Social Support Moderates the Relationship Between Childhood Ostracism and Paraphilic Thoughts

Author(s): Daniel A Lodge, Katia C Vione, Dean Fido.

The relationship between childhood ostracism and experiences of paraphilic thoughts is unclear, with very little known about the subsequent impact of improved social support in later life. This study used mixed methods (i.e., moderation analysis, content analysis) to explore the effects of social support and childhood ostracism on paraphilic thoughts, and further explored individuals' views on people with sexually deviant attitudes and behaviours. Two hundred seventeen participants (mean age = 27.5 years, 63.6% female) responded to an online survey. In men, but not in women, the relationship between childhood experiences of ostracism and paraphilic thoughts was strengthened in individuals with high social support, and weaker in individuals with low social support. The qualitative analysis indicated differences in attitudes of the general population between people who have committed sexual offences and people who have sexually deviant thoughts. Results of this study raise internationally applicable questions about the development of public health support for people with deviant sexual thoughts and attitudes via interventions to help prevent potential sex offences in adulthood, thus, challenging and potentially preventing the cyclical relationship of sexual abuse reviewed in the literature.