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- Intra and extra-familial child sexual abuse: The role of psychopathyPublication . Sousa, Marta; Cunha, Olga; Gonçalves, Rui Abrunhosa; De Castro Rodrigues, AndreiaThe present study analyses the relationship between psychopathic traits, the four facets of psychopathy (i.e., interpersonal, affective, lifestyle, and antisocial), and the type of crime committed (i.e., intrafamilial and extrafamilial child sexual abuse; and nonsexual crimes). The Self-Report Psychopathy Scale – Short Form (SRP-SF) and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale – Short Form were completed by 110 male individuals who sexually offended minors (ISOMs) and 146 individuals convicted for nonsexual crimes. Four binary logistic regression analyses were conducted, controlling for sociodemographic, criminal, and individual variables. ISOMs are less likely to score high in the SRP-SF total score and the interpersonal facet and more likely to score high in the affective facet than individuals with nonsexual crimes. Besides, ISOMs are less likely to have a prior history of alcohol and drug abuse and to have previous contact with the justice system but are more likely to have a history of psychological problems. Therefore, only the prior alcohol and drug abuse history emerged as predictors for ISOMs subtypes. According to our results, psychopathic traits should not be considered in the assessment and intervention of ISOMs, and the focus of the intervention should be on the affective dimension and the level of psychopathology
- The portuguese version of victim empathy distortion scale: Adaptation and psychometric propertiesPublication . Sousa, Marta; Cunha, Olga; Gonçalves, Rui Abrunhosa; De Castro Rodrigues, AndreiaVictim empathy is a common intervention target in intervention programs designed for individuals who perpetrated child sexual abuse (CSA). Researchers have developed the Victim Empathy Distortion Scale (VES), an instrument designed to assess empathy for victims of CSA. The present study aims to adapt the VES for the Portuguese population and examine its psychometric properties. One hundred and twelve individuals who perpetrated CSA and 245 individuals from the community participated in this study. The confirmatory factor analysis did not show satisfactory indices for the structures previously tested. Consequently, the search for an alternative model revealed a two-factor structure, explaining approximately 50% of the total variance. Results also indicated good internal consistency, discriminant validity, and known-groups validity. Overall, the results support the claim that the Portuguese version of the VES is a valuable and psychometrically reliable instrument for measuring victim empathy in forensic and non-forensic settings. © The Author(s) 2024.
- To be or not to be empathic: The role of empathy in child sexual offendingPublication . Sousa, Marta; Cunha, Olga; Gonçalves, Rui Abrunhosa; De Castro Rodrigues, AndreiaAlthough treatment providers very often use empathy training in treatment for those who sexually offend, it is essential to further investigate the predictive capacity of this construct for committing a child sexual offending. This study aimed to examine the relationship between empathy and different types of offending behavior (i.e., child sexual offending and nonsexual offending). The sample was composed of 113 male individuals who sexually offended minors (ISOMs) and 146 individuals convicted of nonsexual crimes. Four separate binary logistic regression analyses were conducted controlling for sociodemographic variables. Only cognitive empathy emerged as a predictor for committing a sexual crime against a minor, with ISOMs being more likely to score less in cognitive empathy than the nonsexual group. Therefore, extrafamilial ISOMs are more likely to score higher in cognitive empathy than intrafamilial. This study highlighted the importance of addressing cognitive empathy in psychological intervention for ISOMs.
- Positive childhood experiences and adult outcomes: A systematic reviewPublication . Cunha, Olga; Sousa, Marta; Pereira, Bárbara; Pinheiro, Marina; Machado, Ana Beatriz; Caridade, S.; Almeida, TelmaAlthough positive childhood experiences (PCEs) may serve as protective factors against the negative consequences of childhood adversity, they have been less extensively studied. However, more recently, there has been a growing interest in understanding the role of these experiences. This systematic review aims to address this research gap by systematizing the existing literature on PCEs and examining their relationship with both positive and negative outcomes. A comprehensive search of databases such as B-On, PsycINFO, PubMed, SCOPUS, and Scielo identified 87 studies that met the inclusion criteria. Different studies have employed various designs and samples to investigate the relationship between PCEs and adult outcomes. The findings suggest that higher levels of PCEs are consistently associated with better mental health outcomes, such as decreased depressive symptoms, anxiety, and suicidal behaviors, as well as improved psychosocial well-being, including reduced perceived stress and increased life satisfaction. Conflicting results were found for behavioral outcomes, physical health, stressful life events, and parenting and family functioning. In addition, the interaction effect of PCEs on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in adulthood is inconsistent. PCEs and ACEs appear to be independent sets of experiences that often coexist, with PCEs frequently not moderating the consequences of adversity on outcomes. More research with diverse samples is needed to better understand the role of PCEs.