THEORIES AND ETIOLOGY OF
CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE BY MALES
Biological theories of deviant sexual behavior are
particularly concerned with the role of androgens
and androgen-releasing hormones, which are
known to be related to physical changes in themale . The secretion of androgens is controlled by
the hypothalamus and the pituitary, and hormones
are carried from the anterior lobe of the pituitary to
the testes . The testes are an important contributor
to the body's output of testosterone, which, once
released, circulates in the blood . When not boundto proteins, the testosterone is metabolically active ;if bound, androgens can only become active whenin contact with receptors for testosterone . It is at
this time that physical changes, such as increases inbody hair, muscle mass and penis enlargement, arecaused through androgenic effects (Hucker andBain, 1990) .

by men sexually abuse children has been
one of the foremost questions guiding
research on sexually deviant behavior in
the twentieth century. As with most forms ofdeviant behavior, there are various explanations as
to the etiology and maintenance of sexual offending. Within the specialist literature, biological, psychological and sociological theories have been
designed to explain the onset of deviant sexual fantasies and behavior. However, owing to the heterogeneity of the perpetrators of such abuse and thecomplex nature of this behavior, no one theory adequately explains : (a) the motivating factors thatlead an adult male to have sexual relations with achild and (b) the sustaining factors that contributeto the continuance of such relations (Bickley &Beech, 2001) . Nonetheless, understanding the etiology and maintenance of sexual offending is important in order to implement policies that are appropriate for all types of sexual offenders . Table 1 at
the end of this section summarizes the theories on
deviant sexual behavior.

W

When males reach puberty, there is a major increasein testosterone levels in the testes . Because sex driveincreases dramatically at this time, there is generally
believed to be a correlation between testosterone
levels and sex drive, with testosterone being the
primary biological factor responsible for normal
and abnormal sexual behavior. Levels of plasma
testosterone increase with erotic activity, which has
been measured in males before, during and after
they view erotic films (Pirke, Kockott and Dittmar,1974) . Although a review of biological studies
shows conflicting results about the correlation
between rising hormonal levels and sexual activity,
Bancroft (1978) stated that the results imply that
hormone levels are affected by erotic stimulus .

BIOLOGICAL THEORY
Biological theorists are concerned with organic
explanations of human behavior. Therefore, when it
comes to sexual behavior, these theorists postulatethat physiological factors, such as hormone levels
and chromosomal makeup, have an effect on the
behavior (Berlin, 1983 ; Marshall & Barbaree,1990) . Androgens, which are male sex hormones,
promote sexual arousal, orgasm, and ejaculation, as
well as regulate sexuality, aggression, cognition,
emotion and personality (Rosler & Witztum, 2000 ;Marques et al ., 2002) . As a result, biological theories about deviant sexual behavior usually pertain
to rape because it is considered an act of violence,and researchers have long hypothesized that there isa correlation between aggression and high testosterone levels (Money, 1970 ; Rada, Laws andKellner, 1976) . The theories that address pedophilia
most often look at abnormal hormonal and androgenic levels in the brain .

From a chromosomal perspective, Berlin (1983) discusses the possibility of a biological condition, suchas Klinefelter's Syndrome, predisposing a maletowards sexually abusive behavior . Klinefelter's
Syndrome is a condition wherein males appear tobe essentially normal boys until puberty . At
puberty, 80% of males with this syndrome display
both the physical characteristics and hormonal profiles of women . Berlin proposes that males with
Klinefelter's Syndrome may experience problems
with regard to both their sexual orientation and the163

The id is the unconscious domain from which all
the instinctual human drives originate (i .e ., hunger,
sex, aggression, etc .) . The id is ruled by the pleasurenature of their erotic desires . A review of the literature suggests that the prevalence of sexual deviation
among individuals who are diagnosed with
Klinefelter's Syndrome may be higher than it isamong individuals who have not been diagnosed
with Klinefelter's Syndrome . Although Berlin cautions against making causal inferences between sexual deviation and Klinefelter's Syndrome, heattempts to support his theory by citing evidence
presented by Baker and Stroller (1968) . Over 100
articles regarding Klinefelter's Syndrome werereviewed, and Berlin's conclusion was in concordance with Baker and Stroller's findings .

