Hebephilia as mental disorder? A historical, cross-cultural, sociological, cross-species, non-clinical empirical, and evolutionary review.

Blanchard et al. (2009) demonstrated that hebephilia is a genuine sexual preference, but then proposed, without argument or evidence, that it should be designated as a mental disorder in the DSM-5. A series of Letters-to-the-Editor criticized this proposal as a non sequitur. Blanchard (2009), in rebuttal, reaffirmed his position, but without adequately addressing some central criticisms. In this article, we examine hebephilia-as-disorder in full detail. Unlike Blanchard et al., we discuss definitions of mental disorder, examine extensive evidence from a broad range of sources, and consider alternative (i.e., non-pathological) explanations for hebephilia. We employed Wakefield's (1992b) harmful dysfunction approach to disorder, which holds that a condition only counts as a disorder when it is a failure of a naturally selected mechanism to function as designed, which is harmful to the individual in the current environment. We also considered a harmful-for-others approach to disorder (Brülde, 2007). Examination of historical, cross-cultural, sociological, cross-species, non-clinical empirical, and evolutionary evidence and perspectives indicated that hebephilic interest is an evolved capacity and hebephilic preference an expectable distributional variant, both of which were adaptively neutral or functional, not dysfunctional, in earlier human environments. Hebephilia's conflict with modern society makes it an evolutionary mismatch, not a genuine disorder. Though it should not be classified as a disorder, it could be entered in the DSM's V-code [corrected] section, used for non-disordered conditions that create significant problems in present-day society.

"His body is human, but he has a tiracchana heart": An ethnographic study of the epigenesis of child abuse in Cambodia.

In Cambodia, more than half of all children experience physical, emotional, or sexual abuse. This article examines how Cambodians view the causes and effects of child abuse and analyses its underlying cultural forces. Adopting a conceptual framework originally developed for the cultural context of violence against women, 110 cases of child abuse were ethnographically studied, comprising 61 cases of sexual abuse (50 girls and 11 boys), 26 cases of physical abuse (13 girls and 13 boys), and 23 cases of emotional abuse or neglect (13 girls and 10 boys). The perpetrators included fathers and other close relatives, lay Buddhist officiants and monks, and neighbors. Most informants viewed the sexual or physical abuse of children as stemming from "cultural attractors," including blighted endowment caused by deeds in a previous life, a bad character starting early in life, astrological vulnerability to abuse, preordained entanglement between the child and the abuser (they are "fated" to meet), sexual craving, "entering the road to ruin," and a moral blindness that portrays the abuser as blameless. Although these traits are similar to those identified in the explanations of violence against women, there were notable differences such as the role of the tiracchana in explaining sexual abuse, including incest. Using these findings, this article identifies a cultural epigenesis of child sexual abuse, and provides a blueprint for developing a culturally responsive plan to prevent child abuse.

Paraphilias across cultures: contexts and controversies.

Cultures define and describe what is normal and what is deviant. These definitions of normality vary across cultures and are influenced by a number of factors, such as religion. Cultures have been described in various ways, including sex-positive where the sexual act itself is seen as important for pleasure, or sex-negative where the sexual act is seen only as for procreative purposes. The role and development of paraphilias across cultures is also variable, with cultures defining what is legal or illegal. Such differences make collection of epidemiological data and comparison across paraphilias problematic. This discussion suggests that characteristics of cultures may influence the rate of reporting paraphilias, as well as the rate of paraphilias themselves. Furthermore, with increased industrialization and urbanization, families will become more nuclear, with attitudes toward sex and paraphilias changing as well. This review also explores whether paraphilias can be seen as culture-bound syndromes, and recommends consideration of a number of conceptual issues regarding the diagnosis and prevalence of paraphilias as future cross-cultural studies on this topic are developed.