Young people with harmful sexual behaviour: Do those with learning disabilities form a distinct subgroup (original) (raw)
Related papers
Child Abuse Review, 2003
This paper sets out some key issues regarding sexual abuse perpetrated by adolescents with a learning disability. The limited evidence currently available is largely anecdotal or from small-scale/ case studies, but emphasizes that much behaviour of this kind never comes to the attention of either statutory social services or the criminal justice system. It is argued here that statutory services should be involved in such cases in order both to protect potential victims and to improve the ongoing life chances of alleged perpetrators. Specifically, it is posited that only by naming this problem can professionals hope to make effective interventions. The various organizational structures and systems adopted by four social services departments are outlined and their possible impacts on case outcomes are discussed. Little empirical research has so far been undertaken in this highly sensitive area, but an initiative from The Ann Craft Trust (formerly NAPSAC) aims to provide new evidence to help shape future best practice in this field.
2007
This chapter will start by providing an overview of current knowledge about young people with learning disabilities who sexually abuse. Research cited will, unless otherwise indicated, be limited to UK studies since international variations in the definitions of both learning disability and sexual abuse make the use of a wider literature base problematicparticularly that relating to prevalence and incidence. It will then go on to report key findings from a recent study (Fyson et al, 2003; Fyson, 2005) which examined how special schools and statutory child protection and youth offending services in four English local authorities responded to sexually inappropriate or abusive behaviours exhibited by young people with learning disabilities. It will conclude by highlighting areas of current practice which give cause for concern, and suggest some pointers for future best practice.
Good practice in responding to young people with harmful sexual behaviours: Key findings and future directions, 2020
BACKGROUND • Young people make up a significant proportion of individuals engaging in unwanted or harmful sexual behaviours against children. • Many young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviours have their own history of childhood trauma, including exposure to domestic and family violence. • These young people require holistic interventions that involve specialist services and multiple partner agencies. KEY FINDINGS • There are variations and gaps in services for young people engaging in harmful sexual behaviours, and information about service availability is not readily accessible. • Specialist services operate in a complex environment that may make service provision challenging. • Good practice in intervention is underpinned by conceptual, therapeutic and enabling principles. • Factors in the broader service system may help or hinder good practice. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY AND PRACTICE • A public repository of information about services available for young people with harmful sexual behaviours should be established. • Practitioners should apply the principles of good practice developed by the project to therapeutic work with young people with harmful sexual behaviours. • Funders should dedicate resources to collaborative research into tailoring therapeutic work to vulnerable young people. • Service systems design should support holistic interventions. Authors: Quadara, Antonia; O'Brien, Wendy; Ball, Olivia; Douglas, Will; Vu, Linna. This report was produced with funding from Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety Limited (ANROWS).
Sexual offenders with learning disabilities: risk, recidivism and treatment
Journal of Sexual Aggression, 2005
While the literature on the assessment, treatment and management of non-learning disabled sexual offenders is well established, it is only in recent years that researchers and clinicians have focused on sexual offenders with learning disabilities. In contrast to mainstream sex offender treatment programmes, there are few evaluated community-based treatment programmes for sexual offenders with learning disabilities, and of the small number of published studies that describe treatment programmes, most are based on small samples and few have been validated empirically. Sexual offenders with learning disabilities differ from their non-disabled counterparts in several important ways, having implications for management and treatment. Due to methodological differences between studies, the prevalence of sexual offending by men with learning disabilities is not clear. However, in some studies, the sexual recidivism rate of offenders with learning disabilities is 6.8 times and 3.5 times that of non-disabled sexual offenders at 2-and 4-years' follow-up, respectively. Sexual offenders with learning disabilities are also at greater risk of re-offending in a shorter time period. There remains an urgent need for further research into the assessment of risk and whether components from mainstream treatment programmes can be adapted to meet the needs of learning disabled sexual offenders. Approaches to working with sexual offenders with learning disabilities and programme development are discussed.