principle that demands instant gratification of theseurges . The second part of Freud's model, the ego, isthe conscious part of the human psyche that serves
as the mediator between the id and the external
environment . This element is primarily conscious
and is ruled by the reality principle that accepts that
there is a time and a place for everything (Holmes& Holmes, 2002) . It is this aspect of the psyche thatinteracts with the external environment in order toensure survival . The final element, the superego, ismore commonly referred to as the conscience . This
aspect of the psyche has both conscious and unconscious aspects and, as Holmes and Holmes state,"most lessons about the consequences of behavior

PSYCHODYNAMIC THEORY

stem from experience and not perceptions of how
the self would look relative to its environment"(Holmes & Holmes, 2002, p . 30) . Thus, the superego is bolstered by past experiences that clearly
define the behaviors that warrant punishment andreward . These notions are then internalized in sucha manner as to allow for the development of a system of morals .

Psychoanalytic explanations of deviant sexual
behavior were initially attributed to Freud, who
proposed four states of childhood development :oral, anal, phallic and genital . He viewed sexualdeviance as an expression of the unresolved problems experienced during the stages of development .
These unresolved problems brought about fixations
or hindrances during stages of development, withconsequent distortion of a sexual object or a sexualaim (Schwartz, 1995) . For example, psychoanalytic
theory proposes that boys experience what is termed"the oedipal conflict" during the phallic stage ofIn summary, Freudian theory portrays the human
psyche as being in a constant struggle to fulfill the
primal desires of the id and the moral authority ofthe superego . This theory assumes that sexual aggressors are lacking in a strong superego and havebecome overwhelmed by their primal id . While psychologists generally once accepted this explanation,it has fallen out of favor due to its lack of empiricalevidence in favor of more testable theories, such as
cognitive behavioral and integrated theories .

development . The oedipal conflict is characterized bycompetition between father and son for the mother'saffection . At the same time, boys discover the differences between themselves and girls and conclude
girls are actually boys whose jealous fathers have cut
off their penises (Schwartz, 1995) . Schwartz (1995)
states that castration anxiety leads to the oedipal
conflict, which is when boys no longer compete with
their fathers for their mother's affections . However, if
a boy fails to resolve the oedipal conflict, he may
develop a permanent aversion to females as an adultif their appearance brings back this fear of castration .

BEHAVIORAL THEORY
Behavioral theorists explain deviant sexual behavior as a learned condition . Laws and Marshall(1990) presented a theoretical model of sexuallydeviant behavior that describes how sexuallydeviant interests may be learned through the samemechanisms by which conventional sexuality islearned . The model is divided into two parts : theacquisition processes and the maintenanceprocesses . There are six basic conditioning princiConditioning,
Operant(Pavlovian
ples

Psychodynamic theory also asserts that the human
psyche is composed of three primary elements : the id,
the ego and the superego . In order to understandhow all three elements interact, Freud proposed that
all human behavior is motivated by wishes that often
exist at a preconscious level (Holmes & Holmes,
2002) .

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problems and the experience of loneliness among sex
offenders. According to these studies, sex offenders
have deficiencies in social skills (i .e ., problems inaccurately perceiving social cues, problems in deciding on appropriate behavior and deficiencies in theskills essential to enact effective behavior) that seriously restrict the possibility of attaining intimacy .
The evidence suggests that deficiencies in intimacy
are a distinctive and important feature of sex offenders. The rapists and non-familial child molesters inthe sample appeared to be the most deficient in intimacy. Loneliness was also a significantly distinguishable variable in differentiating the sex offenders fromcontrols and wife batterers.

Conditioning, Extinction, Punishment, Differential
Consequences and the Chaining of Behavior) ; twosocial learning influences (General Social Learning
Influences and Self-Labeling Influences) ; and threemaintenance processes (Specific Autoerotic
Influences, Specific Social Learning Influences andIntermittent Reinforcement) . The model adopts the
position that maladaptive behavior can result fromquantitative and qualitative combinations ofprocesses that are intrinsically orderly, strictly
determined and normal in origin . Thus, deviant
sexual preferences and cognitions are acquired by
the same mechanisms by which other individuals
learn more conventionally accepted modes of sexual expression .

