Perhaps no single act causes such strong emotions as the act of child sexual abuse. Child molesters can not even find refuge in prisons where rapists and murderers are commonplace. These offenders are shunned in every aspect of our society, yet there is no consensus as to the causes of this behavior.

Sexual abuse of children is not new, and has not always been socially taboo. The ancient Greeks and Romans used children for sexual gratification (Mayer, 1983). In Greece, it was commonplace for adolescent males to be forced into sexual relationships with mature males. This behavior was normal and not objected to by the child’s parents or the Greek government (Mayer, 1983). The Romans encouraged adolescent boys and girls not to protest being sold into prostitution. The Roman government even went so far as to declare a public holiday honoring young prostitutes.

The effects of childhood sexual abuse are frequently lifelong and severe. The effects of sexual abuse are so profound because sexuality is so personal but als

Pedophilia has often been linked with previous emotional, physical, or sexual trauma. This trauma becomes so painful that it results in underdevelopment or a stifling of future development. According to this line of reasoning this underdevelopment will not allow a person to mature emotionally as his or her body matures. The pedophile is the emotional equivalent of a child, and thus depends on them and begins to view them as sexual objects as well. Using children in a sexual manner to cope with anxiety is reinforced and becomes a normal behavior pattern.

Because of the extreme sensitivity of the subject, research in this field is quite underdeveloped. Researchers have even had trouble in agreeing what to call the phenomenon. Much research on the victims has dubbed the act as child sexual abuse, most research on the offenders has labeled it as child molesting or pedophilia. The term pedophilia has some utility since it suggests a predisposition for the act separate from the act itself. The ambiguity of this term however, is what causes confusion. Pedophilia can mean child sexual abuse ranging from an arousal to children with no or little action, to sexual penetration of the child. For the purposes of this paper the terms pedophilia, child sexual abuse, and child molestation will be used interchangeably.

Sex with children in the modern era is alive and well, the power of an older person is so great that their young victims often never tell of the horrors that they have endured.

Child pornography and advertising have been targeted by some feminists as having a role in the onset of pedophilia (Hunter, 1990). The reasoning for these beliefs is based on the assumption that viewing pornography eroticizes children, and teaches adolescents to become aroused by children.

Carnes suggested three separate levels of addiction within this model. Level one addicts are associated with pornography, compulsive masturbation, repeatedly engaging in purely sexual relationships with no other meaning, and prostitution. Level two behaviors include illegal sexual acts with another person being victimized emotionally, but

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