3. COGNITIVE DISTORTION THEORY 

Some theories of paedophilia have a moral-cum-ideological basis. Wyre's views (in Tate, 1990) illustrate this. Such approaches often have little basis in systematic research and theory; nevertheless their capacity to attract publicity makes them influential. They may be advocated during training courses for professionals and thus gain currency away from the public record (Jenkins, 1992). 

Wyre argues that paedophiles use whatever means they can to validate their activities -- thus, pornography is a source of reassurance. In pornography, for example, offenders see other adults doing much the same things that they do or want to do. This creates an aura of normality about offending which may disengage their inhibitions against offending as part of an "escalation" process: 

"They may start off with mutual masturbation, but even that disturbing level of behaviour appears to escalate under the influence of child pornography so that they will follow the images through oral and vaginal sex to full anal penetration." 
(Wyre, in Tate, 1990, p. 24) 

He rejects the suggestion that pornography serves as a "safety valve" which diverts sexual energy away from offending. Paedophilia is an addiction, not cured by providing fuel to that addiction. 

Among the characteristic cognitive style of paedophiles is minimalization of their offending. Due to this, offenders' criminal records are usually incomplete or inaccurate: 

"I would make an assumption that ... there may be a whole range of undisclosed offending that we do not know anything about. Again in practice it may not be true but this is an assumption I would make." 
(Wyre, 1989, p. 17) 

Furthermore, the offender's choice of language may redefine the abuse as something consensual and desired by the child: 

"If he says that he had 'oral sex' I would immediately confront that and say 'no, you put your penis in his mouth'. I know he is using the term 'oral sex' in order to imply there was mutual consent." 
(Wyre, 1989, p. 19) 

[Page 137]

Child abusers often excuse their offending on the basis of family break-up or unemployment. Blame is also attributed to wives who refuse sex or to pressures at work. These are nothing but excuses: 

"When they eventually become honest about it -- if they do -- they admit they are sexually attracted to children and that their masturbation fantasies, far from being those of normally adjusted men, are those of fixated paedophiles who have had and will continue to have sex with children." 
(Wyre, in Tate, 1990, p. 56) 

Partly for this reason, incest and paedophilia should not be regarded as separate and different phenomena; they are "inextricably linked". All types of offender are "just ordinary men" who are adroit at hiding their sexual feelings. 

The excuses also extend to blaming the child. Claims that the abuse was an accident are common: 

"One offender told me that the abuse of his daughter happened when he turned round and his penis 'just went in her mouth.'" 
(Wyre, in Tate, 1990, p. 106) 

This propensity to shift the blame has to be confronted in order to begin to control abusers. Professionals (police, psychologists, social workers) may inadvertently reinforce this other-blame due to ignorance: 

"... if you don't treat the behavioural side first you are colluding with them and they will grasp that -- they will grab any excuse they can to shed the responsibility for what they have done. And you must remember that paedophiles are very manipulative people -- they are generally of above average intelligence and they are very good at manipulating concerned professional workers." 
(Wyre, in Tate, 1990, p. 264) 

It is counterproductive to treat the man primarily as part of the family system since this merely allows him more freedom to lay the blame on the dysfunctional family or another family member.