Introduction

The ever-increasing rash of sexual offenses has alarmed parents and other concerned citizens for decades. Currently, more than 3 million people experience unwanted sexual contact (Bonnar-Kidd, 2010, p.412). Mona Lynch (2002) highlights the persevering emphasis which the public places upon the management and containment of sex offenders. In response, different methods have attempted to curb the desires of the sexual offender through incarceration, psychotherapy, and (more recently) chemical castration. These methods will be discussed, but the literature will focus on the medical, legal, and public perspectives regarding the prevention, treatment, and recidivism.  After which, the literature will be further discussed and analyzed and will also be supplemented by predictions regarding future developments in research and practice.

Literature Review

Because prevention, treatment, and recidivism are very complex foci, comprised of many perspectives and opinions, the following literature review recounts and interprets the ramifications of the research for criminal justice. These perspectives have been placed according to their position in the chronological continuum of action. To clarify, together the medical, legal, and public perspectives influence each other and create a domino effect which frequently follows this chronological order.

Medical Perspective

Immediately after birth, the origins of aggressive are sometimes strengthened by a cognitive organization which allows testosterone ease of access at a later date. Infants displaying this cognitive organization will have a lifelong predisposition to heightened levels of aggression. If the testosterone levels are high after the first 15 days of life, then the masculinization will be permanent (Moore, 2001).

Clinicians seek to psychologically and physiologically curb- and gradually remedy- the sexual deviance through pharmacological prescription and further observation, including interpersonal and skills training (Sparks, 2008). Surgical castration was labeled ‘cruel and unusual’, according to the US Constitution, so California, Colorado, Georgia, Montana, and Wisconsin have stipulated that pedophilic sex offenders undergo chemical castration prior to their release (Richeson, 2009; Sparks, 2008). As a result, natural hormonal chemicals should level off and trigger self-regulation of “socially objectionable urges” (Sparks, 2008, p. 180). Other actions include brain surgery, estrogen implants, antiandrogen hormones, antiepileptic drugs, psychotropic drugs, psychotherapy, and cognitive therapy (Greenfield, 2006). The public perspective will examine the finer points of environmental bias.