Benedict O. Sama is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist and a Qualified Behaviour Analyst (QBA). In this interview with IFEDAYO OGUNYEMI, the Lead Clinical Psychologist at Citicare Psychology Clinic, Lagos, spoke on the mental construct of paedophiles, and why lack of support and care for those exhibiting paedophilic tendencies portends grave danger for the society.
HOW would you assess the spate of paedophilia in Nigeria?
Paedophilia is a psychological disorder. Many people don’t even know that it is a psychological disorder. It is a disorder in which an adult or adolescent experiences an unreasonable s3xual attraction to pubescent children. And people that engage in those activities need help because they are mentally sick as stated in our psychological diagnostic manual all over the whole world; it has been categorised as a psychological condition. Over time, we’ve had a lot of children referred to the clinic for therapy; children that were harassed or molested by adults who are paedophiles. It’s a two-way experience that impacts both the perpetrator and the victim.
Yes, it is a psychological condition, but what goes on in the mind of a paedophile that influences paedophilia?
As I said earlier, it is not a disease, it is a psychological disorder and we call it a psychosexual illness. So, what goes on in their mind is mostly sexual perversion towards young children. If you talk to a paedophile, they can’t give you reasons why they do that because they are sick mentally. It’s similar to why somebody moving naked on the street can’t give you a reason they are doing so and that’s because the mind is already distorted and the person cannot see reality or reason well.
So, it’s a call for help, and society must not encourage it. So what goes on in their mind cannot be quantified or described, because the mind of a paedophile is already distorted. It’s not in the right frame of mind. That’s why he could think that way.
What do we ascribe as the kind of distortion that goes on in their mind that helps us understand the origin and development of those paedophilic tendencies?
There is no direct or clear evidence of what causes it unlike in physical health where you know malaria is caused by mosquito bites etc. But some risk factors contribute to it and genetics is one of them. Some findings have shown that genetic effects may contribute to sexual interest in children i.e. psychosexual disorder. Though the research is in the early stage, there have been consistent findings that show that genetic makeup contributes to it.
The other risk factor is the person’s history. If a child is molested or s3xually abused, there is a higher possibility that this person will also end up being a paedophile. In recent decades, scientists have gained more excellent knowledge of the origins and what contributes as a risk factor. So, prenatal and early childhood risk factors are very important. Many of those who are paedophiles today are maybe as a result of childhood sexual abuse. It is a huge risk factor just like genetics. Those are the two research has shown us over the years.
What are the psychological challenges faced by individuals who acknowledge their paedophilic inclination?
One of the societal challenges is the lack of awareness because many people say that they think this issue is majorly spiritual, not knowing that it is psychological. They think such a person is demonically possessed and all sorts. That’s why you see people then descend on them, which in itself is jungle justice, not knowing that the person is sick mentally; it is a psychosexual illness. Such a person is sick in his brain, in his mind and that is why he’s going through that.
Because of that, there is stigma against them. People don’t want to see them or associate with them, instead of helping them seek help. Of course, there is also a lack of awareness regarding the level of support that’s available. If you are able to get a good clinical psychologist or counsellor, they can help. The lack of information or lack of awareness that you can seek help makes many people continue to live with that condition. Someone who doesn’t know he can be helped will just think that is the end of life or fall into a situation where they can’t help themselves and the angry public breaks their head. But if they know there is help and support from professionals, they can speak out and get such help.
What therapeutic approaches can be used in treating individuals with paedophilic inclinations?
There is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a treatment approach in psychology and mental health that helps individuals identify their thoughts and the triggers of their emotions. What CBT says is that it is your thoughts that give birth to your feelings, or your emotions, and it is your emotions that give birth to your behaviour. When you ask some people why they found themselves in certain situations, they say it is because certain people dressed provocatively but that’s not it. It is your thoughts about the situation that gave birth to your action and not the event (provocation) itself. The emotion there is the sexual feeling. Until you think about it, you will not feel it, until you begin to feel it, you will not do it. So, what you think about determines how you feel, and how you feel determines what you do.
What CBT then does is to help people understand their thoughts and how to change and modify those s3xual and perverse thoughts. Once you can help them understand and modify their thoughts, it will positively influence their feelings, behaviours or actions. CBT has been very helpful, either in individual therapy or group therapy.
Looking at our situation and our societal makeup, has CBT been proven empirically as a very good way of treating paedophilic tendencies or inclinations in Nigeria?
