Who are the child molesters among us?
By Karen Thomas, USA TODAY
Statistics on pedophilia are as difficult to come by as
anecdotes are easy. The definition itself is misunderstood and often ill-used.
Pedophilia is a mental disorder that belongs to a larger group known as paraphilias:
sexual lust that is not connected to adult romantic love. Pedophilia is sexual
contact between an adult and a child who hasn't reached puberty. Another disorder
in the paraphilias group is ephebophilia intense sexual interest in teenagers.
According to the FBI, 61% of rape victims are under age 18, and 29% are younger
than 11. Generally accepted academic studies say one out of every four women
was sexually molested by an adult before she was 18. For men: 1 out of 10. Yet
only one out of every 10 cases of child sexual abuse is reported to law enforcement,
the FBI reports.
Whether more children are being molested
today is a matter of debate, says David Burton, professor at University of Michigan
School of Social Work in Ann Arbor. Some experts say the explosion of porn and
access to the Internet have combined to increase the numbers; others say the
public is simply more aware of pedophilia and more cases are being reported
Pedophilia "has been here for a long time, only it's more
well known today," says Ruben Rodriguez, director of the Exploited Children
unit of the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children. "The social
stigma of being a victim is being overcome, and it's more acceptable to come
forward. A lot of kids come forward to protect other kids, and society is better
about saying, 'It's not your fault.' "
Whether certain professions such as the clergy
draw sexual deviants isn't clear. But most agree that child molesters can be
found in any environment. "I've known MBAs, CEOs, janitors, grocery clerks.
The pure numbers indicate that they're everywhere," Burton says.
There is "no evidence that someone choosing to live a lifestyle
that precludes sexual relationships has any bearing on them becoming a child
molester," says Gail Ryan of the Department of Pediatrics at the University
of Colorado-Denver. "Many people don't have regular sexual relationships, and
they don't go out and molest children."
But the clergy allows for a level of authority unparalleled
in any other profession that deals with children, says Rodriguez, in which men
are "in an environment with unrestricted access to and control over children.
Children have been taught very early to respect authority, and how much respect
and authority you have as a priest is almost all-consuming."
So who molests kids?
Only one characteristic is clear: Child molesters are predominantly
"It's virtually impossible to profile a child molester,
because so many types of people are getting so many different needs met by getting
sexually involved with a child," says Ryan. True pedophiles have sexual feelings
toward children only. "But there are many people who molest children who are
sexually interested in peers, too."
Most sexual offenders were sexually abused as children;
40% to 80% of pedophiles were raped as a child, Burton says. "The large majority
of them learn to do what they do. Others we don't understand as well." Pedophiles
often target and abuse children who are the same age the predator was when he
was first sexually abused.
"It is a need-driven behavior of an individual that can't
help themselves," Rodriguez says. "Some people live in the fantasy. Others go
beyond the fantasy and have to abuse a child."
There is much disagreement, too, about whether child molesters
can be treated. Burton says most studies show intense treatment is "phenomenally
successful." "We help guys figure out dangerous situations, like being around
children, what to do, how to plan and cope with distresses and avoid them."
The link between child pornography and child molestation
is strong. "Not everyone who reads porn acts out, but everyone who acts out
does read child pornography," Burton says.
The Internet makes it easier for sexual predators to act
out, Rodriguez says. "It gets to the point when (porn) is not sufficient. ...
Then they get on the Internet and find like-minded individuals who give them
a lot of validation."