Except, it's a paraphilia, an actual disorder that causes intense distress. It's hardly comparable to a sexual orientation.
And not necessarily genetic.
Unfortunately, besides psychotherapy, there is no treatment. And seeing how not all pedophiles are child abusers, the social stigma combined with the distress coming from the disorder itself must be absolutely terrible.
Quote:Pedophilia is termed pedophilic disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), and the manual defines it as a paraphilia in which adults or adolescents 16 years of age or older have intense and recurrent sexual urges towards and fantasies about prepubescent children that they have either acted on or which cause them distress or interpersonal difficulty.
And not necessarily genetic.
Quote:Although what causes pedophilia is not yet known, beginning in 2002, researchers began reporting a series of findings linking pedophilia with brain structure and function. Testing individuals from a variety of referral sources inside and outside the criminal justice system as well as controls, these studies found associations between pedophilia and lower IQs, poorer scores on memory tests, greater rates of non-right-handedness, greater rate of school grade failure over and above the IQ differences, lesser physical height, greater probability of having suffered childhood head injuries resulting in unconsciousness, and several differences in MRI-detected brain structures.
Unfortunately, besides psychotherapy, there is no treatment. And seeing how not all pedophiles are child abusers, the social stigma combined with the distress coming from the disorder itself must be absolutely terrible.
