Cycle of Sexual Abuse: Research Inconclusive About Whether Child Victims Become Adult Abusers
A Summary of Twenty-five Studies

Only two studies were prospective. These began with samples of sexually victimized children and tracked them into adulthood to determine how many became sex offenders. A number of the retrospective studies found that a substantial percentage of adult sex offenders of children said they had been sexually abused as children. However, a majority of the studies found that most offenders said they had not been sexually abused during childhood. These studies varied in terms of their estimates of the percentages of such offenders who had been abused, from zero to 79 percent, partly because of differences in the types of offenders studied and in how childhood sexual abuse was defined and measured.

In general, because they had several methodological shortcomings, these studies offered insufficient evidence that being sexually abused as a child led directly to the victim's becoming an adult sex offender. The two prospective studies employed analytic methods that were better suited to establishing such a link than were the retrospective studies. Respectively, about 7 percent and 26 percent of sexually abused children in these studies were found to be sex offenders as adults. However, the various design and measurement problems of the prospective studies precluded the drawing of definitive conclusions from them as well. Nevertheless, overall, the retrospective studies, prospective studies, and research reviews indicated that the experience of childhood sexual victimization is quite likely neither a necessary nor a sufficient cause of adult sexual offending. 

The two prospective studies concluded that the majority of victims of sexual abuse during childhood did not become sex offenders as adults. Therefore, childhood sexual victimization would not necessarily lead to adult sexual offending. In addition, the majority of retrospective studies concluded that most adult sex offenders against children did not report that they were sexually victimized as children. Therefore, childhood sexual victimization would probably not be sufficient to explain adult sexual offending. While some studies indicated that sexual victimization in childhood may increase the risk that victims will become sexual offenders as adults, other studies found that many other conditions and experiences might also be associated with an increased risk. For example, one prospective study we reviewed found that children who were neglected were even more likely than children who were sexually abused to commit sex offenses as adults. 

For a free copy of the report, request GAO/GGD-96-178 from: U.S. General Accounting Office P.O. Box 6015 Gaithersburg, MD
20884-6015