Places, Guardians and Sexual Crimes

• In Event: Sexual Violence & Abuse from the Situational Crime Prevention and Opportunity Perspective

Abstract

Sexual crimes are often characterized as irrational, but this depiction is questionable in light of previous studies having identified situational patterns in decisions made during such crimes. These findings indicate that offenders consider costs and benefits, and overall suggest that prevention is possible by disrupting these costs and benefits. In the present paper, we examine the influence of varying costs present in the environment of occurrence of the sexual offenses committed by a sample of 759 male offenders. The first environmental cost considered relates to type of place (outside or inside, private of public) and the risks of outside intervention it holds. The second type of costs concerns the presence and type of guardians who can deter offenders from initiating and completing an assault. Results will be presented that consider the impact of both types of costs, individually and in interaction, on the completion and severity of sexual assaults. Implications for prevention will be discussed.

Author

• Amelie Pedneault, Washington State University