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Causes and Context Clinical Data: Sexual History and Experience

Clinicians at the treatment centers elicited detailed devel-opmental histories from the priests they treated together with a detailed history of sexual experience from each priest. Whether or not the priests were referred for treat-ment of problems with sexuality, three-quarters of the priests about whom we have data had sexual relations with Classification Type Risk Group Reference of Comparison Group

Based on Referral to Treatment Classification

1 Sexual Abuse of

Minors Inappropriate Adult Sexual Activity 2 Sexual Abuse of

Minors Mental Health/Substance Abuse Issues 3 Sexual Abuse of

Minors No Known Problems

4 Sexual Abuse of Minors

Inappropriate Adult Sexual Activity + Mental Health/Substance Abuse Issues

5 Sexual Abuse of Minors

Mental Health/Substance Abuse Issues + No Known Problems

6 Sexual Abuse of

Minors Inappropriate Adult Sexual Activity + Mental

Health/Substance Abuse Issues + No Known Problems Based on

Information Obtained During Treatment

7 Any Sexual Activity All Other Clergy 8 Sexual Activity with

Minors All Other Clergy

9 Same Sex Activity All Other Clergy 10 Sexual Activity with

Minors All Other Clergy Not Participating in Any Sexual Activity

11 Same Sex Activity All Other Clergy Not Participating in Any Sexual Activity

Table 3.3 Causes and Context Study: Comparison Groups of Clergy for Analysis of MMPI and MCMI Results

MMPI

Clinical Scale HARRIS-LINGOES SUBSCALES Scale 2:

Depression D1: Subjective Depression D2: Psychomotor Retardation D3: Physical Malfunctioning D4: Mental Dullness

D5: Brooding Scale 3:

Hysteria Hy1: Denial of Social Anxiety Hy2: Need for Affection Hy3: Lassitude-Malaise Hy4: Somatic Complaints Hy5: Inhibition of Aggression Scale 4:

Psychopathic Deviate Pd1: Familial Discord Pd2: Authority Problems Pd3: Social Imperturbability Pd4: Social Alienation Pd5: Self-Alienation Scale 6:

Paranoia Pa1: Persecutory Ideas Pa2: Poignancy Pa3: Naiveté Scale 8:

Schizophrenia Sc1: Social Alienation Sc2: Emotional Alienation

Sc3: Lack of Ego Mastery, Cognitive Sc4: Lack of Ego Mastery, Conative

Sc5: Lack of Ego Mastery, Defective Inhibition Sc6: Bizarre Sensory Experiences

Scale 9:

Hypomania Ma1: Amorality

Ma2: Psychomotor Acceleration Ma3: Imperturbability

Table 3.4 Harris-Lingoes Subscales

an adult and/or a minor after ordination. The review of the extensive sexual experience data yields the following find-ings about pre-seminary, in-seminary and post-ordination sexual behavior (those that are significant are indicated as such [p < .05]).253

• Priests who participated in sexual behavior prior to entering the seminary were significantly more likely to participate in post-ordination sexual behavior, though the sexual partner was more likely to be an adult than a minor.

• Priests who participated in sexual behavior while in the seminary were more likely to have post-ordination sexual behavior than those who did not participate in any in-seminary sexual behavior, though the post-ordination sexual partners were more likely to be adults than minors. Priests with in-seminary sexual behavior and priests without in-seminary sexual behavior were equally as likely to have minor victims.

• Priests who masturbated more frequently post- ordination were also more likely to have post- ordination sexual behavior; however, there was not a significant relationship between post-ordination masturbation fre-quency and whether the post-ordination sexual behav-ior involved minors or adults.

• Priests who used pornography post-ordination were more likely to have post-ordination sexual behavior.

These priests were also more likely than priests who did not use pornography post-ordination to partici-pate in sexual behavior with both adults and minors.

• Priests who used paper, video, or multiple types of pornography post-ordination were more likely than those who only used cyber pornography to have post-ordination sexual behavior. Priests who used more than one type of pornography post-ordination were the only group that was significantly more likely to have child victims than adult victims (although the overall number of clergy files reporting this informa-tion was low [n = 72] for all post-ordinainforma-tion pornog-raphy activity).

