ms can teach ways for offenders to resist these urges, even if the struggle must last throughout their entire lives. Nonetheless, at least one study has demonstrated that mandatory treatment programs for sexual offenders can be successful. In that study, the researchers reviewed the effectiveness of a mandatory treatment program for 109 convicted child molesters and other sexual offenders and found that 21 percent of the offenders re-offended. The researchers noted that there will likely never be a zero relapse rate for any program, and they called the 21 percent rate "acceptable" for the offenders involved (Lothstein, 2001, p. 553).
There are many who would argue that 21 percent is unacceptable. Every relapse by an offender causes serious damage to the victim, his or her family, and society in general. It is difficult to accept the idea of mandatory programs if the relapse rate is so high, given the personal and psychological harm these offenders cause. In the case of sex offenders, it may be that even mandatory program
...