Psychopathy and sex offences against children and adolescents

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to evaluate differences in the profiles of sex offenders considered psychopaths and non-psychopaths that committed crimes against children and adolescents. The subjects of this study were 30 re-educated criminals serving a prison sentence, organized into two groups: G1, consisting of sex offenders considered psychopaths (PCL-R≥30); and G2, consisting of non-psychopaths (PCL-R<30). The Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) was used to collect data, and the analyses were performed using descriptive and comparative statistics. The results presented significant differences between the two groups in terms of the amount of time spent in incarceration, the quantity of prison breaks and rebellions, and the number of cases and victims. This shows that psychopathic sex offenders are more undisciplined and more recidivists than non-psychopaths, and that they often victimize more people and commit a greater variety of crimes than non-psychopaths.