|
When people today discuss adult sexual contact with children, the term most often heard is “pedophilia” (literally, love of children, from gr. pais: boy or child and philia: love). In psychiatry, pedophilia means an adult’s erotic love of children or the sexual attraction to children. Indeed, there are some adults - most of them men – who persistently and stronlgy feel this attraction. They are called “pedophiles”. In psychiatric manuals, pedophilia is listed as a mental disorder among the paraphilias.
However, it is important to understand two basic facts:
- Not every adult who has sexual contact with a child is a pedophile, and
- not every pedophile has sexual contact with a child.
Leaving aside the different legal definitions of “child” and the varying ages of consent, there are “clear-cut” cases that allow no dispute: Some adults have sexual contact with children, i.e. with girls and/or boys who have not yet reached puberty.
Most of these adults are not pedophiles. Their “real” sexual interest lies elsewhere, and their behavior therefore remains occasional or episodic. They simply seize an opportunity, or follow a fleeting impulse, or are curious, or take advantage of an unexpected situation, or find it convenient to exploit a child’s dependency. Such adults have been called “situational offenders” as opposed to “preferential offenders”, i.e. pedophiles who prefer children (1).
However, many pedophiles manage to control their urges. Some even deliberately avoid the company of children. This self-control is the goal of preventive therapy programs for pedophiles, since their sexual interests are not likely to change.
(1) Kenneth V. Lanning, “Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis. For Law Enforcement Officers Investigating Cases of Child Sexual Exploitation. In Cooperation with the FBI”, Fourth Edition 2001. (For the full text of this very informative book click here)
|
