masturbatory activities. Moreover, they consume pornog-
raphy and frequent strip clubs and prostitutes. Nevertheless, they are sexually unsatisfied. This
may be due to the fact that their sadistic fantasies lose much of their gratifying power over time;
this habituation precipitates a quest for ever more violent, intense, deviant sexual fantasies and
behaviors. In sadistic sexual aggressors, deviant sexual fantasies were strong internal constraints
that not only constituted a motivation to offend, but also shaped the modus operandi. Moreover,
anger and alcohol/drug intoxication may have been disinhibiting factors that increased the
intensity of both deviant and nondeviant sexual arousal of these aggressors. To ensure that their
crimes match their sadistic fantasies, these aggressors carefully planned their offenses. Their
strategy for overcoming their victims involved a variety of physical restraints (handcuffs, rope,
tape), and removal of the victim to a preselected location (kidnapping). Furthermore, since the
victim was under their control and there was a low probability of intervention by a guardian,
sadistic aggressors took their time during the commission of the crime. Finally, their modus
operandi was characterized by a high level of coercion (humiliation, mutilation, physical injury)
and they often killed their victim (60%).
Sexual aggressors following the angry pathway were characterized by a dramatic personality
profile (narcissistic, dependent). In keeping with this profile, they had an unstable self‐perception
that was sometimes positive and sometimes negative. Because they considered themselves special,
they expected their partner to always fulfill their sexual and emotional needs. When their partner
did not satisfy their unrealistic expectations—or, even worse, abandoned them—they felt as if the
world had come to an end, and became depressed, anxious, and angry. Angry sexual aggressors
had a general antisocial lifestyle that was as unstable as their self‐image. Their lives were chaotic,
and characterized by substance abuse, temper tantrums, rebelliousness, and chronic lying. As a
result of their unstable mood and lifestyle, in the year prior to their crime, the angry sexual aggres-
sors were lonely and lost their sense of self‐worth; in many cases, this was the result of the end of
an intimate relationship. Some attempted to avoid this emotional distress by working compul-
sively. However, they typically dealt with their failures by abusing drugs and alcohol, and by nur-
turing revenge fantasies against those they considered the cause of their misfortunes. Their modus
operandi was shaped by their desire for vengeance against individuals they believed to be respon-
sible for their unhappiness, and by intense anger. Moreover, alcohol and drug intoxication may
have been disinhibiting factors that intensified their anger. Their aggression stemmed from their
need for revenge, and their sexual assaults of women were coping mechanisms for their anger. No
deviant sexual fantasies shaped their modus operandi. Their attack was impulsive, the level of
violence was extreme, and in almost half of the cases they killed their victim (40%).
Sexual aggressors following the opportunistic pathway were characterized by a dramatic per-
sonality profile (narcissistic, antisocial). This profile is very similar to the psychopath profile
described by Hare (2003). They were convinced that they are superior to other people, whom
they expect to fulfill their needs and admire them. If this did not occur, they adopted a victim
stance. In addition, they believed that laws and societal rules are unfounded, and consequently
felt no obligation to respect them or the people who apply them. For this type of sexual
aggressor, any obstacles to the immediate satisfaction of their needs are unfair and unaccept-
able. They therefore felt entitled to use any means necessary to achieve their goals. Manipulation,
threats, and physical coercion were all acceptable strategies (instrumental violence) for these
Theories That Explain Sexual Aggression Against Women 17
egocentric aggressors who had no empathy for others. Some opportunistic sexual aggressors
reported sexual dissatisfaction. However, since they expected to have a willing partner every
time they wanted to have sex, they were at risk of being unsatisfied sexually—although they
did in fact have an active sexual life. The modus operandi of opportunistic sexual aggressors was
not shaped by internal constraints (deviant sexual fantasies, anger). In fact, any planning they
did engage in was oriented toward having sex with a willing partner. Consequently, they did
not use weapons or physical restraints to overpower their victims. They used threats and a
minimal amount of force to obtain victim compliance; victims typically did not physically resist
and were rarely killed. Furthermore, since the opportunistic aggressors’ goal is sexual gratifica-
tion, they did not humiliate or mutilate their victims.
There is a high degree of concordance between the three offending pathways identified by
Proulx and Beauregard—sadistic, angry, and opportunistic—and the three types of sexual
aggressors against women—sadistic, pervasively angry, and opportunistic—identified by Knight
and Sims‐Knight. However, there are differences in the personality profiles of the sadistic
types. While Proulx and Beauregard’s sadistics are avoidant, dependent, and schizoid, Knight’s
are antisocial and psychopathic. Finally, Proulx and Beauregard did not define sexual nonsadis-
tic and vindictive types; they note that this may be the result of sample bias—the absence of
aggressors serving sentences shorter than 2 years in their sample. Moreover, the absence of a
vindictive type in the three‐pathway model may reflect the fact that this type is simply a variant
of the sadistic type, rather than a distinct type in itself. This hypothesis is supported by research
following the initial development of the MTC:R indicating that Knight and Prentky’s vindic-
tive and sadistic types in fact share several characteristics (Knight, 2010).
Conclusions
Over the past 40 years, theories and empirical studies have suggested and demonstrated that a
variety of problematic characteristics should be taken into account in order to explain what
drives some men to sexually assault a woman. The most important of these characteristics are
neuropsychological deficits, deviant sexual preferences, lack of empathy, cognitive distortions,
and relationship problems. Furthermore, it has been suggested that these problematic charac-
teristics are the products of interactions between distal factors (genetic and social–environment
characteristics), and favor sexual aggression when associated with contextual (stressful life event)
or situational (consumption of alcohol, deviant pornography) proximal factors. Thus, sexual
aggression against women is an inappropriate behavior with a multifactorial origin and prob-
lematic characteristics that are in most cases not specific to sexual aggressors against women.
