Some Psychological Dimensions of Mentally Retarded Sex Offenders

This study compared mentally retarded sex offenders and non-offenders on measures of hostility towards women, general hostility, self-esteem, loneliness, and depression. A total of 22 males participated in the study. Half of the participants were mentally retarded sex offenders and half had mental disabilities but no reported history of offending behavior. Comparisons indicated that mentally retarded sex offenders scored significantly higher than non-offenders on the Hostility Towards Women Scale. Mean scores on the general hostility, self-esteem, loneliness, and depression scales, while not significant, were in the predicted directions. Implications of the study and future research are discussed.