2012
The purpose of this study was to evaluate a specialized assessment program with a sample of children/youth (n = 80) who were seeking intervention for inappropriate sexual behaviour (ISB) at a tertiary mental health facility in London, Ontario. The primary goal was to identify predictive factors in participants with offending behaviour-both sexual and nonsexual-in order to prioritize treatment needs and to address strategies for reducing the risk of sexual offending against others. As participant ages increased by 1 year, their odds of sexually offending someone were found to increase by approximately 27%. Also, males were found six times more likely to sexually offend and 15 times more likely to offend both sexually and nonsexually than females. However, findings suggest that trauma may play a mediator role to sexually offending patterns as those who experienced greater levels of abuse were less likely to sexually offend against others. Future assessments with clients exhibiting ISB should consider the aggregated burden of risk presented with an older male, displaying high externalizing scores, with a history of fewer traumatic experiences in regards to future victimization. Treatment for these particular cases may require more intensive and/or holistic interventions to ensure that recidivism is reduced and appropriate resources are available to support these youth as they continue to develop. Future directions should be considered to advance understanding in this area.
Young people who sexually abuse
2008
Contents Glossary of key terms 4 Background 5 Principles of assessment 10 Identification 11 Assessment of risk and need 12 Individual needs 20 Heterogeneity of need 20 Needs of groups identified as sexually abusing 20 Young people with learning disabilities 21 Young people with co-morbid conditions 22 Young people from minority ethnic communities 23 Young women who sexually abuse 23 Communication 25 Communication pathways 25 Communications with the young person and family 26 The evidence base 28 Treatment approaches 28 Evaluation of treatment studies 29 Recidivism rates 32 Care, welfare and placement 33 Innovations in justice 34 Custodial placement 34 Service needs, priorities and interventions 34 Matching needs to levels of intervention 36 Case management 36 Transition 38 Coordination 38 Training 40 Principles and practice 40 Management 41 Responsibilities Service development 42 Needs and priorities 42 Coordination 42 Development of multi-agency partnership working 42 Developing local policy and guidance 43 Commissioning services 44 Tiered framework of provision 45 Monitoring and evaluation 48 Priorities and issues 48 Conclusions and key recommendations 51 Appendix A: Notes on risk assessment tools 53 Appendix B: Tables of studies 54
Sexual abuse of intellectually disabled youth : a review
2013
Intellectual disability (ID) is a condition characterized by significant limitations in intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior, which affects various everyday social and practical skills. This disability manifests itself before the age of 18 (American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities [AAIDD], 2010). While the global prevalence of ID is only 1% (Maulik, Mascarenhas, Mathers, Dua & Saxena, 2011), research shows that the risk of being sexually abused is 2 to 6 times greater among intellectually disabled youth than among typically developing youth (Dion, Bouchard, Gaudreault & Mercier, 2012). It is also argued that the prevalence of sexual abuse may be underestimated among intellectually disabled youth, as disclosure may be more difficult for them because of their limited vocabulary and communicative abilities (Murphy, 2007). Despite this higher risk, professionals who work with this population have little information on the issue. Myths and prejudices ...
Prevention of sexual abuse in children with learning disabilities
Child Abuse Review, 1998
C hildren with learning disabilities are vulnerable to sexual abuse. Recognising the importance of prevention and believing that the best way to achieve this is by the systematic introduction of knowledge, a programme,`Sexual Education for Health' was introduced in a special needs school in Buenos Aires. A central premise to the programme was the belief that the child's family should also be aware of issues concerning sexuality. Thus, the sta ®rst worked with parents, with the aim of providing them with a common vocabulary and insight into healthy and private sexual behaviours. The work then focused on the children themselves. Workshops for parents, in which they re¯ected on their own sexuality, were used, to help them gain an understanding of the sexuality of young children and adolescents. The children were taught to access their sexuality by learning about conception and birth. Workshops with parents During the academic year, six workshops were run. Thirteen parents attended the ®rst meeting; after three meetings, the number attending had reduced to ®ve, who continued until the ®nal meeting. Methods used in the workshops included:-1) Postbox of questions. 2) Group response to randomly selected topics, which were printed beforehand on cards. The topics were related to sexuality and disabilities. 3) Printed material, which provided information about adolescents, genitalia, the menstrual cycle, contraceptive methods, and articles on various disabilities, e.g. My Painful and Prophetic Childhood.