Fixed-Role Therapy With Multiple Paraphilias

Abstract

Paraphilias, or sexually deviant behaviors, are especially difficult to address when an individual displaysmore than one sexual deviation at one time. Acase of an incarcerated forensic client who displayed symptoms of sadism, masochism, and hebephilia is described. Fixed-role therapy (FRT), a dramaturgical approach to treatmentwhere a client enacts a new character or role based on how he or she would like to act, was employed with at least short-termsuccess in one case. Some of the advantages and limitations of FRT are discussed.