Juveniles Who Sexually Offend: Recommending a Treatment Program and Level of Care

Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America

Volumn 20, Issue 3, 2011, Pages 413-429

  Dwyer, R Gregg ^a   Letourneau, Elizabeth J ^a  

^a MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA   (United States)

Author keywords

Evaluation; Juveniles; Risk assessment; Sexual offending; Treatment

Indexed keywords

ADOLESCENT; BEHAVIOR THERAPY; CHILD; CHILD CARE; CHILD DEVELOPMENT; CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE; COGNITIVE THERAPY; FAMILY; HEALTH CARE NEED; HEALTH PROGRAM; HUMAN; INTERVIEW; MENTAL HEALTH CARE; PRACTICE GUIDELINE; PRIORITY JOURNAL; PSYCHOLOGIC ASSESSMENT; PSYCHOLOGIC TEST; RECURRENCE RISK; REVIEW; RISK ASSESSMENT; RISK FACTOR; SEXUAL BEHAVIOR; SEXUAL CRIME;

ADOLESCENT; ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER; CHILD; CHILD ABUSE, SEXUAL; COGNITIVE THERAPY; COMBINED MODALITY THERAPY; EDUCATION; FAMILY THERAPY; FEMALE; FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY; HUMANS; JUVENILE DELINQUENCY; MALE; MINORS; PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT; RAPE; SEX OFFENSES; UNITED STATES;

EID: 79959230231     PISSN: 10564993     EISSN: 15580490     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.chc.2011.03.007     Document Type: Review

References (77)

