Sexual Disorders: The Woodsman

Sexual Disorders-The Woodsman

Our text describes pedophilia as a person who “gains sexual gratification by watching, touching, or engaging in sexual acts with prepubescent children, usually 13 years old or younger” (Comer, 2013, p. 411). The movie, The Woodsman describes the story of a convicted sex offender recently released from prison. Walter, depicted by Kevin Bacon shed some insight into the motivations and thought processes that a sex offender, specifically a pedophile might have.

Walter is released from prison. We see him registering as a sex offender and then the story proceeds. We see him go to a job where the boss specifically tells him he doesn’t want any trouble and the only reason he hired him was as a favor. We see Walter as a quiet man, who keeps to himself and appears to struggle with social skills. The receptionist at the factory began talking to him and observed that he was different. She went to the manager to inquire as to what he had done however the manager told her to mind her own business. She was not satisfied with the answer and went out to search for herself.

In the mean-time, Walter observes a female employee being harassed by men at the factory. He showed compassion and concern when he later asked the woman if she was ok. She became interested in him and they began a sexual relationship. The woman had noticed there was something he was hiding from her, something from his past that he did or had happened to him. He did not want to reveal his past to her. You could observe shame and fear in Walter. He was afraid of what she’d think. Eventually she reveals that her brothers had sexually abused her and she again asked his secret. He told her that he molested little girls, to which she r...

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...s on his own or if the therapy was needed to realize that he was indeed hurting others.

If working with a client like Walter I would likely also have them keep a journal. I’m not sure yet if I would ask that they bring the journal back to session, or if I just ask them to describe any insights that may have come from their journaling. We would likely discuss any thinking distortions and work to replace them with healthier thinking patterns. We would also utilize relapse–prevention training where we would work to identify high-risk situations and learn alternative ways of coping with them. When working with clients with this disorder I would like to pay special attention to whether the techniques are helpful or whether we need to look at other methods of treatment such as aversion therapy, masturbatory satiation, orgasmic reorientation, or antiandrogen drugs.