Youth who sexual offended: primary human goods and offense pathways.
There has been an increased focus on understanding youth sexual offending in recent years, but there has been limited empirical research on the causes, pathways, and treatment of youth who have sexually offended-especially within a non-Western context. The Good Lives and Self-Regulation Models have often been used to understand and rehabilitate adult sexual offenders, but (unfortunately) there is scant research on youth who sexually offended using these models. The present study aims to describe the different primary goods that are associated with youth sexual offending behaviors in an Asian context. In addition, the study sought to explore whether the age of victim (child vs. nonchild) and nature of sexual offense (penetrative vs. nonpenetrative) influenced the youth's engagement in offense pathways. The results suggest that pleasure, relatedness, and inner peace were the primary human goods that were most sought after by a sample of 168 youth who sexually offended in Singapore. In addition, offender classification (in relation to the age of victim and nature of sexual offense) influenced the pathways to sexual offending. Therefore, these findings have important clinical implications for assessment, management, and intervention planning for youth who sexually offended.
Ministry of Social and Family Development, Singapore Monash University, Melbourne, Australia chu_chi_meng@msf.gov.sg.
Chi Meng
CM
Chu
Ministry of Social and Family Development, Singapore.
Li Lian
LL
Koh
Ministry of Social and Family Development, Singapore.
Gerald
G
Zeng
Ministry of Social and Family Development, Singapore.
Jennifer
J
Teoh
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D057237:Criminals / Q000145:classification; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D011580:Psychological Techniques; D000066768:Rehabilitation Research; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000145:classification / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012846:Singapore / Q000453:epidemiology
child victim; good lives model; offense pathways; penetrative sexual offenses; primary human goods; self-regulation model