Pathways to Sexual Aggression

Jean Proulx, Eric Beauregard, Patrick Lussier, Benoit Leclerc, Jean Proulx, Eric Beauregard, Patrick Lussier, Benoit Leclerc

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN:
  9780415703604
• eBook ISBN:
  9781134482887
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Criminology
• Index: Social Sciences

Most people who read an article in the newspaper about the brutal rape of a woman by a stranger, or the long-standing sexual abuse of a young boy by his step-father have a strong visceral reaction which is a mix of anger, fear, and incomprehension. Apart from these aversive reactions, several questions also come to people's minds: Was this offender crazy or sexually obsessed? What is the purpose of such outrageous acts?

To answer these questions, the authors of this book review theoretical and empirical models of the processes that lead men to sexually assault children or women, whilst also presenting new results and models on this topic. In particular, this book focuses on empirical analyses of the pathways of six types of sexual aggressors, three of which (marital rapists, hebephilic sexual aggressors, and polymorphic sexual aggressors) have never been investigated before.

Drawing on a large dataset on the offending processes of sexual aggressors, this book analyzes the influence of personality factors and lifestyle factors on offending pathways and brings together key researchers in the field of sexual aggression. This book will be of interest to psychologists, psychiatrists, criminologists, and social workers involved in the study, assessment and treatment of sexual aggressors. In addition, this information will be crucial for practitioners involved in the follow-up of these offenders in the community, and will interest researchers and graduate students in the field of sexual aggression.

Part I

Theoretical and empirical bases

Chapter 1

Pithers’ Relapse Prevention Model

Jean Proulx

One of the most influential theories in the field of sexual aggression is Pithers’ Relapse Prevention Model (RPM) (Pithers, Marques, Gibat, & Marlatt, 1983; Pithers, 1990), inspired by Marlatt’s conceptualization of the relapse process in individuals with an addiction. Pithers’ model details the sequence of cognitions, emotions, and behaviors culminating in sexual aggression. In addition to a sequential model, the authors propose self-management methods specifically designed to prevent sexual recidivism following treatment. However, this chapter will exclusively focus on Pithers’ model of the offending process. Following a description of Marlatt’s conceptualization, we will outline the core features of Pithers’ adaptation of it for sexual aggressors. The results of studies designed to evaluate the validity of the RPM for sexual aggressors will then be presented, and critical issues related to the RPM discussed.

Marlatt’s conceptualization of the relapse process in individuals with an addiction

Marlatt’s conceptualization of the relapse process is based on an analysis of the factors that are involved in post-treatment relapse by individuals with an addiction (Marlatt & Gordon, 1980, 1985). The main assumption of this model is that relapse is the end-point of a multiple-step process (high-risk situation → lapse → relapse), rather than an impulsive act that occurs without any warning signs, like a bolt of lightning out of the blue. The first step in the relapse process is the occurrence of a high-risk situation (HRS), which is defined as a situation that threatens an individual’s perceived self-control over their addictive behaviors. The most frequently observed HRSs were negative emotional states and interpersonal conflicts. These HRSs resulted from a lifestyle imbalance, namely an excess of obligations and responsibilities, paired with a lack of pleasurable activities. This imbalance causes stress, a sense of deprivation, and a sense of entitlement to gratification (e.g., drugs, alcohol, sex). Another type of HRS is an external situation that is difficult to avoid or anticipate (e.g., an alcoholic being invited by colleagues to celebrate a promotion at a bar). Finally, an HRS may result from a form of unconscious covert planning, termed apparently irrelevant decisions (AIDs), which involves a series of decisions that seems unrelated to the addictive behavior but which gradually increases the risk of relapse. For example, an alcoholic’s purchase of a bottle of whisky may be ostensibly motivated by hospitality for their guests.