1. United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. Criminal victimization in the United States, 2005 statistical tables. Washington DC; December 2006. Report No. NCJ 215244.
2. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation Crime in the United States, 2008 Available at:, Accessed January 22, 2010. http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2008/about/index.html.
3. Snyder H.N. Sexual assault of young children as reported to law enforcement: victim, incident, and offender characteristics. NCJ 182990 2000, Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice, Washington, DC, p. 1-14.
4. Finkelhor D., Ormrod R., Chaffin M. Juveniles who commit sex offenses against minors, NCJ 227763 2009, US Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Washington, DC, p. 1-11.
5. National Adolescent Perpetrators Network (NAPN) The revised report from the National Task Force on Juvenile Sexual Offending. Juv Fam Court J 1993, 44:5-91.
6. McGrath R., Cumming G., Burchard B., et al. Current practices and emerging trends in sexual abuser management: the Safer Society 2009 North American Survey 2010, Safer Society Press, Brandon (VT).
7. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Practice parameters for the assessment and treatment of children and adolescents who are sexually abusive of others. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1999, 38(Suppl 12):55S-76S.
8. Becker J.V. Offenders: characteristics and treatment. Future Child 1994, 4(2):176-197.
9. Hanson R.K., Bourgon G., Helmus L., et al. A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of treatment for sexual offenders: risk, need and responsivity. Public Safety Canada Available at:, Accessed April 13, 2011. http://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/res/cor/rep/_fl/2009-01-trt-so-eng.pdf.
10. Beech A., Fisher D., Beckett R. Step 3: An evaluation of the Prison Sex Offender Treatment Programme: a report for the Home Office by the STEP team 1998, Home Office Information Publications Group, London, Available at:, Accessed April 13, 2011. http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/occ-step3.pdf.
11. Loeber R., Farrington D.P., Stouthamer-Loeber M., et al. Antisocial behavior and mental health problems. Explanatory factors in childhood and adolescence 1998, Lawrence Erlbaum, London.
12. Elliott D.S. Serious violent offenders: onset, developmental course, and termination - The American Society of Criminology 1993 President Address. Criminology 1994, 32:1-21.
13. Henggeler S.W. The development of effective drug abuse services for youth. Treating drug abusers effectively 1997, 253-279. Blackwell, New York. J.A. Egertson, D.M. Fox, A.I. Leshner (Eds.).
14. Huizinga D. Developmental sequences in delinquency: dynamic typologies. Pathways through adolescence 1995, 15-34. Lawrence Erlbaum, Mahwah (NJ). L.J. Crockett, A.C. Crouter (Eds.).
15. Loeber R., Keenan K., Zhang Q. Boys' experimentation and persistence in developmental pathways toward serious delinquency. J Child Fam Stud 1997, 6:321-357.
16. Schoenwald S.K., Rowland M.D. Multisystemic therapy. Community treatment for youth: evidence-based interventions for severe emotional and behavioral disorders 2002, 91-116. Oxford University Press, New York. B.J. Burns, K. Hoagwood (Eds.).
17. van Wijk A., Loeber R., Vermeiren R., et al. Violent juvenile sex offenders compared with violent juvenile nonsex offenders: explorative findings from the Pittsburgh Youth Study. Sex Abuse 2005, 17:333-352.
18. Seto M.C., Lalumière M.L. What is so special about male adolescent sexual offending? A review and test of explanations through meta-analysis. Psychol Bull 2010, 136:526-575.
19. Saleh F.M., Vincent G.M. Juveniles who commit sex crimes. Adolesc Psychiatry 2004, 28:183-207.
20. Cantor J.M., Kuban M.E., Blak T., et al. Physical height in pedophilic and hebephilic sexual offenders. Sex Abuse 2007, 19:395-408.
21. Lane S. Assessment of sexually abusive youth. Juvenile sexual offending causes, consequences, and correction 1997, 219-263. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco (CA). G. Ryan, S. Lane (Eds.).
22. Letourneau EJ. Guilt-phase testimony. The Forum 2003;15(3).
23. Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers Practice standards and guidelines for members of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers 2005, Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers, Beaverton (OR).
