NCJ Number
218576
Journal
Aggression and Violent Behavior: A Review Journal Volume: 12 Issue: 4 Dated: July-August 2007 Pages: 427-438
Date Published
July 2007
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This review screened research literature for reliable markers or risk factors for predicting the sexual recidivism of adolescent sexual offenders.
Abstract
Results indicate that some static or historical risk factors can be identified as linked to sexual recidivism in adolescents. These static risk factors include previous sexual offending, stranger victim, multiple victims, and childhood victimization. In terms of dynamic or changing risk factors, not much was found within the research literature, probably indicating a lack of adequate psychometric assessment tools for assessing dynamic risk among adolescent sexual offenders. Only four studies identified dynamic risk factors, which included inter- and intrapersonal functioning problems and the propensity to blame victims. The research review included systematic computer searches on PsycINFO, Medline, and the Cochrane Library. All publications examining male adolescent sexual abusers and recidivism between 1990 and 2003 among adolescents aged 12 to 21 years were included in the review. Articles excluded from review included unpublished doctoral dissertations, single case studies, studies examining drug treatment impact on recidivism, studies examining prenatal influences on sexual behavior, and studies examining exclusively female or learning disabled offenders. The publications remaining for review involved 12 studies of 1,315 juvenile sexual abusers. The authors point out that in reviewing the research literature on recidivism among adolescent sexual offenders multiple flaws were discovered in the research methodologies. There continues to be a great need for study in the area of adolescent sexual recidivism, particularly in terms of the identification of dynamic risk factors. Instruments to properly measure dynamic variables in adolescents need to be developed and evaluated for validity and reliability. Tables, figure, references