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Chemical Castration

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Chemical Castration
A Critical Analysis of the Effects of Chemical Castration and Physical Castration on the Recidivism Rates of Sex Offenders

Introduction

This paper examines the effects of chemical castration and physical castration on the recidivism rates of sex offenders.
Using theory integration or the multifactor approach, the findings reveal there are several factors influencing sex offender recidivism. Both chemical castration and physical castration have the potential to reduce the recidivism rates of sex offenders by lowering testosterone levels, diminishing sexual urges, and making sexual urges more controllable if the sexual urges are motivated by increased testosterone levels. Based on theory integration, most sex offences are not motivated by an increased testosterone level but innate biological features, psychological disorders, and social factors making chemical castration and physical castration ineffective in curing most origins of sexual deviance.

Literature Review

This paper presents a critical analysis of the effects of chemical castration and physical castration on the recidivism rates of sex offenders. In this paper, the term sex offender is defined as a person who has been convicted of a sex crime and released back into the community either directly after sentencing or after serving time in prison for the commission of the sex crime. It should be noted that both men and women commit criminal sex acts, however, this paper will focus on the male offender. First and foremost, it is of prime importance to clarify the nature of rape and sex crimes. According to Groth and
Birnbaum's study in "Men Who Rape: the Psychology of the Offender" (1979), the motivation for rape and sex crimes stems most commonly from anger and the need to dominate, terrify, and humiliate one's victim, not from pent-up sexual desire.
"Rape is an act of violence in which sex is used as a weapon" (Benedict, 1992, p.14). Rape is



Bibliography: Akers, Ronald L. (1994). Criminological Theories. Los Angeles, CA: Roxbury Publishing Company. "Anti-Androgen Therapy and Surgical Castration". (1997). Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abuse. Retrieved on October 5, 2003 from http://www.atsa.com/ppantiandro.html Barbaree, H.E. & Marshall, W.L. (1988). Deviant sexual arousal, offense history, and demographic variables as predictors of reoffense among child molesters Barlow, Hugh D. (1993). Introduction to Criminology. New York, NY: Harper Collins College Publishers, Inc. Benedict, H. (1992). Virgin or Vamp. New York: Oxford University Press. Chawkins, S. (2002, July 9). Molester Who Had Himself Castrated Must Remain in Custody. The Los Angeles Times, B5 "Chemical Castration" Elliot, Delbert. (1985). Explaining Delinquency and Drug Use. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications. Albany, NY: University of New York Press. 1989. Perspectives on Offending. Cornish & Clarke. 1986 Groth, N Men Against Sexual Violence. Retrieved October 19, 2003 from http://www.menagainstsexualviolence.org Meyer, W Prentky, R., Lee, A., Knight, R., & Cerce, D. (1997). Recidivism rates among child molesters and rapists: A methodological analysis Rape, Abuse and Incest Network. Retreived November 26, 2003 from http://www.rainn.org/statistics.html "Recidivism of Sex Offenders" Rosler, A. & Witztum, E. (1998). "Treatment of Men with Paraphilia with a Long-Acting Analogue of Gonadotropin- Releasing Horomone" Ed: Messner, Krohn, and Liska. University of New York Press. Albany: NY. 1989. Tolbert, Tracy. (2004). Criminal Justice 404: Crime Theory, Causation, and Control Lecture Notes. California State University, Long Beach

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