Validating the Screening Scale of Pedophilic Crime Scene Behavior.

Area of Science:

• Forensic Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Psychometrics

Background:

• The Screening Scale of Pedophilic Crime Scene Behavior (SSPC) is a tool for assessing pedophilic sexual arousal.
• Previous validation studies are limited, necessitating further cross-validation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To cross-validate the convergent validity of the SSPC using multiple measures of sexual interest in children.
• To assess the diagnostic accuracy and incremental validity of the SSPC.
• To provide psychometric data for selecting appropriate SSPC cutoff scores.

Main Methods:

• Cross-validation of the SSPC in two independent samples (USA and Canada).
• Utilized multiple criteria: clinical diagnosis of pedophilia, MTC:CM4 (high fixation/low social competence type), and phallometric assessment.
• Evaluated convergent and incremental validity against the Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interest.

Main Results:

• The SSPC demonstrated acceptable to excellent diagnostic accuracy across all criteria and samples.
• The SSPC showed incremental validity over the Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interest.
• The SSPC often outperformed the Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interest in convergent validity.

Conclusions:

• The SSPC is a valid and reliable measure for assessing pedophilic sexual arousal.
• The scale's diagnostic accuracy and incremental validity support its clinical utility.
• The study provides essential psychometric information for practical application of the SSPC.