Mulloy and Marshall (1999) outlined Bartholomew's
four-category model of attachment and make thefollowing observations . A secure attachment style ischaracterized by the individual having a positive
concept of both himself and others . He is confident
about his ability to make friends and interacts wellwith others . An individual utilizing a preoccupied
attachment style has a negative self-concept but apositive concept of others. He does not feel confident about his ability to deal with problems without the help of others . The fearful attachment style,wherein the individual has a negative concept ofhimself and others, finds that the individual is likely
to blame himself for problems in his life and finds itfrightening to go to others for help and to trust people around him . Those engaging in a dismissing
attachment style have a positive self-concept and astrong sense of self-confidence . However, this individual has a negative concept of others and does notseek out others for help or support . This individualis likely to say that he does not care what others
think of him and rarely has a strong emotional
involvement in relationships . Marshall andMarshall (2002) cited Ward et al .'s (1995) proposition that sexual offenders who have a preoccupied
insecure attachment style will characteristically"court" the child and treats him or her as a lover .

ATTACHMENT THEORY
According to attachment theory, humans have apropensity to establish strong emotional bonds withothers, and when individuals have some loss oremotional distress, they act out as a result of theirloneliness and isolation .
As Marshall and Barbaree (1976) point out, theperiod surrounding pubescence and early adolescence is critical in the development of both sexuality and social competence . With adequate parenting
up to this point in development, boys should haveby now acquired appropriate inhibitory controls
over sexual and aggressive behavior and, thus, thetransition to adult functioning, with both social
constraints against aggression and the skills necessary to develop effective relationships with age
appropriate partners, should not be compromised .
Parents also fulfill the role of instilling a sense of
self-confidence in the developing boy as well as astrong emotional attachment to others .
Research indicates that there is a relationshipbetween poor quality attachments and sexual
offending . Marshall (1989) found that men who
sexually abuse children often have not developed
the social skills and self-confidence necessary forthem to form effective intimate relations with peers .
This failure causes frustration in these men that
may cause them to continue to seek intimacy with
under-aged partners . Seidman et al . (1994) conducted two studies aimed at examining intimacy

COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL THEORY
When individuals commit deviant sexual acts, theyoften try to diminish their feelings of guilt andshame through "neutralizations." These neutralizations generally take the forms of excuses and justi-

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inability to recognize the level of planning that went
into their offenses (including grooming of the victims) . Some researchers also label sexual entitlement
as a specific CD, resulting from the narcissistic attitudes of offenders who seek only to fulfill their own
desires (Hanson, Gizzarelli and Scott, 1998, p . 197) .
However broadly or specifically the CDs are defined,
these distorted thoughts are conducive towards themaintenance of deviant sexual practices .

fications, with the offenders rationalizing their
behavior (Scott and Lyman, 1968 ; Scully, 1990 ;Sykes and Matza, 1957) . These neutralizations are
cognitive distortions (CDs), or distorted thinking
patterns that allow the offenders to remove fromthemselves any responsibility, shame or guilt for
their actions (Abel et al ., 1984) . These rationalizations protect the offenders from self-blame andallow them to validate their behavior through cognitive defenses . Cognitive-behaviorists explore how
offenders' thoughts affect their behavior .

Most sex offenders minimize or deny their offenses,
including the damage caused to the victim, the violence used, their responsibility for the offense, theplanning of the offense and the lasting effects as aresult of the offense . Several researchers have categorized types of minimization and denial(Haywood et al ., 1994 ; Marshall et al ., 1999), andthese include: complete or partial denial of theoffense, minimization of the offense, minimizationof their own responsibility, denial or minimizationof harm to the victim, denial or minimization ofplanning, denial or minimization of deviant fantasies and denial of their personal problems that led
to the deviant behavior.

CDs are not unique to sex offenders, only the content of the distortions (Marshall et al ., 1999 :60) .
All individuals have distorted thoughts, and in mostsituations CDs are relatively harmless (e .g ., amotorist rationalizes that speeding on the highway
is acceptable since there is little traffic) . However,sex offenders' CDs are likely to lead to victimization (e .g ., she didn't fight with me so she must havewanted sex) . Though sex offenders do not form ahomogeneous group of individuals, they show strikingly similar CDs about their victims, their offenses
and their responsibility for the offenses.

Some sex offenders deny all or part of theiroffenses . They may completely deny that they committed the offense - claiming, for instance, that thevictim made up the story or they cannot remember
what happened - or they may not admit to aggravating factors of the offense . Partial denial, as
described by Marshall et al . (1999), includes refutation of a problem (e.g., I am not a sex offender) or
the refusal to accept that an act was sexual abuse(e .g ., the victim consented) . Though someresearchers claim that denial is not an accurate predictor variable for recidivism (Hanson and Busiere,
1998), there is a substantial body of literature thatclaims the opposite (Marques, Day, et al ., 1994 ;Simkins, Ward, Bowman and Rinck, 1989 .) Few
therapists allow deniers to participate in treatment
until they at least admit that they committed theoffense (Marques, Day et al ., 1994) .