24. Worling J.R. Adolescent sexual offender treatment at the SAFE-T program. Sourcebook of treatment programs for sexual offenders 1998, 353-366. Plenum Press, New York. W.L. Marshall, Y.M. Fernandez, S.M. Hudson (Eds.).
25. Saunders E.B., Awad G.A. Assessment, management, and treatment planning for male adolescent sexual offenders. Am J Orthopsychiatry 1988, 58(4):571-579.
26. Rich P. Understanding, assessing, and rehabilitating juvenile sexual offenders 2003, John Wiley, Hoboken (NJ).
27. O'Reilly G., Carr A. The clinical assessment of young people with sexually abusive behaviour. The handbook of clinical intervention with young people who sexually abuse 2004, 163-190. Brunner-Routledge, New York. G. O'Reilly, W.L. Marshall, A. Carr (Eds.).
28. Achenbach T.M. Youth self-report 1995, University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, and Families, Burlington (VT).
29. Achenbach T.M. Child behavior checklist for ages 6 to 18 2001, University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, and Families, Burlington (VT).
30. Rescorla L.A., Achenbach T.M. The Achenbach system of empirically based assessment (ASEBA) for ages 18 to 90 years. The use of psychological testing for treatment planning and outcomes assessment 2004, vol. 3:115-152. Instruments for adults, Lawrence Erlbaum, Mahwah (NJ). 3rd edition. M.E. Maruish (Ed.).
31. Elliott D.S., Huizinga D., Ageton S.S. Explaining delinquency and drug use 1985, Sage, Beverly Hills (CA).
32. Thornberry T.P., Krohn M.D. The self-report method for measuring delinquency and crime. Crim Justice 2000, 4:33-83.
33. Becker J.V., Kaplan M.S. The assessment of adolescent sexual offenders. Advances in behavioral assessment of children and families 1988, 97-118. JAI Press, Greenwich (CT). R.J. Prinz (Ed.).
34. Hunter J.A., Becker J.V., Kaplan M.S. The Adolescent Sexual Interest Card Sort: test-retest reliability and concurrent validity in relation to phallometric assessment. Arch Sex Behav 1995, 24:555-561.
35. Nichols H.R., Molinder I. Multiphasic sex inventory ii - adolescent male version Available at:, Accessed April 13, 2011. http://www.nicholsandmolinder.com/sex-offender-assessment-msi-ii-jm.php.
36. Friedrich W.N., Lysne M., Sim L., et al. Assessing sexual behavior in high-risk adolescents with the Adolescent Clinical Sexual Behavior Inventory (ACSBI). Child Maltreat 2004, 9(3):239-250.
37. Wherry J.N., Berres A.K., Sim L., et al. Factor structure of the Adolescent Clinical Sexual Behavior Inventory. J Child Sex Abus 2009, 18(3):233-246.
38. Briere J.N. Child abuse trauma: theory and treatment of the lasting effects 1992, Sage, Newbury Park (CA).
39. Wolfe V.V., Gentile C., Michienzi T., et al. The Children's Impact of Traumatic Events Scale: a measure of post-sexual abuse PTSD symptoms. Behav Assess 1991, 13:359-383.
40. Fischer L., Smith G. Statistical adequacy of the Abel Assessment for Interest in Paraphilias. Sex Abuse 1999, 11(3):195-205.
41. Abel G.G., Jordan A., Rouleau J.L., et al. Use of visual reaction time to assess male adolescents who molest children. Sex Abuse 2004, 16(3):255-265.
42. Worling J. Assessing sexual arousal with adolescent males who have offended sexually: self-report and unobtrusively measured viewing time. Sex Abuse 2006, 18(4):383-400.
43. Fanniff A.M., Becker J.V. Specialized assessment and treatment of adolescent sex offenders. Aggression and Violent Behavior 2006, 11:265-282.
44. Marshall W.L., Fernandez Y.M. Phallometric testing with sexual offenders: theory, research, and practice 2003, Safer Society Press, Brandon (VT).
45. Coric V., Feuerstein S., Fortunati F., et al. Assessing sex offenders. Psychiatry 2005, 2(11):26-29.
46. Henggeler S.W., Schoenwald S.K., Borduin C.M., et al. Multisystemic treatment of antisocial behavior in children and adolescents 2009, Guilford Press, New York. 2nd edition.
47. Clift R.J., Rajlic G., Gretton H.M. Discriminative and predictive validity of penile plethysmograph in adolescent sex offenders. Sex Abuse 2009, 21:335-362.
48. Seto M.C., Lalumiere M.L., Blanchard R. The discriminate validity of a phallometric test for pedophilic interests among adolescent sex offenders against children. Psychol Assess 2000, 12(3):319-327.
49. Hindman J., Peters J.M. Polygraph testing leads to better understanding adult and juvenile sex offenders. Fed Probat 2001, l65:8-15.
50. Grubin D., Madsen L., Parsons S., et al. A prospective study of the impact of the polygraphy on high risk behaviours in adult sex offenders. Sex Abuse 2004, 16:209-222.
