Enhancement of victim empathy along with reduction in anxiety and increase of positive cognition of sex offenders after treatment with EMDR: Maintenance after three years

Treatment of sex offenders who have been themselves sexually abused in their childhood, offers a significant challenge for many therapists. The traumas related to abuse are unique to the individual offender and need to be addressed to enhance victim empathy that is so crucial in breaking the cycle of offense. Treatment of a group of sexually abused adolescent sex offenders using eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) showed reduction in anxiety and increase in positive cognition. A pre- and post-treatment evaluation using the Datta Empathy Scale (DES), after an average of 3 sessions, showed a significant increase in empathy for respective victims. The victim empathy (using DES), anxiety (using SUDS0, and cognition control (using VoC scale) were also measured in the available subjects one year after and three years after the cessation of EMDR treatment, the results showed a sustaining effect of EMDR on victim empathy, anxiety, and positive cognition.

Conference

English

Purna C. Datta
Jack W. Wallace

Datta, P. C., & Wallace, J. W. (1996, November). Enhancement of victim empathy along with reduction in anxiety and increase of positive cognition of sex offenders after treatment with EMDR: Maintenance after three years. Presentation at the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy Conference, New York