Incest child molesters are statistically the least likely out of all sexual offenders to reoffend at a rate of 8.4%. The most effective type of treatment for incest child molesters is a minimally intrusive type of therapy. The Correctional Service of Canada produced a program for fathers at a low risk to reoffend called Violence Interdite Sur Autri or VISA program. The program consists of offenders working to overcome the fear and shame of their offense so that they can comprehend what they have done. They are taught to take full responsibility infront of both the people involved in the offense and their therapy group. The offender must come to terms with the damage that they have done to their victims, family, and themselves. The incest child molesters take steps to ammend and establish healthy relationships. In the program, sexual offenders are taught to recognize the factors and triggers for their behavior and create ways to reduce these influencing factors. The VISA Program is a fourteen week program that includes 28 psychological therapy group sessions, 13 sexual education workshops, and 10 individual interviews. Although with the assistance of treatment for incest child molesters, relapse is always a factor and treatment is not always effective. In 1996, 130 sexual offenders were involved in the VISA program and two have since been convicted of a sexual related crime. 58.7 % of these people admitted to additional sexual offenses that they had not been convicted for.
Non-incest child molesters are the mosy likely to reoffend out of all sexual offenders. A study was done to show the different rates of reoffending and split the offenders into three groups; incest child molesters, heterosexual child molesters (non-incest), and homosexual child molesters (non-incest). The study revealed that incest child molesters were the least likely to reoffend, followed by heterosexual child molesters, and homosexual child molesters with the highest rate of reoffending. This tells us that pedophiles that victimize young boys are at a much higher risk of reoffending and must be treated and supervised for an extensive amount of time. 77% of offenders who were never married, previously offended, and victimized young boys outside of the family recividated. Although non-incest child molesters are at the highest rate of reoffending, treatment programs can be effective for these people if they are followed and maintained.
The final category of sexual offenders are rapists, they are the second most likely to reoffend with a rate of 17.1%. Rapists tend to be younger than child molesters and carry similar characteristics to criminals like prior criminal records and anti-social behaviors. However, it is more difficult to rehabilitate a rapist successfully, but the treatment program is likely to decrease the rate of reoffenses.
Reoffending rapists are more likely to commit non-sexual offenses after treatment and breach their conditional release at a rate of 40.7%; unlike child molesters, at a rate of 25%. Treatment programs for convicted rapists focuses on changing devient sexual behaviors and incorporates Cognitive Skills Training. Treatment programs also focuses on cognitive/behavioral conditioning which includes shaming, covert sensitization, and mastubatory conditioning to reduce reoffending in rapists post-treatment.
Although the various sections in the programs for the treatment of rehabilitating sexual offenders are important and substantial in the rehabilitation process, relapse prevention is an important factor in preventing reoffending. Relapse prevention plays a big part in preventing reoccurring offences. Prevention gives sexual offenders the tools to recognize situations where they may reoffend. It also teaches sexual offenders coping, escape and avoidance strategies.
Stay tuned for more posts about the treatment of pedophiles in canada and around the world.
Thank you for reading.
-Emily McFarlane
