An examination of the bases of two influential sets of publications suggests that their conclusions regarding the effectiveness of treatment with sex offenders were unnecessarily gloomy. The present article presents a more optimistic view of the literature, asserting that recent, relatively well-controlled evaluations have shown that treatment can be effective. To be maximally effective, according to this appraisal of the literature, treatment must be comprehensive, cognitive-behaviorally based, and include a relapse prevention component. Earlier outcome research that produced either treatment failure, or at best equivocal results, did not meet these criteria.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Abel, G. G. (1989). Behavioral treatment of child molesters. In A. J. Stunkard & A. Baum (Eds.), Perspectives on behavioral medicine (pp. 223-242). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
2.
Abel, G. G. , Levis, D. J., & Clancy, J. (1970). Aversion therapy applied to taped sequences of deviant behavior in exhibitionism and other sexual deviations: A preliminary report. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 1, 59-66.
3.
Abel G. G. , Mittelman, M. S., Becker, J. V., Rathner, J., & Rouleau, J. L. (1988). Predicting child molesters' response to treatment. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 528, 223-234.
4.
Abel, G. G. , & Rouleau, J. L. (1990). Male sex offenders. In M. E. Thase, B. A. Edelstein, & M. Hersen (Eds.), Handbook of outpatient treatment of adults (pp. 271-290). New York: Plenum.
5.
Davidson, P. (1979, May). Recidivism in sex offenders: Who are the bad risks? Paper presented at the Second National Conference on the Evaluation and Treatment of Sexual Aggressors, New York.
6.
Davidson, P. (1984, March). Outcome data for a penitentiary-based treatment program for sex offenders. Paper presented at the Conference on the Assessment and Treatment of the Sex Offender, Kingston, Ontario.
7.
Dix, G. E. (1976). Determining the continued dangerousness of psychologically abnormal sex offenders. Journal of Psychiatry and the Law, 3, 327-344.
8.
Freeman-Longo, R. E. , & Wall, R. V. (1986). Changing a lifetime of sexual crime. Psychology Today, 20, 58-64.
9.
Frisbie, L. V. (1969). Another look at sex offenders in California (Mental Health Research Monograph No. 12). Sacramento: State of California.
10.
Furby, L. , Weinrott, M. R., & Blackshaw, L. (1989). Sex offenders recidivism: A review. Psychological Bulletin, 105, 3-30.
11.
Gordon, A. (1989). Research on sex offenders: Regional Psychiatric Centre (Prairies). Forum on Corrections Research, 1, 20-21.
12.
Hackett, T. P. (1971). The psychotherapy of exhibitionists in a court clinic setting. Seminars in Psychiatry, 3, 297-306.
13.
Hall, G.C.N. , & Proctor, W. C. (1986, February). Criminological predictors of recidivism in a sex offender population. Paper presented at the National Institute of Mental Health Conference on the Assessment and Treatment of Sex Offenders, Tampa, FL.
14.
J. J. Peters Institute . (1980). A ten-year follow-up of sex offender recidivism. Philadelphia: Author.
15.
Knight, R. A. , & Prentky, R. A. (1990). Classifying sex offenders: The development and corroboration of taxonomic models. In W. L. Marshall, D. R. Laws, & H. E. Barbaree (Eds.), Handbook of sexual assault: Issues, theories, and treatment of the offender (pp. 23-52). New York: Plenum.
16.
Langevin, R. , Paitich, D., Hucker, S., Newman, S., Ramsay, G., Pope, S., Geller, G., & Anderson, C. (1979). The effect of assertiveness training, provera and sex of therapist in the treatment of genital exhibitionism. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 10, 275-282.
17.
Laws, D. R. (1989). Relapse prevention with sex offenders. New York: Guilford.
18.
Laws, D. R. , & Marshall, W. L. (1991). Masturbatory reconditioning with sexual deviants: An evaluative review. Advances in Behaviour Research and Therapy, 13, 13-25.
19.
Leger, J-G. (1989). Research on sex offenders: Regional Treatment Centre (Ontario). Forum on Corrections Research, 1, 21.
20.
Maletzky, B. M. (1980a). Assisted covert sensitization. In D. J. Cox & R. J. Daitzman (Eds.), Exhibitionism: Description, assessment and treatment (pp. 187-251). New York: Garland.
21.
Maletzky, B. M. (1980b). Self-referred versus court-referred sexually deviant patients: Success with assisted covert sensitization. Behavior Therapy, 11, 306-314.
22.
Maletzky, B. M. (1991). Treating the sex offender. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
23.
Marques, J. K. (1991, November). Outcome data from California's treatment program. Paper presented at the Tenth Annual Research and Treatment Conference of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers, Fort Worth, TX.
24.
Marques, J. K. , Day, D. M., Nelson, C., & West, M. A. (1993). Findings and recommendations from California's experimental treatment program. In G.C.N. Hall, R. Hirschman, J. R. Graham, & M. S. Zaragoza (Eds.), Sexual aggression: Issues in etiology, assessment and treatment (pp. 197-214). Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
25.
Marshall, W. L. (1971) A combined treatment method for certain sexual deviations. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 9, 292-294.
26.
Marshall, W. L. (1973). The modification of sexual fantasies: A combined treatment approach to the reduction of deviant sexual behavior. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 11, 557-564.
27.
Marshall, W. L. (1993). A revised approach to the treatment of men who sexually assault adult females. In G.C.N. Hall, R. Hirschman, J. R. Graham, & M. S. Zaragoza (Eds.), Sexual aggression: Issues in etiology, assessment and treatment (pp. 143-165). Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
28.
