Ann Wolbert Burgess

Robert Alan Prentky

Over the past several decades the seeming escalation of crimes involving sexually deviant, coercive, and aggressive behavior has become an increasingly serious problem, manifested in costs to both victims and society at large. The long-term psychological impact of sexual assault on adult and child victims has been documented numerous times. The costs incurred by society include a network of medical and psychological services provided to aid victim recovery, the investigation, trial, and incarceration of offenders-often in segregated units or special facilities-and the invisible but tangible blanket of fear that forces potential victims to schedule normal daily activities around issues of safety. Despite the gravity of the problem, there has been a paucity of empirical research directed at the etiology, course, remediation, and management of sexually deviant and coercive behavior. In treating these disorders and in making crucial decisions about how to manage these offenders, clinicians have been forced to rely on their personal experience. Such experience by its nature is unsystematic and lacks the validation that empirical research provides. The lack of sound empirical data addressing the problem is certainly noteworthy, though not surprising. The paucity of research in this area may well be attributable to historical scientific timidity about most aspects of sexual behavior. In 1922 Dr. Robert L.

Forensic Management of Sexual Offenders

Professor of Psychiatric Nursing William F Connell School of Nursing Boston College Ann Wolbert Burgess

This text reviews the major advances that have taken place over the past 20 years in the management of human sexual aggression. This work is intended to reflect what is known and what is not known about the most effective management practices and strategies for sexual offenders. It includes complete discussions of classification, assessment, and prediction. In addition, major controversies in the field are addressed with the goal of separating supposition from fact and myth from reality. By employing an empirical litmus test throughout, the authors are able to identify what is known; what are sound, yet empirically based, hunches; what is speculation; and what lies strictly in the realm of mythology. Written by a forensic psychologist and a forensic nurse, the book offers a unique dual perspective. With over 1400 references, this represents an important source of every facet of the management and disposition of known sex offenders.

Robert Alan Prentky

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