Adolescent Females Who Have Sexually Offended: Comparisons with Delinquent Adolescent Female Offenders and Adolescent Males Who Sexually Offend

• NCJ Number: 201468
• Journal: Journal of Child Sexual Abuse Volume: 11 Issue: 3 Dated: 2002 Pages: 63-83
• Author(s): Elizabeth K. Kubik; Jeffrey E. Hecker; Sue Righthand
• Date Published: 2002
• Length: 21 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study compared a group of adolescent female sexual offenders with a group of adolescent non-sexual female offenders and a group of adolescent male sexual offenders.

Abstract

Scant research has focused on adolescent female sexual offenders. The authors engaged in a two-part exploratory comparative study designed to uncover similarities and differences between female adolescent sexual offenders and adolescent non-sexual female offenders and between female adolescent sexual offenders and adolescent male sexual offenders. Participants included a group of 11 adolescent females with sexual offense histories and an age-matched group of 11 adolescent female offenders with non-sexual victim-involved criminal histories. The authors measured variables such as psychosocial and developmental characteristics, offense history, and clinical factors. Results of the first comparison revealed that the group of female sexual offenders demonstrated fewer antisocial behaviors and began their offending patterns at younger ages than their non-sexually offending counterparts. Few differences were discovered in terms of attitudes about their offending behavior. In the second half of the study, the authors compared the adolescent female sexual offenders with a group of 11 age-match male sexual offenders and found these two groups to have numerous similarities. The two groups demonstrated similarities in terms of psychosocial and criminal histories, antisocial behavior levels, and clinical presentation. One important difference between the two sexually offending groups was that the females reported experiencing more severe and pervasive abuse themselves. The results have implications for those treating sexual offenders, suggesting that treatments successful for male sexual offenders may be effective for female sexual offenders. The authors suggest that females’ history of more severe abuse calls for interventions aimed specifically at victimization. Table, references