Standardization of Penile Plethysmography Testing in Assessment of Problematic Sexual Interests.
Penile plethysmography (PPG) is an objective measure of sexual arousal for men, commonly used to assess sexual arousal to both abnormal (i.e., paraphilic) and normal stimuli. While PPG has become a standard measure in the assessment and treatment of male sex offenders and men with paraphilic interests in both Canada and the United States, there is a lack of standardization of stimulus sets and interpretation of results between sites. The current article critically reviews the current state of the art while highlighting clinical and research efforts that may be undertaken in an attempt to reduce issues arising from lack of standardization across sites. Types and themes of stimulus sets, assessment apparatuses, laboratory preparation, and testing procedures are discussed. The continued development of standardized testing protocol and procedures across multiple international sites continues to be encouraged to promote unified PPG administration and interpretation, thus further enhancing the practical utility of the measurements and decreasing inter-rater discrepancies and error.
Sexual Behaviours Clinic, Integrated Forensic Program, The Royal, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Lisa
L
Murphy
Sexual Behaviours Clinic, Integrated Forensic Program, The Royal, Ottawa, ON, Canada.|Forensic Research Unit, University of Ottawa Institute of Mental Health Research, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Rebekah
R
Ranger
Sexual Behaviours Clinic, Integrated Forensic Program, The Royal, Ottawa, ON, Canada.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
J Paul
JP
Fedoroff
Sexual Behaviours Clinic, Integrated Forensic Program, The Royal, Ottawa, ON, Canada.|Forensic Research Unit, University of Ottawa Institute of Mental Health Research, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Hannah
H
Stewart
Sexual Behaviors Clinic and Lab, Community and Public Safety Psychiatry Division, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
R Gregg
RG
Dwyer
Sexual Behaviors Clinic and Lab, Community and Public Safety Psychiatry Division, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
William
W
Burke
D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology; D004644:Emotions; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010262:Paraphilic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D010410:Penile Erection; D010413:Penis / Q000098:blood supply*; D010991:Plethysmography / Q000379:methods; D012015:Reference Standards; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D014481:United States
Assessment; Paraphilias; Penile Tumescence; Phallometry; Sexual Arousal; Standardization