Familial transmission of externalizing syndromes in extended Swedish families

The Structure, Covariates, and Etiology of Hypersexuality: Implications for Sexual Offending

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

A substantial increase in research on the structure, covariates, and etiology of hypersexuality has emerged during the last decade. It is the goal of this review to summarize and integrate this research and to indicate some practical implications for clinical and forensic practice, especially as applied to those who have sexually offended.

RECENT FINDINGS

Studies from the last half-decade converge on the conclusion that hypersexuality has both problematic and high sexual drive components. Both aspects have consistently been found to be distributed dimensionally and not categorically. Each subdimension covaries differentially with specific types of impulsivity. In addition to sexual abuse, psychological or emotional abuse has emerged to be a potent developmental antecedent of hypersexuality. Current research has focused on the problematic dimension of hypersexuality and has neglected to specify the criteria for high sexual drive. Lacking are large-scale representative and clinical samples that provide determination of optimal cutoffs for treatment and dispositional decisions for both dimensions of hypersexuality. Research on the etiology of both aspects of hypersexuality is in its infancy, and more differentiated assessments of developmental abuse histories are required.

Reaching families where a parent has a mental disorder: Using big data to plan early interventions

BACKGROUND

Children who grow up with a parent who has a mental health problem (25%) are at increased risk of developing (health) problems themselves. One approach to reach those children for early intervention supports is through their parents seeking treatment within the adult mental healthcare system. We aimed to gain information on the users of adult mental health services in Tyrol, Austria in order to understand more about the identification of these families to provide support.

METHODS

We descriptively analysed administrative claims data from the Tyrolean health insurance. Uptake of mental health services (hospital inpatient and day-care services, rehabilitation, outpatient psychiatrist and psychotherapy services), prescription medication and sick leave in persons aged 19-64 in 2017 were analysed.

RESULTS

The vast majority (82%) of an overall number of 49,494 patients were prescribed medication for their mental health issues. Half of them only received medication as their form of treatment. A quarter had contacted an outpatient psychiatrist and 13% received psychotherapy. Five percent were treated in psychiatric inpatient or day-care. The median length of hospital stay was 15 days. More women than men used mental health benefits.

CONCLUSIONS

Most parents may be reached via the general practitioner (via drug prescriptions) and low numbers were found accessing services in a psychiatric hospital. The latter may, however, have higher needs for support given their greater acuity of illness. How to get into contact with their children requires thoughtful and sensitive preparation, given the stigmatisation of accessing support for mental health issues. Administrative data are a useful source for planning such early intervention strategies.

Childhood maltreatment experiences and problematic sexual outcomes in adult males who have sexually offended: Further evidence of the potency of male caregiver psychological abuse

BACKGROUND

Although research on the developmental antecedents of sexual offending has tended to focus on sexual abuse, recent research in juveniles and adults who have sexually offended suggests that psychological abuse perpetrated by a male caregiver may be a particularly important factor in the development of problematic sexual interests and behaviors.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to extend previous findings by investigating the association between psychological abuse by a male caregiver and problematic sexual outcomes in a sample of adult males who had sexually offended.

PARTICIPANTS

Participants were 529 adult males incarcerated for sexual offenses, 21% of whom were civilly committed.

METHODS

Childhood maltreatment and problematic sexual outcomes were assessed using the Multidimensional Assessment of Sex and Aggression, a contingency-based inventory that assesses domains related to sexual aggression. Hierarchical regressions were calculated examining the association between childhood abuse types and sexual outcomes.

RESULTS

Childhood sexual abuse was associated with child sexual (β = .247, p < .001) and other paraphilic interests (β = .189, p < .001). Male caregiver psychological abuse also emerged as marginally associated with child sexual interest (β = .100, p = .059), even after controlling for other abuse types.

CONCLUSIONS

These results partially replicate recent findings in a juvenile sample and challenge conventional developmental theories of sexual offending, by suggesting that male caregiver psychological abuse may play a role in the etiology of child sexual interest among males who have sexually offended. This study also suggests a possible gender symmetry effect moderating the developmental consequences of abuse.