It is unclear as to whether CDs are conscious distortions or whether offenders genuinely believe thesealtered perceptions of reality. Some researchers suggest that CDs are self-serving, and thus, theoffender consciously distorts thoughts initially(Abel et al ., 1984) . However, it is also suggested
that the offenders eventually believe the distortions
as they become more entrenched in their behavior(Marshal et al ., 1999) . Regardless, CDs are considered crucial to the maintenance of offending behavior for both rapists and child molesters because they
serve the needs of the offenders to continue their
behavior without feeling guilt for their actions .
There are many ways in which distortions manifest
themselves in sex offenders . Sykes and Matza(1957) list five primary neutralization techniques,
including the denial of responsibility, the denial of
injury, the denial of the victim, the condemnation of
the accusers, and the appeal to higher loyalties .
Cognitive-behavioral theorists have explained thesetechniques in terms of CDs, the most common ofwhich are minimization and/or denial of the offense
and justification of the offense . Additionally, sex
offenders often lack victim empathy and show an

In addition to minimizing or denying their offenses,
sex offenders make excuses as to why they Committed the deviant acts . By justifying their actions,
offenders acknowledge their guilt in the acts, butthey do not take responsibility for them .
Commonly, they blame the victims for their

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• Dangerous world . The abuser views other adults
as being abusive and/or unreliable and perceives
that they will reject him in promotion of theirown needs .
• Uncontrollability. The abuser perceives his environment as uncontrollable wherein people are notable to exert any major influence over their personal behavior and/or the world around them .
• Nature of harm . The abuser considers the degreeof harm to his victim and perceives sexual activity as beneficial and unlikely to harm a person .

offenses or justify their offenses through the victims' actions .
Justification is common in the vast majority of sex
offenders since it assists in allaying remorse andguilt for the acts committed . Scully and Marolla(1984), who interviewed 114 incarcerated rapists,
explain five ways in which rapists commonly justify
their behavior. They claim that the victim is a seductress, and she provoked the rape ; women mean yes
when they say no, or the victim did not resist
enough to really mean no ; most women relax andenjoy it, and they are actually fulfilling the woman's
desires ; nice girls do not get raped, and prostitutes,
hitchhikers and promiscuous women get what they
deserve ; and the rape was only a minor wrongdoing, so the perpetrator is not really an "offender ."Though these researchers focused on the excusesand justifications of rapists, many of their findings
are also evident in child sexual abusers, who also
justify their actions by neutralizing their guilt .

Offenders rarely modify these implicit theories evenwhen faced with evidence (behavior) to the contrary. Instead, the offender may simply reinterpretor reject it. For example, a child's friendly behavior
might be evidence to the offender that the childwants to have sex with him .
Similar to Ward and Keenan's idea that the distortions of sexual offenders reflect their more generalimplicit theories about their victims, Marshall et al .
(1999) stress that "the distorting process thought tobe characteristic of sexual offenders does not differentiate them from the rest of us ; it is the content of
their distortions, and the goals manifested by their
behaviors, that differentiates them ."Child molesters justify their actions in many ways .
Common justifications include claims that they are
helping the child to learn about sex, that sexual
education is good for the child, that the child enjoys
it, that there is no harm being done to the child,that the child initiated the sexual contact and thatthe child acts older than he or she is . Like offenders
with adult victims, child molesters often assert thatthe child did not resist and must have therefore
wanted the sexual interaction . They fail to recognize any other explanations as to why the childmight not have resisted, such as fear, uncertainty
about what was happening or the idea that the perpetrator is someone they knew and trusted .

All sex offenders have a tendency to misread social
cues by others and are poor at identifying emotions
such as anger or fear in their victims . Both rapists
and child molesters often perceive their victims as
initiating sexual contact, and see their victims'
actions as sexually provocative . Child molesters
misread cues from children in several ways, and thebetter they know the victim the more likely this is tohappen. Children are naturally affectionate towards
adults, particularly those whom they know well .
Child molesters view these naturally affectionate
actions - such as sitting on an adult's lap-as sexual in nature and perceive the children as initiating
sexual contact . They also perceive any sexual
curiosity displayed by the child as a desire to know
about sex, and they want to "teach" the childthrough sexual experiences . These misperceptions
reinforce the offenders' narcissistic beliefs anddetract from the ability for an offender to feel any
empathy for his victims .

