Abstract

Sexual abuses against children are steadily increasing, and in response to this trend, the public opinion for intensifying the punishment of child molesters is being formed rapidly. Punishments on child molesters include the publication of personal information, the use of electronic bracelet, and chemical castration, and ‘the Bill on the Surgical Treatment of Child Molesters’ has been proposed. However, various legal measures that have been executed so far have failed to produce a significant effect as intended. Thus, this study determined whether the enactment of a law for intensifying punishments would be effective for solving the problem of sexual abuses against children. In this study, we examined the psychological characteristics of child molesters and the current situation of treatment for offenders, and proposed intensified therapeutic programs as a part of correction and edification programs.