The second step in Marlatt’s conceptualization of the relapse process is the lapse, which is the initial addictive behavior following treatment; such lapses may be minimal, such as drinking a single beer. Marlatt and Gordon (1985) have described several factors that play a role in the transition from an HRS to a lapse. Initially, addictive individuals may fail to cope appropriately with HRSs, due to: (1) a lack of adequate skills with which to cope with HRSs; (2) a failure to recognize the risk of lapsing posed by HRSs that are the result of covert planning; (3) a proclivity to resort to addictive behaviors as (overlearned) maladaptive coping strategies. This failure, in turn, induces a decrease in individuals’ perceived self-efficacy, as well as a more negative emotional state. The transition to a lapse also includes selective attention to the immediate positive consequences of addictive behaviors, rather than to the delayed, negative ones, a process known as the problem of immediate gratification (PIG). Finally, a lapse occurs.

The final step in Marlatt’s conceptualization of relapse is the relapse itself, which is defined as the return of addictive behaviors to pre-treatment levels. Lapses, described above, are followed by an abstinence violation effect (AVE), in which individuals who lapse attribute causes to their lapses and have emotional reactions to the causes they identify. These cognitive and emotional reactions to the lapse determine the probability of a relapse. The risk of relapse is high in individuals who feel shame and hopelessness as a result of the attribution of their lapse to internal, uncontrollable, and stable factors such as disease (e.g., “I am an alcoholic like my father”, “My addiction is genetic”), and who consequently abandon their efforts to remain abstinent. Conversely, the risk of relapse is low in individuals who experience minimal negative emotional states as a result of their attribution of their lapse to external, controllable, and contingent factors (e.g., social pressure to celebrate a promotion with a drink), and who consequently persist in their efforts to remain abstinent.

To summarize, Marlatt and Gordon’s model of the relapse process comprises the following components: (1) lifestyle imbalance; (2) apparently irrelevant decisions; (3) high-risk situations; (4) the problem of immediate gratification; (5) lapse; (6) the abstinence violation effect; (7) relapse.

Pithers’ Relapse Prevention Model for sexual aggressors

Marlatt’s conceptualization of the relapse process in individuals with an addiction was adapted to sexual aggressors in a seminal paper by Pithers, Marques, Gibat, and Marlatt (1983). This adaptation keeps the sequential process and several of the components of the original model, but incorporates some modifications motivated by ethical considerations. For example, it is unacceptable to consider an isolated sexual crime a mere “lapse”, or the return to pre-treatment levels of sexual aggression a “relapse”, due to the involvement of victims.

Pithers et al. (1983) view offending

not as an all-or-none phenomenon that is due to uncontrollable sexual preferences and fate, but rather as an inappropriate coping behavior that results from a long series of decisions which slowly approach the final decision to perform a sexually aggressive act.

(p. 228)

Following his successful completion of a treatment program, the sexual aggressor is in a state of abstinence from sexual crimes. In addition, he expects that he will be able to not sexually recidivate—he has a sense of self-control. The first step in Pithers’ RPM is the presence of a high-risk situation (HRS) that threatens the offender’s sense of control over his deviant sexual behaviors. As in Marlatt’s conceptualization, lifestyle imbalance and apparently irrelevant decisions (AIDs) are precursors of HRSs. These HRSs may be negative emotional states (e.g., depression, anxiety, anger), interpersonal conflicts, or situations that contain cues for sexually aggressive behaviors (e.g., a child alone in a park). If the offender fails to cope successfully with an HRS, he experiences a decreased sense of self-control and increased sense of helplessness. This cognitive-emotional reaction favors the transition from HRS to lapse.

A lapse, the second component of Pithers’ model, usually consists of deviant fantasizing (about the rape of a woman or the sexual molestation of a child, for example). In sexual aggressors, a lapse is not defined as an initial occurrence of the prohibited behavior (i.e., a sexual crime), which would be ethically unacceptable, but rather as a deviant sexual fantasy, an element that distinguishes sexual criminals from non-offenders.

Following a lapse, an abstinence violation effect (AVE) occurs. This third component of Pithers’ model consists of three reactions to a lapse. First, the individual experiences cognitive dissonance between his perception of being cured and his awareness of the lapse. One way this cognitive dissonance may be resolved is by renouncing abstinence—because the individual perceives abstinence to be impossible—and embracing beliefs such as “I am and will always be a sexual aggressor”. Such beliefs greatly increase the risk of recidivism. Second, the individual attributes causes to the lapse, and experiences emotions secondary to this attribution. If the individual experiences negative emotions and a sense of loss of control following the attribution of the lapse to personal weakness (e.g., “I am a pervert”, “I can’t be treated”), the risk of recidivism increases. Finally, the individual experiences a problem of immediate gratification (PIG).