Ward and Keenan (1999) claim that the cognitive distortions of child sexual offenders emerge from five
underlying implicit theories that they have about
themselves, their victims and their environment .
These implicit theories consider the following factors :• Children as sexual objects . Children, like adults,
are motivated by a desire for pleasure and arecapable of enjoying and desiring sex .
• Entitlement. The desires and beliefs of the abuser
are paramount and those of the victim are either
ignored or viewed as only of secondary importance .

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An alternate explanation is that the child sexual
abuser's experience of being victimized as a child is
not conditioned, but modeled by someone (i .e ., hisabuser) who finds children sexually stimulating .

INTEGRATED THEORY
Finkelhor (1984) is one of the leading theorists onchild sexual abuse . He proposed a four-factor
model of the preconditions to child sexual abuse,
which integrate the various theories about why
individuals begin to participate in sexually deviant
behavior. This organizational framework addresses
the full complexity of child sexual abusers, from themotivation to offend (etiology of offending behavior) to the rationalization of this behavior (maintenance of behavior) . The primary focus of
Finkelhor's model is on the internal barriers, or"self talk," comments and observations of sex
offenders about the world around them . This selftalk allows offenders to break through barriers
which, until this time, had prevented them fromacting out their feelings about perceptions of injustice, loneliness and other such stressors . Once thesebarriers are diminished, this mistaken thinking canlead to actions, which are the result of normal internal barriers being absent .

Blockage essentially deals with the abuser's ability
to have his sexual and emotional needs met in adultrelationships . Finkelhor looks to both psychoanalytic theory and attachment theory to explain thiscomponent . As stated previously, psychoanalytic
theory describes child molesters as having intense
conflicts about their mothers or "castration anxiety" that makes it difficult or impossible to relate toadult women. With regard to adult attachments,
child molesters have failed to develop the appropriate social skills and self-confidence necessary toform effective intimate relations with adults .
Finkelhor further breaks down the theory of blockage to incorporate what he calls developmental
blockages and situational blockages . Developmental
blockages once again refer to psychoanalytic theory
wherein an individual is psychologically prevented
from moving into the adult sexual stage of development . Situational blockage refers to the event
wherein an individual, who has apparent adult sexual interests, is blocked from normal sexual expression owing to the loss of a relationship or someother transitory crises .

In order to better explain this process, Finkelhor
constructed an organizational framework consisting of four separate underlying factors that explain
not only why offenders abuse, but also why theabuse continues . These factors include : (1) emotional congruence, (2) sexual arousal, (3) blockageand (4) disinhibition .

The final component, disinhibition, refers to the factors that help a child molester overcome his inhibitions so that he allows himself to molest a child .
Finkelhor looks to cognitive-behavioral theories to
explain this component. Specifically, he considers theinfluence of cognitive distortion in the facilitation ofchild molesting behavior. Further, personality factors,
such as substance abuse and stress, are viewed as
entities that contribute to the lowering of inhibitions .

Finkelhor coined the term "emotional congruence"
to convey the relationship between the adultabuser's emotional needs and the child's characteristics . For example, if an abuser's self-perception ischild-like (i .e., he has childish emotional needs), he
may wish to relate to other children . Similarly, if anabuser suffers from low self-esteem and a low senseof efficacy in social relationships, he may be more
comfortable relating to a child due to the sense of
power and control .

Overall, this organizational framework describes
who is at risk to offend . It is likely that individuals
who offend have been able to cope with many of
the above problems (e .g ., developmental blockage)and opportunities (e .g ., access to children) at different times . However, it is the combination of these
problems, in addition to some type of demand on
their coping system that contributes towards anattitude supportive of sexual offending, thereby
establishing a risk to offend . That risk increases thelikelihood that a person may act out in a sexual

Sexual arousal, the second component of
Finkelhor's theory, evaluates the reasons why children would elicit sexual arousal in an adult .
Finkelhor looks to social learning theory in order toexplain this phenomenon . One explanation is thatthe child sexual abuser was molested when he wasa child. Through conditioning and imprinting, hecomes to find children arousing later in adulthood .

