Current sex offending legislation and public opinion present an image of sexual offenders as specialized predators who are likely to exhibit continued sexually deviant behavior over the life-course. Although sex offending continuity and post-release recidivism has been independently assessed in prior research, the potential link between sex offending continuity and post-release recidivism has yet to be investigated. In addressing this issue, the current study found that the multivariate results showed a low rate of sex offending continuity in general, but they suggest the presence of identifiable risk factors that predict sex offending continuity. Specifically, non-sexual juvenile offending was the most notable of the numerous risk factors found to be associated with those displaying sex offending continuity from adolescence into adulthood. Subsequent analyses also revealed a significant association between sex offending continuity and sexual recidivism but not general recidivism. Policy implications, study limitations, and directions for future research are discussed. (Publisher abstract modified)
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