Height may point to a biological basis
for pedophilia, according to new research released by the Centre
for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). The study found that
pedophilic males were shorter on average than males without
a sexual attraction to children.
The study, published in Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research
and Treatment, suggests that pedophiles may have been exposed
to pre-birth conditions that affected their physical development.
The researchers observed this height difference by analyzing
the files of over 1,000 men who were assessed for pedophilia
or other sexual disorders between 1995 and 2006 at the Kurt
Freund Laboratory in Toronto, Canada.
A difference in average height is a trait found in other
illnesses with biological links. The average difference in
height was two centimeters, which is similar to the shorter
height associated with schizophrenia or Alzheimer's disease.
Further research is necessary, but this finding re-enforces
evidence that pedophilia has a biological cause, possibly
related to brain development before birth.
"This research does not mean that pedophiles are not
criminally responsible for their behavior," said Dr.
James Cantor, CAMH Psychologist and lead researcher on the
study, "but the discovery of biological markers for pedophilia
has important implications for future study and possibly treatment."
This study adds to previous research from this team that
found pedophiles have lower IQs, are three times more likely
to be left-handed, failed school grades significantly more
frequently, and suffered more head injuries as children.
