ABSTRACT
As noted in the beginning of this textbook, a great deal of sex-offender research has been conducted over the past several decades. While we know much more about sex offenders today than we knew in the past, there are still many unanswered questions. Researchers have just begun to scratch the surface. Furthermore, throughout history, there has been a pendulum swing from indifference towards sex crimes and sex offenders to a moral panic about them. This has shaped many of the myths that surround sex crimes and sex offenders, which has affected sex-offender identification, treatment and punishment, research, and policy development. In this chapter, we provide a summary of many of the myths that surround sex crimes and sex offenders with attention to potential future directions for research.
