Differences of Personality, Defensiveness, and Compliance Between Admitting and Denying Male Sex Offenders

Abstract

This study assessed predicted psychological differences between denying (n = 30) and admitting (n = 72) male sex offenders within the framework of Eysenck's theory on the personality of criminals. The Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) and Gudjonsson's Compliance Questionnaire (CQ) were administered to consenting participants who were probationers in court-ordered group therapy at an outpatient clinic. Denying sex offenders were found to have relatively high tendencies to dissimulate on the EPQ and to present themselves as emotionally stable. On the CQ, deniers showed greater ability to withstand pressure from others than admitters. The results suggest that including the EPQ and the CQ in a test battery designed to screen defensive sex offenders increases the validity of such psychological assessment in forensic and treatment settings.