• Priests who, as minors and/or in a family context, were involved in discussions about sex as a “taboo”

subject or who never discussed sex at all as minors or in a family were more likely to have post-ordination sexual behavior. However, there was not a significant relationship between how sex was discussed in the home and whether the post-ordination sexual behav-ior involved a child or an adult. The majority of all priests in the sample reported having sex described to them in a negative context (sex was introduced either as taboo or was not discussed at all).

Because of the large number of sexual abuse victims who were male minors, the role of homosexuality in the abuse of minors by priests has been a notable question.

In this context, it is necessary to differentiate between sexual identity and sexual behavior, and questions about sexual identity are complex and difficult to measure. To this end, the data in this investigation were evaluated by considering the sexual behavior of men prior to entering seminary in order to determine whether men who exhibit certain behaviors had a higher likelihood of committing post-ordination sexual behavior. It is important to note that sexual behavior does not necessarily correspond to a particular sexual identity.254 The data show the following about priests who experienced same-sex sexual behavior before entrance into the seminary (findings that are statis-tically significant are indicated as such [p < .05]):

• Priests with pre-ordination same-sex sexual behavior were significantly more likely to participate in post-ordination sexual behavior, but these priests were more likely to participate in sexual behavior with adults than minors. Same-sex sexual behavior prior to ordination did not significantly predict the sexual abuse of minors.

• After analyzing pre-seminary and in-seminary same-sex same-sexual behavior separately, only in-seminary (not pre-seminary) same-sex sexual behavior was signifi-cantly related to post-ordination sexual behavior.

Priests with in-seminary same-sex sexual behavior were more likely to have sexual experiences with adults than minors, and they were not significantly more likely to sexually abuse minors than priests with no same-sex sexual behavior in-seminary.

• However, pre-seminary and in-seminary sexual behav-ior were significantly related to each other, such that the majority of priests who had pre-seminary same-sex experiences also often had in-seminary same-same-sex experiences and vice versa.

• Priests with pre-ordination same-sex sexual behavior who did sexually abuse a minor after ordination were more likely to have a male child victim than a female child victim.

• However, after considering pre-seminary and in-seminary sexual behavior separately, only in-in-seminary (not pre-seminary) same-sex sexual behavior was sig-nificantly related to the increased likelihood of a male child victim.

• Priests with pre-ordination same-sex sexual behavior and post-ordination sexual behavior with adults were significantly more likely to have sexual encounters with adult males than females.

• After analyzing pre-seminary and in-seminary sex-ual behavior separately, both pre-seminary and in-seminary same-sex sexual behaviors were sig-nificantly related to the gender of an adult partner post-ordination:

• Priests with pre-seminary same-sex sexual behavior were much more likely to choose male adult sexual partners, whereas priests without pre-seminary homosexual behavior were more evenly split between female and male adult sex-ual partners.

• Priests with in-seminary same-sex sexual behavior were much more likely to choose male adult sex-ual partners, although in this case, priests with-out in-seminary homosexual behavior were more likely to choose female adult sexual partners.

With respect to sexual identity (referring to the gen-der of the person to whom someone is sexually attracted), the clinical files showed the following information. Find-ings that are statistically significant are indicated as such [p < .05]:

• Priests who identified themselves at the time of treat-ment as gay/homosexual, bisexual, or confused, were more likely to have post-ordination sexual behavior than those who considered themselves to be hetero-sexual, though the nonheterosexual priests were more likely to participate in sexual behavior with adults

than with minors. Those who identified themselves as bisexual or confused were significantly more likely to have minor victims than priests who identified as either homosexual or heterosexual, although the number of priests who identified themselves in this manner was very small in comparison to the number of priests who labeled themselves as either homosex-ual or heterosexhomosex-ual.

• Priests with positive views toward homosexuality were most likely to have post-ordination sexual behavior, followed by those with a negative view and then those with a neutral view. Priests with positive views toward homosexuality were also more likely to have adult sexual partners, whereas priests with negative views toward homosexuality were more likely (but not sig-nificantly) to have minor victims than those with positive or neutral views.

• Priests who identified as gay/homosexual or confused while in seminary were more likely to have adult male sexual partners while in seminary. Priests who iden-tified as heterosexual were more likely to have adult female sexual partners while in seminary.

• There was not a significant relationship between in-seminary sexuality identification and post-ordination sexual behavior with adults or minors.

• There was not a significant relationship between in-seminary sexuality identification and whether the sexual behavior post-ordination was with an adult or a minor.

HISTORY OF SEXUAL ABUSE