The Differentiation of Intrafamilial and Extrafamilial Heterosexual Child Molesters

Abstract

It is unclear whether intrafamilial and extrafamilial child molesters differ in their sexual interest toward children and adults. Some authors have reported that both intrafamilial and extrafamilial offenders show sexual interest in children; others have found that intrafamilial offenders evidence little interest in children. The authors compared the phallometrically measured sexual interests of 19 intrafamilial heterosexual child molesters, 20 extrafamilial heterosexual child molesters, and 18 heterosexual nonoffender men recruited from the community. Stimuli consisted of 27 audiotapes describing either consensual sex with an adult partner, sexual contacts with a child using different degrees of force and violence, nonsexual aggression against a child, and neutral interactions. Nonoffenders showed a clear preference for adult stimuli; intrafamilial and extrafamilial child molesters did not discriminate between the adult and child categories and showed very similar arousal patterns.