CAUSAL ATTRIBUTIONS FOR CRIMINAL OFFENDING AND SEXUAL AROUSAL - COMPARISON OF CHILD SEX OFFENDERS WITH OTHER OFFENDERS

Causal attributions for their offending, and for sexual arousal and se xual behaviour, were investigated for 50 males convicted of child sex offences. These attributions were compared with those obtained from 15 0 males convicted of one of three other criminal offences: rape, prope rty offences and violent offences against persons. In semi-structured interviews, the Offence and Sexual Arousal and Behaviour Attribution Q uestionnaires were administered. Offenders offered causal attributions for their offending and for their sexual arousal, and they rated thes e causes on attribution dimensions. Results showed that child sex offe nders attributed both their offending and their sexual arousal to inte rnal, stable and uncontrollable causes. Rapists and property offenders attributed their offending behaviour to external, stable and uncontro llable causes; and violent offenders to internal, stable and uncontrol lable causes. In contrast to child sex offenders, the other three grou ps all attributed their sexual arousal and sexual behaviour to externa l, unstable and controllable causes. The findings are discussed in ter ms of their implications for intervention programmes.