Marshall, W. L. , & Barbaree, H. E. (1988). The long-term evaluation of a behavioral treatment program for child molesters. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 26, 499-511.
29.
Marshall, W. L. , & Barbaree, H. E. (1990). Outcome of comprehensive cognitive-behavioral treatment programs. In W. L. Marshall, D. R. Laws, & H. E. Barbaree (Eds.), Handbook of sexual assault: Issues, theories, and treatment of the offender (pp. 363-385). New York: Plenum.
30.
Marshall, W. L. , Earls, C. M., Segal, Z. V., & Darke, J. L. (1983). A behavioral program for the assessment and treatment of sexual aggressors. In K. Craig & R. McMahon (Eds.), Advances in clinical behavior therapy (pp. 148-174). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
31.
Marshall, W. L. , & Eccles, A. (1993). Pavlovian conditioning processes in adolescent sex offenders. In H. E. Barbaree, W. L. Marshall, & S. M. Hudson (Eds.), Juvenile sex offending (pp. 118-142). New York: Guilford.
32.
Marshall, W. L. , Eccles, A., & Barbaree, H. E. (1991). Treatment of exhibitionists: A focus on sexual deviance versus cognitive and relationship features. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 29, 129-135.
33.
Marshall, W. L. , Hudson, S. M., & Ward, T. (1992). Sexual deviance. In P. H. Wilson (Ed.), Principles and practice of relapse prevention (pp. 235-254). New York: Guilford.
34.
Marshall, W. L. , Jones, R., Ward, T., Johnston, P., & Barbaree, H. E. (1991). Treatment outcome with sex offenders. Clinical Psychology Review, 11, 465-485.
35.
Marshall, W. L. , Ward, T., Johnston, P., Jones, R., & Barbaree, H. E. (1991, March). An optimistic evaluation of treatment outcome with sex offenders. Violence Update, pp. 1-8.
36.
Marshall, W. L. , & Williams, S. (1975). A behavioral approach to the modification of rape. Quarterly Bulletin of the British Association for Behavioral Psychotherapy, 4, 78.
37.
Pacht, A. R. , Halleck, S. L., & Ehrmann, J. C. (1962). Diagnosis and treatment of the sexual offender: A nine-year study. American Journal of Psychiatry, 118, 802-808.
38.
Pacht, A. R. , & Roberts, L. M. (1968). Factors related to parole experience of the sexual offender: A nine-year study. Journal of Correctional Psychology, 3, 8-9.
39.
Peters, J. J. , & Roether, H. A. (1971). Success and failure of sex offenders, Philadelphia: American Association for the Advancement of Science.
40.
Pithers, W. D. (1990). Relapse prevention with sexual aggressors: A method for maintaining therapeutic change and enhancing external supervision. In W. L. Marshall, D. R. Laws, & H. E. Barbaree (Eds.), The handbook of sexual assault: Issues, theories, and treatment of the offender (pp. 343-361). New York: Plenum.
41.
Pithers, W. D. (1993). Considerations in the treatment of rapists. In G.C.N. Hall, R. Hirschman, J. R. Graham, & M. S. Zaragoza (Eds.), Sexual aggression: Issues in etiology, assessment and treatment (pp. 167-196). Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
42.
Pithers, W. D. , & Cumming, G. F. (1989). Can relapses be prevented? Initial outcome data from the Vermont Treatment Program for Sexual Aggressors. In D. R. Laws (Ed.), Relapse prevention with sex offenders (pp. 313-325). New York: Guilford.
43.
Pithers, W. D. , Cumming, G. F., Beal, L. S., Young, W., & Turner, R. (1989). Relapse prevention. In B. Schwartz (Ed.), Sex offenders: Issues in treatment (pp. 123-140). Washington, DC: National Institute of Corrections.
44.
Prendergast, W. E. (1978). ROARE: Re-education of attitudes (and) repressed emotions. Avenel, NJ: Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center Intensive Group Therapy Program.
45.
Quinsey, V. L. , Chaplin, T. C., & Carrigan, W. F. (1980). Biofeedback and signalled punishment in the modification of inappropriate sexual age preferences. Behavior Therapy, 11, 567-576.
46.
Quinsey, V. L. , Chaplin, T. C., Maguire, A., & Upfold, D. (1987). The behavioral treatment of rapists and child molesters. In E. K. Morris & C.J. Brankman (Eds.), Behavioral approaches to crime and delinquency: A handbook of applications, research, and concepts (pp. 363-382). New York: Plenum.
47.
Quinsey, V. L. , Harris, G. T., Rice, M. E., & Lalumière, M. L. (1993). Assessing treatment efficacy in outcome studies of sex offenders. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 8, 512-523.
48.
Quinsey, V. L. , & Marshall, W. L. (1983). Procedures for reducing inappropriate sexual arousal: An evaluation review. In J. G. Greer & I. R. Stuart (Eds.), The sexual aggressor: Current perspectives on treatment (pp. 267-289). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
49.
Rice, M. E. , Harris, G. T., & Quinsey, V. L. (in press). Evaluating treatment programs for child molesters. In J. Hudson & I. V. Roberts (Eds.), Evaluation research in Canadian Justice programs. Calgary: University of Calgary Press.
50.
Rice, M. E. , Quinsey, V. L., & Harris, G. T. (1991). Sexual recidivism among child molesters released from a maximum security psychiatric institution. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 59, 381-386.
51.
Saylor, M. (1979, December). A guided self-help approach to treatment of the habitual sex offender. Paper presented at the 12th Cropwood Conference, Cambridge, England.
52.
Serrill, M. S. (1974). Treating sex offenders in New Jersey: The ROARE program. Corrections, 1, 18-24.
