Hope As a Protective Factor: The Relationship of Hopefulness to Sexual and Nonsexual Crimes Among Juvenile Sexual Abusers

Background and Purpose:

More than half of all youth are exposed to trauma each year, yet its impact on sexually abusive behaviors requires further exploration. Retrospective research indicates statistically significant pathways from early adverse childhood experiences to sexual aggression. However, the pathways to delinquent behavior need further delineation. Researchers have begun to identify how the sequelae of trauma, specifically hopelessness, impacts delinquency. While researchers have explored hopeless feelings among adult sexual abusers, little attention has been paid to the role of hope/hopelessness among juveniles who commit sexual crimes with trauma histories. The purpose of this study was to first test the associations between trauma and hopelessness and then test the role of hopelessness in sexual and non-sexual criminality among youth who have committed acts of sexual abuse.

Methods:

Surveys were administered to a racially diverse group of male adolescent sexual abusers (N = 497), ranging from 12 to 20 years (M = 16.6, SD = 1.52), placed in residential facilities in a Midwestern state. Sexual crimes were measured with the Self Report Aggression Scale, a multi-item inventory used in prior studies. Delinquent behaviors were measured using the Self-Reported Delinquency scale. Subtypes of abuse and neglect were measured with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Personality traits were measured with the Millon Adolescent Clinical Inventory. Finally, hopefulness was measured with the Hopelessness Scale for Children. All measures had strong psychometric qualities. Correlations were run to determine the relationship between trauma and hopelessness, as well as numerous sexual and nonsexual crimes. A final multivariate ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model was run that regressed non-sexual criminality on trauma and hopelessness.

Results:

Significant relationships were found between high levels of hopelessness and enduring personality traits associated with depression, which is commonly found among trauma survivors. All subtypes of trauma measured in the CTQ (abuse and neglect) were positively correlated with hopelessness with the exception of sexual abuse. Furthermore, hopelessness was not correlated to sexual crime characteristics, such as force or number of victims, but was significantly related to a variety of nonsexual crimes. In the final regression model, early sexual victimization and hopelessness predicted nonsexual criminality, F(2, 246) = 10.62, p < .001 (r = .23).  

Conclusions and Implications:

This study confirmed associations between trauma and hopelessness, and revealed that hopelessness was associated with non-sexual offenses among youth with sexually abusive behavior. This is one of the first studies suggesting that hopelessness may contribute to an underlying psychological pathway to non-sexual recidivism among youth who commit sexual offenses. Hope and a positive outlook for the future have been found to be distinctive mechanisms for deterrence among general delinquent youth. Implication of this research include addressing hopelessness in risk reduction efforts, along with targeting protective factors and increasing opportunities to incorporate to more holistic practices with attention to vulnerabilities among youth. Such strategies can include mindfulness practices and future oriented interventions. Further research should also account for the role of mental health in understanding pathways to sexual and non-sexual behaviors.