Citation

Saramago MA, Cardoso J, Leal I. Sex. Abuse 2018; ePub(ePub): 1079063218800472.

Affiliation

ISPA-Instituto Universitário, Lisboa, Portugal.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1079063218800472

PMID

30238826

Abstract

Sex offenders who cross over in victims' age, gender and relationship usually have a greater number of victims, which is associated with sexual recidivism. This investigation aimed to examine the prevalence of crossover index offending in Portugal, and to explore the predictive ability of sociodemographic and criminological variables on this outcome. A retrospective sample of 247 male individuals incarcerated for sex offenses in a Portuguese prison was drawn from official records. From those offenders with multiple victims ( n = 94), 48% had victims of different age categories, 10% had both gendered victims, and 12% had intrafamilial and extrafamilial victims. Comparative statistics and logistic regressions were able to identify variables that distinguished noncrossover and crossover offenders and that predicted crossover, respectively. While likely underestimates of the prevalence of victim crossover, these findings are compared to previous international studies and provide a better understanding of the phenomenon.

Language: en

Keywords

Sexual Abuse; crossover; polymorphism; sex offender; victim selection