Understanding Minor Attraction
What Is Minor Attraction?
The term ‘minor-attracted person’ simply refers to individuals who have an attraction to those under the age of consent; ‘minors’. Whilst there are other labels that could be used to describe this attraction, such as pedophilia, these terms have often been conflated with sexual abuse and have thus become synonymous with perpetrators of child abuse. It is a common misconception that anyone who sexually abuses a child is minor-attracted, however, research indicates that the majority of those who sexually abuse children are not preferentially attracted to minors, but are rather situational/ opportunistic offenders. In addition to this, most minor-attracted persons do not harm children. To encourage a distinction between the two we have adopted the more neutral term ‘minor-attracted person’, which is often used in research today.
Minor Attraction & Mental Health
An attraction to minors generally becomes apparent in puberty and adolescence. Therefore many minor-attracted persons are in fact young people themselves. These people do not choose their attraction and are often very distressed by its presence; this distress can, unfortunately, lead to depression, anxiety, isolation, alcohol/substance abuse and other adverse effects. Although distressed and often in need of support, many minor-attracted persons are too afraid to seek out professional therapy. PATH 2 PREVENTION recognize that it is our responsibility to show compassion, understanding, and care towards these members of our community and that all persons should have access to supportive psychotherapy services.
What Support Is Available For MAPs?
1. Therapy
Path 2 Hope has a large database of registered therapists who work with minor-attracted persons. We have many therapists who conduct telehealth appointments (on zoom etc) to improve accessibility, as well as therapists who conduct in-person appointments across multiple countries.
2. Online Courses
Fresh Start Is A Ten Day Online Educational Program For MAPs who want to break free from patterns of compulsive online sexual behavior. The program can be accessed here – https://path2prevention.orgcourses/
Preventing Child Sexual Abuse
Approximately 21 – 25% of girls and 10 – 11 % of boys are sexually abused by the age of 16; that is around 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 10 boys. We believe that it is only possible to drastically reduce these tragic numbers with a complete paradigm shift. The impact of childhood abuse, of all kinds, cannot be overstated or overestimated. Child abuse not only adversely impacts the victim, often for their entire lives, but it also adversely impacts society as a whole and future generations. PATH 2 HOPE is committed to the prevention of physical, emotional, sexual, and spiritual abuse of children.
While the vast majority of child sexual offences (65%) are not perpetrated by minor attracted persons, we believe that ease of access to safe, confidential therapy services can not only provide this population with the mental health support they often need, but also play a role in reducing offences, including the use of child exploitation material. Minor-attracted persons self-report feelings of loneliness, isolation, and suicidal ideation, yet they are unlikely to seek professional support, as they have fears over confidentiality, negative reactions, judgment, and the therapist’s knowledge. Our current approach of stigmatisation only creates fear and pushes the very people we want to be seeking support, into a life of secrecy, this is a dis-service to child protection.
PATH 2 HOPE was been established to improve the accessibility of mental health services for minor attracted persons.