Patrick Lussier is a Professor of Criminology at the School of Social Work and Criminology at the Université Laval, in Quebec City, Canada.

Eric Beauregard is a Professor in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University, Canada.

Section I: Explanatory and Sociolegal Theoretical Perspectives 1. "Sex Offender" Theory and Research in Context: The Relative Absence of a Criminological Perspective, Patrick Lussier and Eric Beauregard 2. Integrating General and Specific Theories of Sex Offending: A Path-Breaking Perspective, Patrick Lussier and Jeff Mathesius 3. Sexually Coercive Decision Making: A Rational Choice Approach, Amelie Pedneault 4. Criminal Justice Policies: The Intended and Unintended Consequences of Monitoring Individuals Convicted of Sex Crimes, Shawn M. Rolfe and Richard Tewksbury 5. Desistance and the Rise of Rehabilitation, Danielle Arlanda Harris and D. Richard Laws 6. Treatment and Management of Youths Who Have Perpetrated Sexual Harm, Michael H. Miner and Nicholas P. Newstrom 7. The Media, Public Opinion, and Sex Offender Policy in the U.S., Christina Mancini Section II: Special Topics 8. Taking a Criminal Career Approach to Sexual Offending, Arjan Blokland 9. Sexual Exploitation and Human Trafficking, Joan A. Reid 10. A Developmental Life Course viewpoint on Juvenile Sex Offending, Evan C. McCuish and Patrick Lussier 11. Sexual Assault on The College Campus, Walter S. DeKeseredy 12. Sexual Offending and the Catholic Church, Karen J. Terry 13. Online Sexual Exploitation of Children: Reactive and Proactive Policing, Francis Fortin and Sarah Paquette 14. Female Sexual Offending, Miriam Wijkman and Jeffrey C. Sandler 15. Lethal Outcome in Sexual Crimes: A Criminological Perspective on Sexual Homicide, Eric Beauregard Section III: Practical Application of Research 16. Criminal Investigation of Sexual Offenses, Nadine Deslauriers-Varin, Craig Bennell and Andréanne Bergeron 17. Classification of Perpetrators of Sexual Offences: An Overview of Three Generations of Research and Development, Jesse Cale 18. The Risk Assessment of Offenders with a History of Sexual Crime: Past, Present and New Perspectives, Sébastien Brouillette-Alarie and Patrick Lussier 19. A System Assessing the Risk of First-Time and Repeat Sexual Offending for Correctional Populations, Grant Duwe 20. From the "Sex Offender" to Sex Offending: A Necessary Conceptual Shift, Eric Beauregard and Patrick Lussier

There is growing recognition that sexual offending is a multi-determined phenomenon requiring a multi-disciplinary perspective. The significant contribution of psychology and psychiatry, but also sociology, gender studies and anthropology to the study of sex offending and perpetrators of sex offenses has played a key role in the development of a distinct field of research. In recent years, however, there has been an increase in criminological research on the topic, introducing criminological theory and concepts, scientific evidence and observations, and new methodologies to the field.
This book brings together international leading scholars to consider key topics on sex offending and, where possible, compare and contrast criminological viewpoints with those of other disciplines, such as psychology and psychiatry. This book considers the following questions:
Are the key explanatory factors of sex offenses completely distinct and different from those of non-sex crime and delinquency?
Are current models explaining adult sex offending also applicable to explain sex crimes on college campuses, female sex offending, sexual exploitation, sexual homicide, or child luring over the internet?
Are today's youth involved in sex offenses tomorrow's adult perpetrators of sex crimes?
What is the risk of sexual recidivism and are risk assessment tools effective to identify individuals at-risk of committing another sex crime in the future?
Are current legal measures used to prevent sex crimes effective? What are the known effects of such measures?
What are the issues and challenges related to the criminal investigation of sex offenses?
This book is essential reading for students and researchers from disciplines such as criminology, psychiatry, psychology, sexology, social work and sociology, as well as criminal justice professionals and practitioners such as police investigators, prosecutors, judges, probation/parole officers, and treatment providers/counsellors involved with individuals having perpetrated sex offenses.