Seguin Family Institute

Sex Offender Treatment

Sex offenders who ask for and receive the privilege of probation are required to demonstrate an honest effort at rehabilitation. This rehabilitation occurs in sex offender treatment. The following information, provided by the clinical staff of Seguin Family Institute, addresses some of the most frequently asked questions about sex offender treatment.

Sex offenders in treatment have a lot of rules…

Because most sex offenders do not have healthy internal rules concerning their behaviors and how they interact with others, they have to have time to learn new ones and then practice them. During this time, everyone must be safe. That means there will be many safety rules the offender must follow. Some of these rules may seem overly strict or even harsh. They are not meant to be. They are meant to provide a measure of safety to all concerned parties, including the offender. Research has shown that just being sorry a sexual crime happened is not enough to stop it from happening again. No one can say the crimes will not continue, but specialized treatment is aimed at reducing the risk. Rules are set in place to reduce any likelihood of prospective opportunities or victims. As the offender progresses in treatment and demonstrates an ability to make healthier choices, s/he will earn privileges and not have to live by as many rules. It is sometimes hard to understand and accept rules that limit contact with our loved ones. It is difficult to remember that the rules protect all of us, and they allow the time and space for real change to occur. If a re-offense should happen, many innocent people are hurt, including the offender. Most of the time, re-offense is a tragedy that can be prevented.

Though some rules are amended after an extensive evaluation and some time in treatment, all offenders entering treatment must abide by child safety rules. Some of these rules involve the offender's contact with children. This means s/he will not be allowed to have any contact with any children at all. No contact means just that - there can be no verbal, written, or physical contact. Vulnerable people can be hurt by things we don't even see, such as a look, a tone, or words that mean little to others. Our job is to protect everyone from these subtle manipulations or even seemingly innocent attempts to gain sympathy. Contact with children is not allowed anywhere - at anytime. Abuse can happen in a blink of an eye. Abuse can happen when everyone is asleep.

It is always better for the adult offender to temporarily leave the home instead of having the children stay elsewhere. This is because it is always easier to uproot an adult than it is to make children leave their familiar, safe surroundings. The offender and everyone else must be clear about the need for safety and the need to absolutely follow all safety rules. This is one of them. Another benefit of having the offender leave the family home is that the solitude offers the offender the space to concentrate and to practice new thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Additionally, the many strict rules the offender must follow are sure to feel like and even be an unfair punishment to children and other individuals in the home. The children are punished by not being able to have their friends over to play or spend the night. They may be punished by newspaper notices and gossip that frightens neighbors and prevents the children from having peer support. Again, it is important to separate out what is necessary and what is safe from what is comfortable for the offender or other adults. The children must always be protected.

Worship is an issue that is important. Many therapists believe that the whole person, including the person's spirit, is important and must be healed. Many offenders who have been recently arrested "find God," and they then believe they will never re-offend. Unfortunately, research on sexual offenses and re-offenses just does not bear this out! There have been many sexual offenses committed in church and/or against people who were met in church. So, offenders entering treatment are instructed to worship by alternative means, until such time as the offender demonstrates worship can occur without undue risk to others. Also, a chaperone who has been trained must be available to accompany the offender to services that allow children. Alternative means of worship include all adult services, private, in-home sessions with the pastor or priest, television or radio worship, and personal prayer.

Sex offenders must take responsibility for their crimes…

No one can change what s/he does not admit to doing. Sex offenders cannot really feel healthy and satisfied with their lives while they are holding onto dark secrets and painful, destructive realities. They cannot totally incorporate the lifelong safety rules they will need if they do not believe these rules apply to their lives. They cannot be partially honest or halfway safe. Offenders submit to frequent clinical issue-type polygraph examinations in an effort to determine their level of honesty and safety. They are confronted in group sessions on their distorted thinking and other habits that only serve to keep their deviance high and their self-esteems low. Sex offender treatment never involves the use of name-calling or shame-building techniques. It does involve intensive instruction and the expectation that change will occur. Confrontation is a therapeutic tool that is necessary and is utilized to meet these goals.

So, sex offender treatment is a long, difficult task. The verbal and written assignments focus on finding and changing the offender's deviant thinking-feeling-behaving chains. The offender is expected to be honest and to work hard in the treatment settings. S/he is polygraphed frequently, to help determine if s/he is following all the safety rules and is honestly trying to adopt the newer things being taught. S/he must follow many safety rules that are often strict and sometimes confusing. S/he is not allowed to remain in a victim stance, because it prevents him or her from claiming the healthy responsibility and opportunity to change for the better. Sex offender treatment can result in many positive changes for the offender and everyone else. It requires teamwork, and it requires dedication.

Sex offender treatment is a specialized treatment that is made up of many parts or components…

This treatment addresses the distorted or faulty thinking processes offenders have engaged in for a long time.
This treatment addresses the unhealthy emotional or feeling states that also have been a problem with many offenders.
The treatment will focus on the offender's behaviors, as many of these behaviors have been dangerous ones.
The offender will learn assertive communication styles, anger management skills, and appropriate relationship boundaries.
Healthy sexuality issues are addressed, as well as friendship definition and enhancement.
Stress management techniques include learning healthy coping responses and identifying unhealthy practices that may have even become addictions.
This treatment incorporates methods to reduce any deviant physiological arousal states the offender may have.
As you can see, there are many things sex offenders will be addressing in this long-term treatment. It is helpful to remember that sex offending happens as a result of several factors, many of which have been present for much of the offender's life. Real change takes time, as the offender has to learn a lot of new skills and then have the time to practice the new skills until they become healthier habits. To not allow this time is to invite the danger of re-offense. Many sex offender treatment programs can be completed in approximately 3 to 5 years, depending upon the offender's motivation and willingness to change.

Sex offender treatment is different from other forms of therapy…

Some of these differences include:

Clients do not usually refer themselves for sex offender treatment. This means that most of the program participants are mandated by a court of law to attend this specialized treatment.
Rules of attendance include the fact that the client must attend all sessions, s/he must be on time for all sessions, and s/he must attend this long-term treatment until such time as s/he has successfully graduated from the treatment program.
While engaging in the treatment program, the group member must demonstrate that s/he is achieving adequate progress in treatment. The therapist is the one who is charged with the responsibility of determining treatment procedures and goals, and the therapist must also determine treatment progress.
The therapist's professional relationship, responsibility, and loyalty must be shared between the client and the community. This means that sex offender therapists must always remember that vulnerable individuals in the offender's community must be protected from all suspected danger, including the danger presented by known sex offenders. The clients in this treatment are known sex offenders.