One myth about sexual offenders that I was surprised is not true is that recidivate rates are high. Given the popularity of news in television of sexual offenders that have reoffended after being released from prison, it has strengthened my belief that cases of recidivism are high. I believe that many sex offenders are rearrested for new sex crimes. Further, I have also hold the belief that sex offenders are difficult to rehabilitate. Because of the many media reports, I feel that treatment does not work for sex offenders and so they need longer prison terms (Fortney et al., 2007). Another myth that I believed is that sex crimes are on the rise. I was surprised that sex crimes are decreasing because the prevalence of these cases on the media makes me believe that sex crimes are on the rise. The many cases of sex crimes on television influence my belief that sex crimes are on the rise (Fortney et al., 2007).
One fact that surprised me most is that that about 49% of victims under the age of 6 are abused by family members and only 7% of sex crimes against minors are committed by strangers. This is a surprising fact because strangers through crimes such as kidnappings or manipulation often commit cases of sex crimes reported on the media. I was also surprised that relatives or associates commit 73% of adult sexual assault cases. I have held the belief that strangers attack most adult victims (Fortney et al., 2007). For example, I have held the belief that strangers often attack victims such as women at night as they go home or while stranded in ‘shady’ neighborhoods.
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I think that there so many myths and unfounded facts about sexual offenders because of extensive media coverage on select cases. Most people know information about sex offenders through the media and this information can be misleading because it is not conclusive. Further, many people have not read credible statistics and data about sex offenders. People do not find time to read books and credible articles about sex offenders and so they hold misconceptions because of limited information they gain from the media (Fortney et al., 2007).
- Fortney, T., Levenson, J., Brannon, Y., & Baker, J. N. (2007). Myths and facts about sexual offenders: Implications for treatment and public policy. Sexual Offender Treatment, 2(1), 1-15.
