Background data on psychosocial characteristics of sexual offenders ar
e sparse in Europe. From 67 experts' reports done between 1982 and 199
5 in Geneva, Switzerland, demographic, criminological and psychiatric
characteristics were collected for three groups of sexual offenders: o
ffenders against adults, offenders against non-relative miners (<18 yr
), and offenders against miners with incest. The results showed that t
he offenders against adults were younger (p = 0.02), more frequently s
ingle (p = 0.0007) and with a lower educational level (p = 0.05) than
the offenders against miners. Incest offenders had no prior conviction
compared with 50% of the other offenders. Violence was more often use
d by offenders against adults (86%) than by offenders against miners (
45%) (p = 0.005). About two-thirds of the sexual offenders had no psyc
hiatric history, but a personality disorder (mainly borderline) was di
agnosed in half of the offenders. A history of sexual abuse during chi
ldhood was reported by a third of the offenders against miners and by
5% of the offenders against adults (p = 0.04). It is concluded that a
low socio-economic status and social isolation characterized offenders
against adults, whereas offenders against miners had a relatively nor
mal psychosocial profile.