are pedophiles born or made?

Why do people find pedophilia repulsive?

The act is seen as unnatural and it can ruin the future of its victims; the innocence of a child is also preyed upon and destroyed

True or false: people want to debate about the issues that cause pedophilia

False

Instead of debating about the causes of pedophilia, what would people rather do?

Punish the perpetrators

Do nature or nurture cause pedophilia?

Both have an effect

James Cantor

Works at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto; thinks pedophilia is a sexual orientation

Sexual orientation

Something you are born with and cannot change

What happens in an fMRI image of a pedophile’s brain when they see a child?

Their sexual instincts seem to light up instead of their nurturing instincts

Brain tumor example

A man who had a brain tumor started to develop sexual feelings for his stepdaughter along with headaches and a loss of balance; the tumor was removed and the urges were gone; some time later, the urges and the headaches returned, the tumor had come back

Orbitofrontal cortex

Helps regulate social behavior

Scientists’ conclusion about how the tumor caused pedophilia

It interfered with the orbitofrontal cortex and exacerbated the man's pre-existing interest in pornography

Pedophilia and biology

Pedophilia is not generally caused by brain tumors but brain biology should not be discounted when seeking to explain horrific sexual habits and deviancy

True or False: Many people who sexually abuse children were sexually abused themselves.

True

What amount of child molesters were abused as children?

About half

How many child abuse victims become abusers themselves?

The vast majority do not become abusers

What do scientists believe causes pedophilia?

A biological predisposition along with victimhood

How do scientists think nature and nurture relate to each other?

Nature and nurture are seperate but can create a combined effect

How has epigenetics changed the thinking behind nature and nurture?

Our genes are susceptible to the environment, traumatic experiences included