Beyond pro- and anti-contact: Understanding the ideologies of people attracted to children

Lievesley, R ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4957-258X, Harper, C ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3172-0129, Awan, A and Bishop, A, 2025. Beyond pro- and anti-contact: Understanding the ideologies of people attracted to children. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy. ISSN 0092-623X (Forthcoming)

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Abstract

In the past decade, there has been increased academic and social attention paid to people who are living in the community and experience sexual and/or romantic attractions to children. Most of this attention has focused on determining risk or identifying treatment needs in abuse prevention contexts. However, research into the ideologies (broadly defined as action-oriented belief systems) of people within this community is still scarce. In this paper, we challenge the common assumption that people who are attracted to children are divisible into pro-contact and anti-contact groups on the issue of sexual interactions with children. Using one of the largest currently available online studies of individuals who are attracted to children (N = 389), we develop a model and associated measurement tool showing how ideological positioning is associated with views about the permissibility of sexual contact with children and the extent to which people experience self-acceptance. We further show how these ideological positions are linked to different self-labeling, treatment needs, and risk. We close the paper by providing a novel framework for understanding the effects of different ideological positions for clinical practice and provide a professional assessment tool for use by therapists working with this population in treatment settings.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy
Creators:	Lievesley, R., Harper, C., Awan, A. and Bishop, A.
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis (Routledge)
Date:	30 May 2025
ISSN:	0092-623X
Identifiers:	Number Type 2447981 Other
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Jeremy Silvester
Date Added:	04 Jun 2025 10:32
Last Modified:	04 Jun 2025 10:32
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/53690

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