MAP Forum

Typologies of child sexual abusers

While the two formal diagnostic manuals are not particularly helpful in differentiating child sexual abusers, the prepared clinician can draw upon a number of classification systems to assist in developing a detailed formulation. One of the major distinctions in the majority of these typologies has been between fixated or preferential paedophiles who have a genuine sexual interest in children and those who offend for other reasons (Dietz, 1983).

Situational offences (probably not MAPs)

Those offences towards the situational end of the continuum are thought to reflect basic sexual needs such as lust, or non-sexual needs such as power or anger. Such offenders usually do not have a genuine sexual interest in children, but may molest them for a number of often complex reasons. Their offending is often impulsive and opportunistic. Three major patterns of offence behaviour have been identified at the situational end of the continuum: regressed, morally indiscriminate and inadequate.

• The regressed pattern of behaviour involves individuals who do not have a sexual preference for children, but who turn to them as a sexual substitute. This often occurs during times of stress and such offenders tend to have poor coping skills and low self-esteem. Children are chosen due to their availability. Accordingly, incest offenders can often, though certainly not always, be characterised in this fashion.
• The morally indiscriminate pattern of behaviour involves the sexual abuse of children as simply another form of antisocial behaviour in the offender’s life. A diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder, and elevated levels of psychopathic personality features, are often found in these offenders. Victims are chosen due to vulnerability and opportunity. Force, lures or manipulation may be used and the victims may be abducted. Pubescent children are thought to be particular targets of such offenders. Canter and colleagues (1998) identified a comparable pattern of behaviour that they called the ‘criminal-opportunist’. These offences were characterised by stranger victims, outdoor offences, one-off offences, offender intoxication, offender ejaculation, and vaginal penetration.
• Those who engage in the inadequate behaviour pattern include an array of withdrawn and 'unusual' individuals such as eccentric personalities, psychotic individuals, or those with an intellectual disability or senility. It is of course important to note that most people with these difficulties will not sexually abuse children. The inadequate offender does not have a sexual preference for children, but targets them because he finds them to be non-threatening. As such, these offenders may also target the elderly as well. Lanning (2010) reported that sexually-motivated child murders profiled by the FBI usually involved either the morally indiscriminate or inadequate patterns of behaviour.

Preferential offences

Those offences at the preferential end of the motivational continuum reflect deviant sexual needs, most obviously a sexual preference for children. Four major patterns of offence behaviour have been identified at the preferential end: seduction, introverted, sadistic and diverse.

• As the name suggests, the seduction pattern of behaviour characterises individuals who essentially engage with children by seducing and grooming them with affection, attention and presents. These offenders are able to identify with their victims. They know how to talk and listen to children and often target those who are neglected. Over time they gradually lower the child victim’s sexual inhibitions until they are willing to engage in sexual behaviour because of the benefits that they are receiving. Such offenders may simultaneously abuse multiple victims. If threats or physical violence are used they are likely to be instrumental in nature and are made to avoid identification or disclosure. Such offenders can abuse the same child for lengthy periods of time and may even find it difficult to get the child to leave when they age and become too old for the offender. Canter and colleagues (1998) identified a comparable behavioural pattern that they termed ‘intimate’. This was characterised by the promise of gifts, reassurance of the victim, affection, desensitisation, kissing, and the offender performing oral sex on the victim.
  The confronting nature of ‘seduction’ child sexual abusers
  Descriptions of any form of child sexual abuse are by their very nature confronting. However, this is especially the case with the seduction pattern of behaviour. The suggestion that children may willingly ‘trade’ sex with their abusers for affection or gifts can be problematic for professionals whose representation of such offending is a child who actively resists being physically forced into unwanted sexual acts. Nonetheless, it is crucial that clinicians remember that “when an adult and child have sex… the adult is always the offender and the child is always the victim” (Lanning, 2010, p. 26). Without being cognisant of this, clinicians can significantly add to the subsequent shame, guilt and embarrassment that victims of these offences can experience later in their lives.
• The introverted behavioural pattern characterises offenders who have a sexual preference for children but essentially lack the interpersonal skills required to successfully groom and seduce them. Such offenders are similar to the inadequate situational offender, but they do have deviant sexual preferences. As such, their selection of child victims is more circumscribed and predictable across multiple offences. The lack of interpersonal skills means that these offenders engage in minimal verbal communication with their victims, who are often strangers. Such offenders are more likely to attend playgrounds or other areas where children gather.
• The sadistic behavioural pattern involves offences in which the child’s response to the infliction of suffering, humiliation, or pain is sexually arousing. Essentially, these offenders would meet formal diagnostic criteria for both paedophilia and sexual sadism. Thankfully such offenders are rare. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they are more likely than other preferential offenders to abduct and murder their victims.
• The diverse behavioural pattern was previously termed ‘sexually indiscriminate’ and was initially thought to be a situational type as such offenders do not have a preferential sexual interest in children. Nonetheless, under the current motivational continuum such offences are situated toward the preferential end because their diverse offending reflects sexual deviance and they may meet criteria for several paraphilic disorders. Indeed, the facetious term ‘try-sexual’ is also used to describe such offenders because they are indiscriminate in their sexual interests and willing to try a wide variety of sexual behaviours. There is some similarity to the morally indiscriminate situational offending pattern, however the diverse offender has deviant sexual interests and is often more discriminating in their non-sexual behaviours.

Such offenders can abuse the same child for lengthy periods of time and may even find it difficult to get the child to leave when they age and become too old for the offender.