Kirsten Keown

What were they thinking? An exploration of child sexual offenders’ beliefs using a lexical decision task

Abstract Cognitive distortions have been afforded a key role in the offending behaviour of child sexual offenders. While the mechanisms underlying cognitive distortions are not fully understood, they are generally thought to reflect entrenched beliefs that distinguish child sexual offenders from other individuals. We investigated this hypothesis using a robust experimental technique called the lexical decision task. Child sexual offenders, offender controls, and non-offender controls completed a lexical decision task in which they responded to words that completed sentences in either an offence-supportive or nonoffence-supportive manner. Contrary to predictions, child sexual offenders did not respond faster to words that were consistent with offence-supportive beliefs, relative to controls. However, they did show accelerated recognition for word stems supporting external locus of control beliefs. These results highlight the need to use cognitive experimental methods to study child sexual offenders’ beliefs, and the importance of investigating potential alternative drivers of cognitive distortions.

What's in a measure? A multi-method study of child sexual offenders' beliefs

Abstract The hypothesis that child sexual offenders (CSOs) hold distorted, offence-supportive beliefs is usually investigated using interview and questionnaire techniques. However, in light of various problems associated with the use of these techniques, researchers are increasingly turning to cognitive-experimental approaches. To date, no study has examined potential differences in the nature of the beliefs that are revealed using interview, questionnaire, and experimental methods. In this study, data is gathered using these three methods and the results triangulated. CSOs are interviewed and the content categorised into five belief types. CSOs and offender controls then complete a questionnaire measure of offence-supportive beliefs and an experimental task (Rapid Serial Visual Presentation–Modified, or RSVP-M), which uses sentence reading times to explore content held in cognitive structures. As hypothesised, CSOs showed evidence of holding distorted beliefs according to the interview and questionnaire measures. Against predictions, however, CSOs did not show evidence of holding distorted belief structures on the RSVP-M task. In fact, the three methods showed no agreement regarding the belief types each CSO was deemed to hold. These results raise important questions about the phenomena and potential artefacts measured by each method.

The effects of visual priming on information processing in child sexual offenders

Abstract Child sexual offenders are hypothesized to hold offence-supportive beliefs that set them apart from others. The current study seeks support for this view via a cognitive-experimental approach. Child sexual offenders and offender controls were exposed to pictures of semi-clothed children (priming condition) or clothed, mature adults (control condition). Participants then read ambiguous sentences describing childrens actions that could be interpreted in a sexualized manner. Next, participants completed a surprise recognition test in which half the sentences were re-presented in an unambiguously sexual form, and half in an unambiguously non-sexual form. Contrary to hypotheses, primed and/or control child sexual offenders did not show a memory bias for sexualized sentences, suggesting that they did not interpret the original sentences in line with offence-supportive beliefs. Results raise questions about whether child sexual offenders universally hold abnormal beliefs that facilitate their offending. Results also highlight the need for further experimental research within this field.

Creating a psychologically comfortable position: The link between empathy and cognitions in sex offenders

Abstract To examine the links between empathy and cognitions, 50 interview transcripts were analysed from a sample of male sex offenders who had abused children, recruited from four prisons in the North Island of New Zealand. Thematic analysis revealed an overarching framework where participants appeared to create “psychologically comfortable positions” that enabled them to offend. The main themes identified were: “complete denial”; “partial denial”; “justifications: beliefs and attitudes to support offending behaviour”; excuses: ignoring the perspectives of others”; and “taking responsibility for own actions”. These findings suggest that rather than viewing empathy as a trait-like process applied equally to all situations/people by each person in line with their empathic abilities, it would be better construed as a construct that is variously applied (i.e. it may be blocked by the presence of psychologically comfortable cognitions). This has implications for the way in which empathy is addressed in sex offender treatment programmes, as most work to improve empathic skills, which appears to conceptualise empathy as a trait-like skill or concept. The findings of this study would suggest that an increase in empathic skills will not necessarily have an impact on future offending, as cognitions in the form of denial, minimisation, excuse-making and justification are likely to prevent the application of empathic responses.