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Midterm
Assignment
This
written assignment consists of two essay questions. Students are expected to
develop a 2-3 page essay per question (excluding title and reference page). A
minimum of 2 peer-reviewed, scholarly sources per question are to be utilized
for the assignment. Sources should also be up-to-date (less than 10 years old).
Direct quotes are not permitted.
Topic
1: Explain the differences between
obscenity and pornography. State the case both for and against the belief that
viewing pornography contributes to the commission of sex crimes. Does this
apply to child pornography as well?
Topic
2: Internet sexual predators continue to
elude law enforcement in great numbers. What are the similarities and
differences between the online sexual predators and in person sexual abusers?
Citations/References: You
must use the most up to date edition of APA format for citations and reference
listings.
You
may submit each answer separately or in one word document: All work is to be
submitted as an attachment to the assignment link by 11:59 pm EST Sunday of
week 4.
Similarities
and Differences Between Online Sexual Predators and In-person Sexual Abusers
Name:
Course:
Institution
name:
Technological advancement and the increase in the use of
the internet have created new sexual exploitation avenues. The unregulated
nature of the online environment, especially social media platforms, increases
the internet's vulnerability as a channel for distributing and collecting child
pornography and luring potential victims into the set traps. The number of
online sexual predators has increased in the past two decades as the internet
continues to gain momentum in society. Recent studies, media reports, and
prevention efforts have directed their guns to the vulnerability of young
people to the threat of sex crimes. Traditional in-person sexual abuse exhibits
various similarities and differences with modern online sexual predators.
Online and in-person sexual abuse are sex crimes that
subject the victim to sexual violence whose traumatizing effects can last long.
The nature of crimes committed confirms with statutory sexual abuse laws. Study
findings revealed that approximately 50% of online sexual offenders had a
history of committing sexual offenses in their offline lives (Wolak, Finkelhor,
2013). In both cases, the sexual offenders' actions amount to an abuse of the
victims as the abusers in each instance take advantage of the victim's sexual
vulnerability. Separate studies also revealed that online and offline sexual
offenders reported negative family backgrounds such as lack of appropriate
nurture and a suitable environment provided the conditions for developing
problematic behaviors such as sexual misconduct (Babchishin, Karl, &
Hermann, 2011). Offenders resort to
sexual abuse as one of the ways of projecting the frustrations and problems
they have been subjected to in life.
One of the differences between online and offline sexual abuse is the type of victims and the nature of the sexual crime committed. Offline sex crimes affect individuals of all ages, primarily children and women, while online, 90% of online sexual abuse targets teens, including girls and adolescents (Wolak, Finkelhor, 2013). Coercion or use of force is rare in online sexual abuse, while such actions are common in-person sexual abuse. A majority of the offenders in both cases range from young men attempting to display romantic and honest feelings to notorious serial sex criminals with a history of child pornography and...