51. Emerick R.L., Dutton W.A. The effect of polygraphy on the self report of adolescent sex offenders: implications for risk assessment. Sex Abuse 1993, 6:83-103.
52. National Research Council of the National Academies The polygraph and lie detection 2003, The National Academies Press, Washington, DC.
53. Rajlic G., Gretton H.M. An examination of two sexual recidivism risk measures in adolescent offenders. Crim Justice Behav 2010, 37:1066-1085.
54. Viljoen J.L., Elkovitch N., Scalora M.J., et al. Assessment of reoffense risk in adolescents who have committed sexual offenses: predictive validity of the ERASOR, PCL: YV, YLS/CMI, and Static-99. Crim Justice Behav 2009, 36:981-1000.
55. Worling J.R., Curwen T. Adolescent sexual offender recidivism: success of specialized treatment and implications for risk prediction. Child Abuse Negl 2001, 24:965-982.
56. Prentky R.A., Nien-Chen L., Righthand S., et al. Assessing risk of sexually abusive behavior among youth in a child welfare sample. Behav Sci Law 2010, 28:24-45.
57. Worling J.R. The Estimate of Risk of Adolescent Sexual Offense Recidivism (ERASOR): preliminary psychometric data. Sex Abuse 2004, 16:235-254.
58. Viljoen J.L., Scalora M., Cuadra L., et al. Assessing risk for violence in adolescents who have sexually offended a comparison of the J-SOAP-II, J-SORRAT-II, and SAVRY. Crim Justice Behav 2008, 35:5-23.
59. Martinez R., Flores J., Rosenfeld B. Validity of the Juvenile Sex Offender Assessment Protocol-II (J-SOAP-II) in a sample of urban minority youth. Crim Justice Behav 2007, 34:1284-1295.
60. Parks G.A., Bard D.E. Risk factors for adolescent sex offender recidivism: evaluation of predictive factors and comparison of three groups based upon victim type. Sex Abuse 2006, 18:319-342.
61. Caldwell M., Ziemke M., Vitacco M. An examination of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act as applied to juveniles: evaluating the ability to predict sexual recidivism. Psychol Public Pol L 2008, 14:89-114.
62. Letourneau E.J., Armstrong K.S. Recidivism rates for registered and nonregistered juvenile sexual offenders. Sex Abuse 2008, 20:393-408.
63. Letourneau E.J., Bandyopadhyay D., Sinha D., et al. The influence of sex offender registration on juvenile sexual recidivism. Crim Justice Policy Rev 2009, 20:136-153.
64. McGrath R.J., Cumming G.F., Burchard B.L. Current practices and trends in sexual abuser management: the Safer Society 2002 nationwide survey 2003, Safer Society Press, Brandon (VT).
65. Worling J.R., Litteljohn A., Bookalam D. 20-year prospective follow-up study of specialized treatment for adolescents who offended sexually. Behav Sci Law 2010, 28:46-57.
66. Henggeler S.W., Schoenwald S.K., Borduin C.M., et al. Multisystemic treatment of antisocial behavior in children and adolescents 1998, Guilford Press, New York.
67. Schoenwald S.K., Henggeler S.W., Brondino M.J., et al. Multisystemic therapy: monitoring treatment fidelity. Fam Process 2000, 39:83-103.
68. Letourneau E.J., Borduin C.M., Schaeffer C.M. Multisystemic therapy for youth with problem sexual behaviors. Assessment and treatment of sexual offenders: a handbook 2008, 453-472. John Wiley, London. A. Beech, L. Craig, K. Browne (Eds.).
69. Henggeler S.W., Letourneau E.J., Chapman J.E., et al. Mediators of change for multisystemic therapy with juvenile sexual offenders. J Consult Clin Psychol 2009, 77:451-462.
70. Borduin C.M., Henggeler S.W., Blaske D.M., et al. Multisystemic treatment of adolescent sexual offenders. Int J Offender Ther Comp Criminol 1990, 35:105-114.
71. Borduin C.M., Schaeffer C.M. Multisystemic treatment of juvenile sexual offenders: a progress report. J Psychol Human Sex 2001, 13:25-42.
72. Hollis S., Campbell F. What is meant by intention to treat analysis? Survey of published randomized controlled trials. BMJ 1999, 319:670-674.
73. Hanson R.K., Gordon A., Harris A.J., et al. First report of the Collaborative Outcomes Data Project on the effectiveness of psychological treatment for sex offenders. Sex Abuse 2002, 14:169-194.
74. Carpentier M., Silovsky J.F., Chaffin M. Randomized trial of treatment for children with sexual behavior problems: ten-year follow-up. J Consult Clin Psychol 2006, 74:482-488.
75. Chaffin M., Berliner L., Block R., et al. Report of the ATSA task force on children with sexual behavior problems. Child Maltreat 2008, 13:199-218.
76. DiIulio J.J. How to stop the coming crime wave 1996, Manhattan Institute, New York.
77. Roper, Superintendent, Potosi Correctional Center v Simmons, 543 U.S. 551 (2005).