Information about the study “Better Therapy for People who are attracted to Children”

Aim of the study: This survey examines therapy-related attitudes, thoughts, and experiences among men and women who are sexually attracted to children. We are aware that many people with a sexual interest in children do not seek or need professional help. Please note that you do not have to have been in therapy or to have had psychological symptoms requiring therapy in order to participate in this research.

Duration and content: You will be asked to complete an anonymous online survey that will take between 10 and 20 minutes to complete. The questions will pertain to

1) your sexual interests

2) attitudes towards therapy

3) prior treatment experiences (if applicable)

4) your preferred labels

5) mental health, stigma-related experiences, and well-being

We will also ask for your age, sex, gender identity, years of schooling, and previous convictions for sexual offenses. This is necessary to explore whether different groups of individuals in the population show different patterns of responses. Note that the survey does not contain questions about undetected sexual offenses.

Participant rights and anonymity: Your participation is voluntary and choosing not to take part will not have any consequences for you. The survey is completely anonymous. We will not ask for information that renders you personally identifiable, such as your name or your address. If you decide to take part, you are free to withdraw from the study at any time and without giving a reason. Please note that due to anonymization it is not possible to delete your data. All survey questions that you are not comfortable answering can be skipped, unless they refer to your gender or levels of sexual attraction to people from different age groups. Please do not share information that could make you identifiable or that could lead to criminal investigations. Note that we are required to act in accordance with the Finish law and may have to report information about undetected offenses to the police.

What happens to the information: The research team will analyze the data and publish the results in scientific outlets. The data will not be shared publicly, but may be made available to other researchers for the purpose of re-analysis upon request.

Benefits and risks of participation: The results will inform the development of an English-language website directed at people with sexual interests in children who are seeking information about mental health services. Some questions may cause discomfort or embarrassment because they pertain to your sexual preferences, mental health, and negative prior experiences in therapy (if applicable).

Data protection: Your privacy is protected by the server www.soscisurvey.de (no storage of IP addresses; use of SSL encryption with a signed certificate; server is secured against unauthorized access according to common standards; access to the server is SSH-encrypted; the questionnaires do not use any cookies). Should you have any further questions about data protection you may contact the Principal Investigator Sara Jahnke (sara.jahnke@abo.fi) or the Data Protection Officer of the Åbo Akademi University (dataskydd@abo.fi).

This research is a joint effort by Dr. Sara Jahnke and Prof. Jan Antfolk (both Åbo Akademi University, Finland), Dr. Ian McPhail (Toronto Sexuality Centre, Canada), and Prof. Nicholas Blagden (Nottingham Trent University, UK). If you have any questions or require more information about this study, please contact the Principal Investigator (sara.jahnke@abo.fi)

Sincerely,

The research team