Many comparative studies have been carried out to identify the distinctive characteristics of
sexual aggressors against women. Overall, the results indicate that sexual aggressors against
women differ to some extent from noncriminals, particularly with regard to neuropsychological
performance, antisociality, assertiveness, and attachment style. They also differ from sexual
aggressors against children, particularly with regard to neuropsychological performance,
empathy, antisociality, attachment style, cognitive distortions, loneliness, intimacy deficits, anx-
iety and stress, and self‐image. But the results also indicate that sexual aggressors against women
and nonsexual offenders are more similar than different, particularly with regard to neuropsy-
chological performance, empathy, antisociality, attachment style, social skills, perception and
evaluation of, and investment in, intimate relationships (Table 1.1). Consequently, sexual aggres-
sion against women appears to be more related to general deviance than to sexual deviance.
18 Jonathan James and Jean Proulx
— = Similar.
X = Different.
Blank cells indicate that no results are available.
The importance of sexual deviance in the pathway to sexual aggression against women is
controversial. First, deviant sexual preferences appear to be one of the main differences bet-
ween sexual and nonsexual aggressors against women; more specifically, the former respond
more strongly than the latter to rape stimuli. However, as discussed above, not all sexual
aggressors against women have deviant sexual preferences. This finding appears to be validated
by etiological models of sexual aggression against women, which demonstrate that sexual devi-
ance is not part of every pathway to this phenomenon, and that pathways characterized by
general deviance better explain it. These results have clarified a debate based on a dichotomous
vision of sexual aggressors against women: are they generalists or specialists? The results of
typological and developmental studies of sexual aggressors of women indicate that conceptu-
alizing the problem in these terms is a sterile exercise. As Knight (2010, p. 18) points out,
“sexual coercion against women is a serious crime that is committed for a variety of reasons by
a heterogenous group of offenders.” It turns out, not surprisingly, that once the heterogeneity
of sexual aggressors against women is taken into account, general deviance tends to charac-
terize the life course of some aggressors (pervasively angry, opportunistic, vindictive) and sexual
deviance the life course of others (sadistic, sexual nonsadistic).
Our comprehension of the phenomenon of sexual aggression against women has improved in
recent decades, thanks in large part to comparative studies and the development of typologies
and pathways. This research has revealed that sexual aggression is a complex, polymorphic
phenomenon, that sexual aggressors do not appear to be fundamentally different from other
members of their community, and that not all sexual aggressors are the same. Future studies
should take into account the heterogeneity of sexual aggressors, and propose more accurate
longitudinal models. More longitudinal studies are required to clarify what drives an individual
to follow a pathway leading to the sexual assault of a woman. Finally, consideration of biological
factors should allow clarification of developmental pathways and the types of sexual aggressors.
Theories That Explain Sexual Aggression Against Women 19
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2
Theories That Explain the Sexual
Abuse of Children
Beth Dangerfield*, Gaye Ildeniz*, and Caoilte Ó Ciardha
Centre of Research and Education in Forensic Psychology, School
of Psychology, University of Kent, Canterbury, U.K.
Introduction
In this chapter, we summarize single‐factor and multifactorial theories that seek to explain the
sexual abuse of children, and outline, where available, empirical evidence that tests these the-
ories. Specifically, we examine theories that may explain contact sexual offending against chil-
dren. Other chapters in this book deal with noncontact offenses or online offending (see
Chapters 21 and 18, this volume). Space does not permit us to comprehensively evaluate each
theory. Instead, we summarize theories and the empirical findings relevant to their evaluation,
and signpost useful sources. For readers requiring a more in‐depth examination of single‐ and
multifactorial theories of sexual offending, we recommend Ward, Polaschek, and Beech (2006)
and Beech and Ward (2017). Additionally, much of the literature we review focuses most
directly on male perpetration. For readers interested in theories of female sexual offending
against children we suggest Gannon and Cortoni (2010).
Ward and Hudson (1998) outlined a meta‐theoretical framework for the classification of
different levels of theory in the domain of sexual offending. According to their classification,
level I (multifactorial) theories include comprehensive explanations of sexual offending; level
II (single‐factor) theories examine a specific factor that is thought to have a role in explaining
sexual offending; and, finally, level III (micro‐level) theories are descriptive models of the
offense chain. In this chapter, we focus on the first two levels of theory—multifactorial and
single‐factor. For a review of level III theories, see Proulx, Beauregard, Lussier, and Leclerc
(2014). Within the literature on sexual offending, single factors have undergone considerably
more empirical testing than multifactorial theories. Indeed, there have been very few studies
that pit the assertions of one multifactorial model or theory against another (Nunes &
Hermann, 2016). Instead, the evidence base for multifactorial theories is mostly the same as
single factors. In other words, we can be more confident of the individual constructs that
* Denotes shared first‐authorship. The order of the first two authors is alphabetical.
The Wiley Handbook of What Works with Sexual Offenders: Contemporary Perspectives in Theory, Assessment, Treatment,
and Prevention, First Edition. Edited by Jean Proulx, Franca Cortoni, Leam A. Craig, and Elizabeth J. Letourneau.
© 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Published 2020 by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
24 Beth Dangerfield, Gaye Ildeniz, and Caoilte Ó Ciardha
appear to be causally related to sexual offending against children than the exact relationships
of these factors to one another, or what the typical etiological pathways through these are.
Single‐Factor Theories
that may include genetic predisposition, pre/perinatal conditions, trauma impacting sexual
development, and the neurodevelopmental consequences of any or all of these factors.