Pedophilia “love of children”
By: Shayna Levenson
Textbook Definition
Pedophilia is a psychosexual illness and paraphilia that is associated with the thought or act of having sexual relations with children who usually have not yet reached puberty as an adult
What is a pedophile? common misconceptions
NOT ALL PEDOPHILES ARE CHILD MOLESTERS-> a pedophile can simply have desires for children they do not act on, while child molesters have committed a crime against the law by engaging in sexual activities with children
NOT ALL PEDOPHILES ARE MEN-> society is less likely to chastise women for being technical pedophiles because it is seen as more consentual or a right of passage for the abused male
PEDOPHILES ARE NOT GENERALLY VIOLENT-> few brutally rape or kill their victims but rather lure them in
Severity of Acts
There is a wide range of acts a pedophile can commit ranging in the harm caused to the child
For example, it can be as innocent as petting the child’s hair
Then there is masturbating while holding the child or encouraging the child to touch his own genitals
The more extreme end of the spectrum is anal, oral, or vaginal penetration
What causes the nature of a pedophile? (nature)
The most popular theory involves males having an excess of the testosterone hormone causing odd sexual behaviors
Pedophilia is often linked with impulse control disorders such as OCD, and it is general knowledge that low serotonin levels cause such diseases-> a pattern of low serotonin is found in pedophiles
What causes the nature of a pedophile? (nurture)
Environment plays a key role pertaining to why an individual may be more likely to become a pedophile
A popular theory is the “victim to abuser” cycle-> in this case the pedophile is often abused or assaulted as a child and then as an effort to gain back control and a new identity, becomes the abuser
Pedophiles in society
Hard to measure pedophiles in society because the only known ones are those criminally convicted
Often pedophiles are known to have personality disorders
Among the most common are narcissism, sociopathic, and anti-social personality disorders
Studies have shown pedophiles have a predominantly lower intelligence level and are largely left-handed
Pharmacological Treatment
Main goal of the pharmaceuticals are to suppress levels of testosterone, therefore, lowering urges and desires towards children
Drawback is the drugs are very expensive ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 dollars a year
Also take three to ten months to actually kick in
Psychotherapy
Both group and individual therapy is employed
Main goal is to prevent further child molestations in the future than to “cure” the person of their pedophilia-> decrease urges
Steps to Therapy
Step 1: have patient realize his distortions and denial regarding the children-> have them stop making excuses for what happened
Step 2: empathy training
Step 3: training to control any sexual urges or impulses
Step 4: training to prevent any relapses
Castration
In extreme cases, some pedophiles will opt for castration-> surgical removal of the testicles so no sperm can be created
The problem is the pedophile can take hormones and molest a child again so it doesn’t correctly stop the urges
Overview of Treatment
A pedophile has to want to control his urges in order for any type of therapy to work
The importance is not to change the ways of the pedophile but protect any future children from being molested
Most affective way to treat pedophile is to combine pharmacological drugs with psychotherapy
Video
http://www.bizarro.us/sick/pedophile_gives_interview.html