Juvenile Sexual Offenses in the Histories of Adult Rapists and Child Molesters

Abstract

A sample of 231 sexual offenders was studied with respect to the progression of their offenses from non-contact sexual crimes (such as exhibitionism and voyeurism) as juveniles, to the more serious sex assaults of rape and child molestation as adults. The results of this study reveal that a significant number of offenders manifest a history of sexually inappropriate behaviors beginning in early adolescence. It appears from the study that many offenders begin to act out sexually at an early age and if left untreated may escalate to more serious sexual assaults.