168tions of genetic and psychodynamic factors contribute to one another and interact with cognitive
factors. All of these variables combine in such amanner as to influence the priests to sexually abusea child . In the Social/Situational Lock, the priest isotherwise healthy, but the experience of celibacy
suspends psychosexual development . Similar to thetheory of primary genital phobia, sex is externallydenied, but internally explored . Sipe concludes that
offending behavior in this model is of a developmental nature and can be resolved once theoffender psychologically matures . The Moral Lockdisplays no clear explanation for the offending
behavior other than the individuals in this model
make a conscious choice to commit sexual abuse .

fashion because his or her belief system has filteredout the normal inhibitions towards sexual offending . Unfortunately, the relief that is associated withsexual offending is reinforcing because it provides
an emotional and physical response to coping in a
way in which the offenders feel they have control,
unlike much of the other parts of their lives .

THEORIES OF OFFENDING BY CLERGY
There is no clear consensus as to why some priests
molest children and others do not . Hands (2002)
has proposed a psychodynamic model in which
experiences of shame interact with unrealistic,
moral expectations conveyed through Church
teachings that have been internalized . The result of
this process is the creation of a shame cycle, whichstunts the individual's psychosexual development
and contributes to sexual misconduct. The internalizationofChurchdoctrine
concerningcelibacy/chastity reinforces many cognitive distortions, which allows the abuse to persist . Hands also
hypothesizes that the steps the Church has taken to
discourage the formation of close friendships
between priests, under the pretense that it may leadto homosexual behavior, have also played a role inthe creation of a pro-offending environment . With
this increased social isolation comes a greater alienation from the body. Therefore, sexuality isrepressed only to later emerge as an obsession .
Hands cites the work of Sullivan, who theorizes
that the result of this repression is the developmentof "primary genital phobia ." Central to this theoryis the notion that when the individual experiences
any sexual feelings, thoughts, or emotions, they are
ignored only to later manifest themselves as obsessions unless they are directly addressed .

In his 1990 book, A Secret World: Sexuality and the
Search for Celibacy, Sipe theorized that a history ofchildhood sexual abuse might contribute to sexual
offending as an adult . In discussing the causes ofpedophilia, Sipes noted that a large number of sexually abusive clerics had been victimized as youths .
While this is not applicable to every case, sexual
victimization as a child may lead the individual toseek refuge in the clergy as a way of denying thereality of life. Sipe contends that the experience of
celibacy interacts with these past traumas and caneither enhance the memory or stunt the priest's psychosexual development at a preadolescent/ adolescent stage, leading to sexual misconduct .
In contrast to the psychodynamic approach
adopted by Sipe, Krebs (1998) claims that the institutional hierarchy of the Catholic Church contributes to the creation of a pro-offending environment . In concordance with the theories of Andrew
Shupe, institutional religion is based upon "hierarchies of unequal power," which span both spiritualand organizational dimensions . Those in elite positions within the institution have moral authority
over the masses, which allows them to control privileges and ostracize individuals . The Church also
engages in neutralization tactics in order to protectthese offending priests and the image of the institution. In turn, this gives the pedophile approval fromsuperiors to continue offending and establishes anenvironment in which the behavior can persist .

Sipe (1995) has proposed a model of clergy offend-

ing which consists of four specific categories. Thosein Sipe's Genetic Lock find that their sexual attraction is inherently determined . The Psychodynamic
Lock consists of priests who, as a result of theirchildhood experiences, have been locked at a levelof psychosexual development that makes themprone to offending . Sipe hypothesizes that combina-

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Table 1 . Summary of theories explaining child sexual abuse
THEORYDESCRIPTION OF THEORY

BIOLOGICAL THEORY

Concerned with organic explanations of human behavior ; physiological fac-

tors (e .g ., hormone levels, chromosomal makeup) have an effect of sexual
behavior ; androgens promote sexual arousal, orgasm, and ejaculation, as
well as regulate sexuality, aggression, cognition, emotion and personality ;abnormal levels of androgens lead to aggressive sexual behavior .
PSYCHODYNAMIC THEORY

Sexual deviance is an expression of the unresolved problems experienced
during the stages of development ; the human psyche is composed of three
primary elements : the id, the ego and the superego; sexual deviancy occurs
when the id (pleasure principle) is overactive .

BEHAVIORAL THEORY

Deviant sexual behavior is a learned condition, acquired through the samemechanisms by which conventional sexuality is learned ; it is acquired andmaintained through basic conditioning principles .

ATTACHMENT THEORY

Humans have a propensity to establish strong emotional bonds with others,
and when individuals have some loss or emotional distress, they act out asa result of their loneliness and isolation .

COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL THEORY

Addresses the way in which offenders' thoughts affect their behavior ; focuseson the way in which sex offenders diminish their feelings of guilt and shameby rationalizing it through excuses and justifications .

INTEGRATED THEORY

There are preconditions to child sexual abuse, which integrate the various theories about why individuals begin to participate in sexually deviant behavior ;addresses the motivation to offend and the rationalization of the behavior ;focus is on the inhibitions of the offenders (internal barriers) and how whenthese barriers are diminished, distorted thoughts can lead to deviant actions .

THEORIES ON ABUSE BY CLERGY

No clear consensus as to why some priests molest children and others do not,though many theories address the stunted psychosexual development of thepriest ; the psychodynamic model addresses the way in which the experiencesof shame interact with unrealistic, moral expectations conveyed through church
teachings that have been internalized, resulting in the creation of a shame cyclethat stunts the individual's psychosexual development and contributes to sexual
misconduct ; experience of celibacy interacts with past traumas (e .g ., childhood
sexual abuse( and may stunt the priest's psychosexual development at a preadolescent/adolescent stage leading to sexual misconduct .

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THE OFFENSE CYCLEWhen sexually abusing a child, the abuser must
make a series of decisions prior to committing thedeviant act . These decisions may be made over a
period of time or on the spur of the moment if theopportunity to abuse presents itself . In order tounderstand a child molester's behavior, it is necessary to evaluate the antecedent conditions thatallow for a pro-offending environment and how
these antecedents vary amongst offenders . Though
discussed at a greater length in the next section ofthis paper, a brief explanation is necessary here of
two types of child molesters : the fixated offenderand the regressed offender.

the use of certain behavioral measures to combat
these feelings . There are multiple determinants
involved in this cycle, but the core point is that sexual abuse is not a random act . These determinants
may include situational factors (i .e ., the opportunity to offend), affective states (depression, anger,
isolation), past learning, biological influences andprevailing contingencies of reinforcement (current,
unforeseen support or back up) . As mentioned earlier, the regressed offender is susceptible to external
stressors and utilizes the abuse as a means of coping . This cycle is most applicable to these offenders
as it illustrates the interaction of the external world
and individual perception .
There are several steps involved in the offense
chain . The offender will first have negative
thoughts . Thoughts may be characterized by themes
such as "Nobody likes me" or "I'm no good ."These thoughts then lead to feelings such as anger,
frustration, sadness and inadequacy. The thoughts
and feelings then interact in such a manner as toinfluence the offender's behavior . It is at this pointthat the offender begins to make poor decisions(SUDS) and withdraws from people around him .
Isolation results in a lack of communication thatcauses the thoughts and feelings mentioned earlier
to go unresolved .

Fixated, or preferential, child molesters are exclusively attracted to children . They are likely to have
many victims as a result of their failure to havedeveloped a sexual attraction to their age mates . In
contrast, the regressed offender is sexually attracted
to age mates, but the abuse is triggered by some
type of stressor in the environment . These offenders
are less likely than fixated offenders to have multiple victims since the abuse serves almost as a meansof them coping with the stressful situation .
Regressed offenders display greater guilt and shameand exhibit a positive treatment prognosis .

The pro-offending thinking then causes the offender
to progress to the point where he starts to experience deviant sexual fantasies also referred to as
lapse fantasies . These fantasies lead to masturbation, and the offender begins to feel better about thenegative thoughts and feelings experienced earlier
in the cycle . Through fantasizing and orgasm, theoffender has now found a way to tame the painful
feelings, but he is placing himself into more dangerous situations . It is not uncommon at this point forthe offender to take steps short of committing asexual offense such as targeting a victim and engaging in a fantasy rehearsal of the future abuse .

Since regressed offenders are influenced by external
stressors in the environment, it is possible to teachthem to identify their high-risk situations . Most
importantly, it is possible to identify a series of
Seemingly Unimportant Decisions (SUDs) . These
decisions place the offenders in a position where
they are likely to reoffend . An example of thiswould be a child molester who starts to walk by theplayground on his way home from work. Throughthe utilization of cognitive distortions, it appears to
him as if he is just taking a new route home .
However, this SUD places him in an environment inwhich he has access to victims . If the process is not
stopped, he is likely to progress until the antecedentconditions create an environment in which reoffending is inevitable .

