ABSTRACT
Studies have repeatedly confirmed that psychopathy is associated with violence and crime in general. The general disinhibition of psychopaths has been suggested to be a contributing factor to the development of an antisocial lifestyle that could be linked to an increase in the likelihood of committing sex offenses. The current chapter examines the research on the relationships between psychopathy and sexual offending. We argue that as with general violence, psychopathic individuals are instrumental in their use of sexual violence. Contrary to various studies suggesting that sexual violence is mainly driven by paraphilias and deviant sexual arousal, the current chapter shows that psychopaths use sexual violence to make gains, using such strategies as targeting different types of victims, using a higher level of violence, and committing sadistic acts on their victims.
