| Abstract: |
Background
The management of sex offenders is a major public concern. Behavioural and pharmacological
interventions have been used for many years and more recently cognitive behavioural based
interventions have become popular around the world. Programmes designed for the general population
have been modified for those sex offenders with learning disability, to address their cognitive deficits.
The efficacy of these modified programmes is unclear.
Objectives
To determine the efficacy of interventions with learning disabled sex offenders.
Search strategy
The reviewers searched electronically EMBASE, PsycINFO, Medline, Cinahl, Cochrane Library,
SPECTR, National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information and National Criminal
Justice Reference Service and Biological Abstracts.
Selection criteria
All randomised controlled trials comparing an intervention for learning disabled sex offenders to any
other, or no intervention.
Data collection & analysis
Data were independently extracted.
Main results
No randomised controlled trial was identified.
Reviewers' conclusions
Using the methods described the reviewers found no randomised controlled trial evidence to guide the
use of interventions for learning disabled sex offenders. Until the urgent need for randomised
controlled trials is met, clinical practice will continue to be guided by either extrapolation of evidence
from randomised controlled trials involving sex offenders without learning disability or nonrandomised
trial evidence of interventions for the learning disabled sex offender. |
