Advisor(s)

Cindy Cain

Committee Member(s)

Gabe Miller
Lindsay Leban
Mieke Thomeer

Document Type

Thesis

Date of Award

6-18-2026

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

School

College of Arts and Sciences

Department

Social & Behavioral Sciences

Abstract

The process of human problems coming to be defined as medical conditions and thus under the purview of medical professionals is called medicalization. This study examines how psychiatrists medicalize perpetrators of sexual violence, looking particularly at debates around whether to include a new disorder, Paraphilic Coercive Disorder, in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition. Using a content analysis of n=102 articles, it finds that discussions of the pathology of sexual violence perpetration were prevalent among psychiatric journals from 2000-2024. Psychiatrists medicalize rapists through three pathways: advocating for a new medical disorder; attributing the cause of sexual violence perpetration to psychological or physiological factors; and recommending medical treatment for managing sexual deviance. The study concludes with a discussion of limitations and future directions.

Keywords

medicalization;paraphilias;paraphilic coercive disorder;rape;sex offenses;sexual violence perpetration

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