Once the offender has engaged in the . fantasy
rehearsal, he reaches a point in the cycle where hedecides to give up . In a sense, he is saying to himself, "Why not? I've already gone this far. I may as
well do it." It is at this point when the offender
begins to "groom" his victim (see next section) andplan the abusive act . This planning causes the

The key feature of the offense cycle involves theinteraction of thoughts, feelings and behaviors .
Essentially, negative thoughts will cause theoffender to experience negative feelings, prompting

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A less frequent tactic that is mentioned by Pryor
entails the offender catching the victim by surprise .
In this instance, the offender may orchestrate a situation to distract the victim or seize the opportunity to abuse when it arises . The latter is mostcommon and is usually a result of the offender'sfrustration from waiting for the right time to initiate contact . A third and more intimidating tactic
used by offenders entails garnering victim compliance through the use of either verbal or physicalforce . In this situation, the offender either commands the victim to perform sexual acts and/or
physically forces the victim to engage in sexual acts .
This tactic is more common in more serious, repeat
offenders . Pryor found that emotional manipulation and verbal coercion were the most common
tactics used by offenders to groom their victims .
This occurs in various ways, such as doing favors
for the victim in exchange for sex and/or emotionally blackmailing the victim into compliance . Even
though it may appear that there is room for negotiation on the part of the victim, the outcome always
favors the offender . Offenders who have ongoing
contact with their victims often utilize this tactic(i.e ., incest offenders) .

offender to experience a sense of excitement thatfurther motivates him until he is at the point ofcommitting the offense .
After adequate grooming has taken place, theoffender sexually abuses the victim . The act itself
serves as a reinforcement of the original fantasy .
However, once the act has occurred, there exist new
anxiety provoking thoughts . Examples of some of
the thoughts the offender may be contemplating
include, "What have I done? I might get caught ."These thoughts lead to new feelings of guilt and fear
despite the release of tension achieved through therecent abusive act . These feelings of guilt, fear andremorse cause the cycle to come to a stop during
which the offender tries to regain a sense of normality. By refusing to acknowledge the thoughts
and feelings associated with the abuse, the cycle
begins once more since the original issues had neverbeen addressed .

GROOMING
Those offenders who take time to plan the deviant
act are known to indulge in what is termed "grooming" behavior. Grooming is a pre-meditated behavior intended to manipulate the potential victim into
complying with the sexual abuse . Based on a surveyof tactics used by abusers to groom their victims,
Pryor (1996) describes several methods by which
offenders approach and initiate sex with their victims . These methods include verbal and/or physicalintimidation, seduction or the use of enticements
such as candy, money or other gifts . The tactics
used by offenders depend somewhat on the potential victim's response to the tactic . If an offender
encounters little to no resistance from the potential
victim, he will continue to use the same tactic
repeatedly. If, however, some resistance is encountered, the offender may either change the tactic
and/or become more forceful in his endeavor . One
common tactic noted by Pryor is the seduction andtesting of a child . This tactic is used when there isan existing relationship with a child and the child is
accustomed to the affectionate expression of theoffender. The offender gradually extends the affectionate touching to include sexual behavior, all thewhile "testing" the child's response . If no overt
resistance is observed, the sexual abuse continues .

Another tactic used by offenders in order to groom
their victims entails disguising sexual advances in
the context of playing a game . For example, theoffender will begin by tickling the victim and gradually progress to fondling . While this approach may
appear spontaneous, it has been well planned by theoffender, yet orchestrated in a rather surreptitious
manner.
The most methodical and deliberate tactic of engaging a victim in sex involves a process of initiallyintroducing the victim to the idea of sex and thengradually engaging them in sexual activity. Pryor
describes this tactic as turning the victim out . For
example, the offender will begin by displaying himself in the nude or introducing the victim to pornography. Then there is a period of rationalizing thatsex is okay. This may be followed by fondling thevictim or having the victim fondle him, all the while
rationalizing that sex is okay and possibly verballypraising the victim for his/her efforts . This
exchange slowly builds up to more serious sexualacts and possibly to the point where the victim isbeing rewarded with gifts for his/her participation .

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When offenders set out to groom a victim, they willusually use tactics that have previously proved successful in gaining their victim's compliance .
However, given that offenders attend to their victim's response, they are open to changing their tactics if an approach proves unsuccessful .

Over time, the victim becomes groomed to thepoint that engaging in sex with the offender is moreor less automatic . While most grooming tactics arepremeditated, this tactic is more methodicallyplanned and the offender is willing to wait months
or possibly years to accomplish his task .

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