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Bioethical Issues and Secondary Prevention for Nonoffending Individuals with Pedophilia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 May 2019

AINSLIE HEASMAN  and
THOMAS FOREMAN
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Abstract:

Child sexual abuse is a global problem with significant emotional, psychological, and financial implications to victims, perpetrators, and society. Most child sexual abuse prevention programs target young children or those who have already engaged in abusive behavior, in order to prevent further offending. There are numerous secondary prevention programs targeting individuals at-risk of various health conditions in an effort to reduce the likelihood they will go on to experience a particular illness or disease. Considerable research exists regarding the risk factors for engaging in child sexual abuse and more specifically the factors contributing to reoffense. We argue that engaging in secondary prevention programs for people with pedophilia, in order to prevent child sexual abuse, is an ethically responsible and necessary practice. Secondary prevention programs with this focus are reviewed, along with the implications of mandatory reporting in doing this work.

Keywords

pedophiliasexual abusesecondary prevention programsreoffensetreatment
Type
Special Section: Health, Morality, and Moralism
Information
Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics , Volume 28 , Issue 2 , April 2019 , pp. 264 - 275
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019 

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Footnotes

Acknowledgment: We thank Sarah Moss for a review of an earlier version of this paper

References

Notes

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