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32 Fed. Probation 17 (1968)
Sex Offenders on Probation: Heterosexual Pedophiles

handle is hein.journals/fedpro32 and id is 263 raw text is: Sex Offenders on Probation: Heterosexual Pedophiles By ALEX. K. GIGEROFF, LL.M, J. W. MOHR, PH.D., AND R. E. TURNER, M.D. Clarke Institute of Psychiatry, Toronto, Canada* EDOPHILIA (literally love of children) is best divided according to the object of the sexual impulse, into heterosexual pedophilia (female children), homosexual pedophilia (male children) and undifferentiated pedophilia (both sexes). Although all three groups have certain factors in common, we felt that it might be more helpful to the probation officer if we discussed them separately. This article will concentrate on the heterosexual pedophile and the following one will look at homosexual pedophilia in the context of homosexuality. Undifferentiated pedophilia is rather rare, but one should point out that it usually indicates a more generalized pathological condition approaching polymorphous perverse sexuality, which calls for more intensive inter- vention than probation supervision. Most of the other cases of pedophilia can be handled by probation supervision, with consulta- tion when necessary. Unfortunately, sexual acts with children are usually seen in terms of violence -the rape or murder of a child-although these are extremely rare occurrences. However rare, the very human tendency to fear the worst has created out of these sex-violence cases the arche- type for all sexual contacts with children. In actuality, force and coercion hardly ever play a part in pedophilic acts. Of course no cases are ever presented in court or placed on probation on a charge of having committed a heterosexual pedophilic act. The legal terminology that is used to cover these acts is as varied as the dialects of a mountainous country, but with a few guidelines one can pick out the cases of pedophilia from among the charges of contributing to juvenile delinquency, lewd vagrancy, indecencies with children, impair- ing the morals of a minor, or, as in our jurisdic- * Mr. Gigeroff is research associate in the Social Pathology Research Section at the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry. Dr. Mohr is head of the Social Pathology Research Section and Dr. Turner is chief of Forensic Service. This is the second article of a series on the sex offender. tion, indecent assault on a male or female, and other such formulations. An examination of factors related to the nature of the heterosexual pedophilic act and the victim enables one to identify the offender more clearly. Out of a consideration of the relationship between these three elements we have constructed a defini- tion of pedophilia as the expressed desire for immature sexual gratification with a prepubertal child. A highly condensed account of the factors entering into this definition is as follows: Nature of the Act The great majority of sexual acts in hetero- sexual pedophilia consist of the same kind of sex- play as is found among prepubertal children, that is, looking, showing, touching, kissing, fondling. The nature of the act corresponds to the level of maturity expected at the age of the child rather than at the age of the offender. It is not, as popularly imagined, that the adult imposes adult forms of sexual behavior on the child. Penetration and intravaginal coitus is rare among sexual -acts with children: Not only is it not feas- ible with the majority of young children involved, but it is clearly not the intention in pedophilia. (With few exceptions female children do not get involved with coitus until the age of 12 when a small number do, and the rate increases with each succeeding age level. This represents the starting phase of adult heterosexual activity and its legal control is a different problem.) Where does the act occur? Over half of these offences take place in the close environment of the child, more particularly either in the home of the offender or a home shared by the offender and the victim. This is not so surprising when one takes into account the relationship between the adult and the child discussed later. Far less frequently does the act occur at the offender's place of work, in his car or in some public place such as theatre, street, or park. In short, the place where the act occurs is usually fairly close

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