Stepchild of Psychoanalysis: ‘Paedophilia’ in Early Psychodynamic Thought

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diederik F. Janssen
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Forensic Psychology ◽  
Early History ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
History Of Sexuality ◽  
Psychodynamic Theory ◽  
Psychodynamically Oriented ◽  
History Of ◽  
Historical References

Mainstream theorizing of paedophilia from the mid-1920s through to mid-1960, and even into the 1980s, was importantly psychodynamically oriented. The early history of the concept of paedophilia in early psychodynamic thought is problematic, however. Extant historical references are not without problems of their own, and have suffered from a lack of insight in the wider history of sexuality at this point of ‘erotic age preferences’. Review of primary sources highlights several contemporaneous interfaces of early psychodynamic theory: with the established forensic psychology of perpetrators of child sexual abuse; Krafft-Ebing's specific aetiological concept of age fetishism; early study and typologies of homosexual age preferences; emergent and divergent ideas about psychosexual infantilism; and strikingly late empirical attention to the psychiatry of the perpetrator of intergenerational incest.

Is there a Relationship between Sexual Abuse or Incest and Eating Disorders?

1986 ◽  
Vol 31 (7) ◽  
pp. 656-660 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Sloan ◽  
P. Leichner
Keyword(s):  
Eating Disorders ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Anorexia Nervosa ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Sexual Trauma ◽  
Early History ◽  
Eating Disordered ◽  
Sexual Conflicts ◽  
History Of

The significance of sexual conflicts in many patients with eating disorders has been well documented. However, even when these have been considered to have some degree of etiological importance, the occurrence of actual sexual trauma or incest in the early lives of these patients has been generally neglected in the literature. At one point in time, it was noted that five of six patients on an inpatient unit for eating disorders revealed an early history of sexual abuse or incest. These five cases are described. A parallel is drawn between the psychological problems experienced by victims of childhood sexual abuse and by patients with anorexia nervosa and/or bulimia. Our suspicion that these experiences may not be atypical led to the present article, which has implications for the investigation and management of eating-disordered patients.

The Gibraltar Skull: early history, 1848–1868

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Menez
Keyword(s):  
Human Evolution ◽  
Early History ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
History Of

The Gibraltar Skull is Gibraltar's most celebrated fossil and the first adult Neanderthal skull ever found. Very little is known about its discovery and history while it was in Gibraltar. The skull was sent to London in 1864. There it formed a key component in the debates about human evolution and especially how Neanderthal 1, the Feldhofer skull, was understood. As such, it was instrumental in initiating the new field of palaeoanthropology. This paper draws on published and unpublished, primary sources to re-evaluate the early history of the Gibraltar Skull and provides fresh interpretations of this history.

Examination Findings in Legally Confirmed Child Sexual Abuse: It's Normal to be Normal

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 94 (3) ◽  
pp. 310-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce A. Adams ◽  
Katherine Harper ◽  
Sandra Knudson ◽  
Juliette Revilla
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Classification System ◽  
Sexually Abused ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
History Of ◽  
Case Files ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Physical Findings ◽  
Behavioral Information

Background. Studies of alleged victims of child sexual abuse vary greatly in the reported frequency of physical findings based on differences in definition of abuse and of "findings." This study was designed to determine the frequency of abnormal findings in a population of children with legal confirmation of sexual abuse, using a standardized classification system for colposcopic photographic findings. Methods. Case files and colposcopic photographs of 236 children with perpetrator conviction for sexual abuse, were reviewed. The photos were reviewed blindly by a team member other than the examiner, and specific anatomical findings were noted and classified as normal to abnormal on a scale of 1 to 5. Historical and behavioral information, as well as legal outcome was recorded, and all data entered into a dBase III program. Correlations were sought between abnormal findings and other variables. Results. The mean age of the patients was 9.0 years (range 8 months to 17 years, 11 months), with 63% reporting penile-genital contact. Genital examination findings in girls were normal in 28%, nonspecific in 49%, suspicious in 9%, and abnormal in 14% of cases. Abnormal anal findings were found in only 1% of patients. Using discriminant analysis, the two factors which significantly correlated with the presence of abnormal genital findings in girls were the time since the last incident, and a history of blood being reported at the time of the molest. Conclusions. Abnormal genital findings are not common in sexually abused girls, based on a standardized classification system. More emphasis should be placed on documenting the child's description of the molestation, and educating prosecutors that, for children alleging abuse: "It's normal to be normal."

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