THE PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF SEX OFFENDERS - DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EXHIBITIONISTS, CHILD MOLESTERS, AND INCEST OFFENDERS

A number of studies have shown that there are differences between how offenders who have committed different crimes perform in therapy. This article aims to shed some light on these differences by exploring dif ferences in the psychosocial development of exhibitionists, extra-fami lial child molesters, and incest offenders. Eighty-one men completed t he Measures of Psychosocial Development at intake into an outpatient s ex offender treatment program. Profile analysis indicated that exhibit ionists tended to have issues of trust, shame, and immediate gratifica tion, which were similar to those experienced by extra-familial child molesters. Incest offenders showed consistently higher levels of devel opment than the other two groups. These findings have implications for the ability offenders to develop therapeutic alliances, the intervent ion strategies that would be effective, and the ultimate effects of th ose interventions.