Research and Treatment of Juvenile Sexual offending from a Policy Point of View

Research and Treatment of Juvenile Sexual Offending

From a Policy Point of View

By

Yvonne K. Ray

A Paper Presented in Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements of

HS8101 Social Change and Public Policy

September 2005

191 Sidney Street

Twin Falls, Idaho 83301

208-212-5657

peewee1977@hotmail.com

Dr. Timothy Emerick

Abstract

This paper is a review of previous research conducted on juvenile sexual offending. This paper presents information concerning the research of juvenile sexual offending and the treatments available as well as recidivism. One study by Geradin and Thibaut (2004) found that in the United States, juveniles account for up to one fifth of all rapes and one half of all child molestation committed each year. The number of programs for the treatment of sexually abusive youth has increased from twenty in 1983 to over 800 in 1993. (Geradin & Thibaut, 2004)

Most times when professionals review this topic, they only produce information about male offenders. Although there is not a lot about female offending, there is enough to compare the two.

Since the enactment of Megan’s Law in 1996, each state is required to implement sex and child offender registration with community notification legislation in order to receive ten percent of federal anticrime funds.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………..3

Introduction………………………………………………………………………...4

Presentation of Literature…………………………………………………………..6

Molestation…………………………………………………………………………9

Female Offenders…………………………………………………………………..11

Treatment…………………………………………………………………………...13

Recidivism…………………………………………………………………………20

Sex Offender Registry and Megan’s Law…………………………………………22

Conclusion and Recommendations for Future Research…………………………..24

References………………………………………………………………………….26

Introduction to Research and Treatment of Juvenile Sexual Offending

Sex is everywhere today. Americans see it while channel surfing, flipping through magazines, or even on roadside billboards. Although, sex has come to define American culture, Americans still are not comfortable with speaking openly about sexuality. As early as colonial times, Christianity began to form the intellectual and social environment to perceive sex. In Colonial America, any sex outside of marriage was subject to sanction. Purification of the family and community was seen as an important goal and individuals who participated in unacceptable sexual practices were not tolerated nor accepted by society. This attitude accounted for the use of capital punishment for crimes such as forced rape and sodomy. Today’s sex offender faces a unique paradox; one hand holds the fact that American’s embrace sex, but on the other hand, condemn unacceptable sexual relations.

Until the 1980s, adolescent sex offenders received little attention from professionals within the criminal justice field. Most professionals explained their behavior as a normal experimentation or curiosity. Society’s attention was focused primarily