This article provides a summary of current assessment and treatment approac
hes in North America. With the advent of cognitive behavioral therapy in th
e early 1970s, programs for sexual offenders became more empirically based.
Through the subsequent years, there has been both a proliferation of progr
ams and an expansion in the range of assessment and treatment targets. Alth
ough there is some diversity, the following issues are the most commonly ad
dressed: a life history revealing the origins of current problems; sexual f
unctioning, including both appropriate and deviant activities and fantasies
; empathy; cognitive distortions and dysfunctional attitudes; social and re
lationship skills; self-esteem; substance use and abuse; and anger: Assessm
ent procedures include interviews, psychological tests, and phallometry. Tr
eatment is typically conducted in groups within a relapse prevention framew
ork. Fortunately these processes seem to reduce recidivism.