Pithers’ definition of the AVE differs in some respects from Marlatt’s (Marlatt & Gordon, 1985). First, he introduces the concept of cognitive dissonance, absent from Marlatt’s model. Second, his view of the attributional processes is less elaborate than Marlatt’s, being limited to a consideration of only one dimension, the locus of control. Third, he combines the PIG, an appetitive aspect, with the AVE, an aversive aspect, whereas in Marlatt’s model these two aspects are distinct. Finally, in Pithers’ model the PIG and the AVE both occur after a lapse, whereas in Marlatt’s model the PIG favors the transition from HRS to lapse, and the AVE favors the transition from lapse to relapse.

The fourth component of Pithers’ RPM is the conscious planning of the offense. At this point, substance abuse (alcohol, drugs) may play a role as a disinhibitor.

The final component of Pithers’ RPM is the relapse. In this model, any new sexual crime is defined as a relapse, whereas in Marlatt’s model, a relapse is defined as a return to a pre-treatment level of prohibited behavior. We will discuss the implications of Pithers’ adaptations of Marlatt’s model later in this chapter.

Later versions of Pithers’ Relapse Prevention Model

As noted by Laws and Ward (2006), later versions of Pithers’ model (Pithers, Kashima, Cumming, Beal, & Buell, 1988; Pithers, 1990) have incorporated few significant changes compared to the original (Pithers et al., 1983). Beyond lifestyle imbalance, Pithers et al. (1988) add to the RPM “early antecedent factors in the client lifestyle that appear to be significant predisposing influences” (p. 252). These factors include lack of empathy, victim stancing, excessive power need, and sense of worthlessness. In addition, they mentioned specific determinants of sexual aggression: extreme hostility toward women; deviant sexual preferences; deficient social and sexual skills; sexual dysfunction. Finally, Pithers (1990) presented factors in the sexual aggressor’s lifestyle that may predispose to recidivism: overwork; chronic substance abuse; lack of recreational skills; idleness; dependence. However, the relationship between all these background lifestyle factors and the components of the RPM are not developed by Pithers. This issue will be addressed in detail below.

In addition, later versions of Pithers’ RPM present more details about the nature of the affective components of high-risk situations. Anger, for example, may be an impulsive response to a specific frustrating situation or a delayed response following months of resentment (Pithers et al., 1988). Furthermore, loneliness and confusion were considered HRSs (Pithers, 1990). The transition from HRS to lapse may be caused by a deficit in skills for coping with a situation that causes a negative emotion, and/or with the emotion itself. Furthermore, anxiety may interfere with the appropriate use of coping skills already in the offender’s repertoire (George & Marlatt, 1989; McKibben, Proulx, & Lussier, 2001).

Pithers et al. (1988) also indicate that lapses may not only take the form of deviant sexual fantasizing, but also extend to the consumption of pornography and the hunt for potential victims.

Pithers et al. (1988) specify a new step in the relapse process following lapse and AVE, namely cognitive distortion. These distortions are rationalizations justifying sexual aggression. During this step, sexual aggressors may attribute adult characteristics to children or maintain that women who are victims of sexual aggression deserve it or provoke it (e.g., “She was dressed as a whore”) (Pithers et al., 1988). These authors also mentioned that offenders often masturbate while planning their offenses.

Other authors’ refinements of Pithers’ RPM

Refinements to Pithers’ original model have come not only from Pithers himself, but also from other researchers and theoreticians. The main interest of these latter contributors has been the process by which a negative emotional state (i.e., an HRS) culminates in sexual aggression. According to Ward, Hudson, and Marshall (1994), deviant sexual fantasies and behaviors may be learned strategies to cope with negative emotions. More precisely, such deviant sexual activities may provide both negative reinforcement (short-term escape from negative emotions) and positive reinforcement (sexual gratification) (Serran & Marshall, 2006). This use of deviant sexual activities as coping strategies may be explained by cognitive deconstruction involving a reduction of self-awareness due to a shift of attention from an abstract level (concern for long-term goals and maintenance of a positive self-image) to a concrete level (concern for short-term goals, such as sexual gratification) (Ward, Hudson, & Marshall, 1995). Finally, Cortoni and Marshall (2001) considered that the use of deviant sexual activities as a coping strategy is not a failure, as argued by Pithers, but a successful, although socially inadequate, means of coping with negative emotions. This strategy is only partially successful, because its effects are short term, and the initial problem causing the negative emotion is not solved.

Cognitive deconstruction is not the only explanation advanced for the link between negative emotional state and sexual crime. For example, Serran and Marshall (2006) suggest that negative affect may be a direct motivation for sexual aggression. Their view is inspired by Groth and Birnbaum’s (1979) conceptualization of rape as a pseudo-sexual act. Specifically, Groth and Birnbaum consider that sexual aggression permits the expression of negative emotional states (i.e., anger, power, sadism). In accordance with this view of sexual aggression, Proulx, Beauregard, Cusson, and Nicole (2007) argue that the modus operandi in sexual murders is directly related to precrime emotional states. In the precrime phase, angry sexual murderers possess an angry affect, while sadistic murderers possess positive affects—including feelings of well-being and sexual arousal—that may be linked to the thrill of the hunt and may co-occur with sadistic sexual fantasies. It is likely that both their fantasies and their sexual offenses allow aggressors to cope with the suffering, humiliation, anxiety, and anger that they feel, but leave unexpressed, in their everyday life (Proulx, Blais, & Beauregard, 2006). Thus, the physical and psychological suffering of the victim seems to provide the sexual sadist with catharsis, temporarily releasing him from his own internal distress. However, due to the maladaptive nature of this coping strategy, the sexual sadist is condemned to a perpetual cycle of sexual violence.

Empirical evaluation of Pithers’ Relapse Prevention Model

Unfortunately, few studies have empirically evaluated the validity of Pithers’ RPM. Of those that have, some have investigated the contribution of negative emotional states to sexually deviant activities (deviant sexual fantasizing, sexual aggression) (Cortoni & Marshall, 2001; Hanson & Harris, 2000; Looman, 1995, 1999; McKibben, Proulx, & Lusignan, 1994; McKibben et al., 2001; Pithers et al., 1988; Proulx, McKibben, & Lusignan, 1996). Other studies have assessed the role of the problem of immediate gratification (PIG) and the abstinence-violation effect (AVE) (Hudson, Ward, & France, 1992; Ward, Hudson, & Marshall, 1994). Finally some studies have evaluated whether Pithers’ RPM is the only pathway in the offending process of sexual aggressors (Ward, Louden, Hudson, & Marshall 1995; Proulx, Perreault, & Ouimet, 1999).

Negative emotional states and deviant sexual activities

In Pithers et al.’s (1988) retrospective study of sexual aggressors, strong negative emotions were immediate precursors to sexual recidivism in 89% of participants. Anger, usually following interpersonal conflicts, was reported by 94% of the rapists. Anxiety and depression due to prolonged social isolation were reported by pedophiles (46% and 38%, respectively). Similarly, Hanson and Harris (2000) reported that intense negative emotional states were immediate precursors of recidivism in their sample of sexual aggressors. In their study, the emotions most frequently reported as precursors by recidivists were anger, anxiety, depression, loneliness, and hopelessness. Rapists in Zamble and Quinsey’s (1997) study reported anger and depression as precursors to their sexual crimes. Finally, Looman (1995) found that feelings of depression or rejection were related to deviant sexual fantasies in child molesters. Despite the value of these studies, they all were based on retrospective data collection, and their results may have been subject to recall bias. Moreover, data was collected for only one event, which precluded ongoing assessment of the relationship between affects and deviant sexual behaviors. Of course, when the behavior under study is an actual sexual assault, the researcher is restricted to a retrospective recall strategy.

To avoid the pro...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title page
• Series page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• About the main editor
• List of Contributors
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• Part I Theoretical and empirical bases
• Part II Pathways in the offending process of sexual aggressors A research program
• Part III Criminal career and recidivism in sexual aggressors
• Part IV Pathways in the offending process of sexual aggressors Additional studies
• Index