Just like they produce a medication, test it and prove it to be correct in the US before rolling it out into other countries like Nigeria to treat malaria, CBT is a universally accepted mental health technique. I have used it several times with clients. Before any model can be approved as effective, it must have gone through empirical verification. It is not gender, colour or race-based, it is all-encompassing. Everyone has a thought and so far you can think before you commit paedophilic acts, CBT can help you identify such thoughts and help replace them with more adaptive ones, and have a better lifestyle and daily routine plan for the person. It helps to identify the triggers because, for every behaviour, there is an antecedent. Two people can see the same thing but only one of them is reacting provocatively because he/she has control over his/her mind and thought process. CBT approach works for any race and anybody across countries. It has been proven, and I’ve used it with clients.
About how many patients would you say you’ve used this technique for and are there other techniques that help?
CBT is not primarily used for paedophilic management, it is a mental health treatment approach that we use in managing other emotional conditions like depression and anxiety, especially things that are triggered by your thoughts; CBT can help to deal with them.
We also have other approaches like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and behavioural analysis, which help you to identify the specific antecedent triggering the thoughts in the client. If you know that when you pass through a particular spot or place, something always happens, what this particular approach tells you is that avoid that spot. That is the antecedent but what CBT is doing is that you don’t have to avoid it but you can change your thought about it. It is saying it is not the brain that is causing it, but your thoughts about the place.
Acceptance and Behaviour Therapy suggests it is because you are taking the thoughts too seriously and giving so much importance to the thoughts. Why are you acting on the thought? Why can’t you just accept those thoughts and let them fade away with time? If you don’t give them importance or you don’t take them seriously, the intensity of the thought will die down with time. I have dealt with over 100 cases of mental health using CBT, but for paedophilic cases, maybe about five of them and it worked. It is usually a combination of all of these approaches that helps the client and not a size-fits-all because individuals are different. For some, family therapy must be involved where social support must be provided for the client. If they know the trigger, they can help the person properly. Some people even require medication and hormone therapy to help reduce the psychosexual hormones that may have been overly stimulated.
What are the considerations and psychological interventions needed in treating victims of defilement associated with paedophilia?
It takes the same treatment techniques but the focus is different. Somebody who was abused usually thinks of him/herself as useless and a failure. There is a sense of guilt that makes them think they are nobody in life but a worthless person who may even think of committing suicide. Such experiences lead to trauma-related issues such as depression, anxiety, then suicidal ideation. All these still bother on the person’s orientation and thought because they have gone through these experiences. But CBT comes and says if it was within your control, you would have been able to control it. And the fact that this happens does not define the totality of your being. It is an error and a mistake that you cannot dwell on. Firstly, they must not attribute whatever has happened to their fault because they dressed in some way or passed through one location. We have to change that orientation and their mindset about themselves so that they can begin to feel better and begin and lead a better life. The way society stigmatises paedophiles is the same way it stigmatises the victims, and that should not be. That’s where family therapy comes in to provide the needed help and support. Once they feel accepted by their parents, and family, they can go further rather than when the family is casting them away. Their treatment involves the same techniques but through a different approach.
Would you say Nigeria has adequate policies and legal measures to address issues of paedophilia and attendant issues such as stigma and access to care?
Concerning the legal aspect, I would say Lagos is doing well, because of the cases we’ve handled there. Lagos State has a domestic violence agency that handles s3xual harassment cases. It is very active and we’ve referred several cases to them. They are up and doing. This week, they have handled a related case that we have reported. Lagos State is doing well in the area of legal measures and education. I can’t say for other states and how well they are doing because I am not conversant with them. People are even more conscious because they know Lagos State doesn’t joke with cases like these and they put themselves in check.
With regards to policies on support, I am not aware of any. However, if you go to any psychiatric hospital in Nigeria, we have clinical psychology departments where they are equipped and trained to offer help if you speak up. If you can get clinical psychologists or counsellors online, they will help as well, but as regards a specific plan from the government for paedophiles, I don’t think we have that. Since it’s a mental health-related condition, and you go into any federal state mental health institutions, there are clinical psychologists available to attend to you. You can equally go to private individuals like myself.
You earlier mentioned that when issues like this arise, the perpetrators should be referred to clinics for treatment. Would you say that there shouldn’t be a custodial sentence given to them as a result of their actions?
No, there must be! There should be definitely because a society must not be found tolerating such. However, when you sentence them, there must be corrective measures, because you can’t send them to those places without therapy. This is a condition of the mind. If the mind is not rehabilitated, after one or two years, the person comes back but he has not changed; it continues. So, that’s why part of the policy should be that while they are in the correctional centres, there must be a proper correction of the mind. This person has learnt a lesson by being sentenced, that is the legal implication which must be there. However, there must be psychological support therapy to help the person rehabilitate and change his mindset and orientation.
I have a few of my colleagues who work in correctional centres in Nigeria, but they are just very few compared to what the inmates need. Just imagine you have one psychologist in a correctional centre, what does he/she want to do in the centre where you have thousands of inmates many of whom are suffering from mental health issues? So, there must be enough personnel such as psychologists and counsellors who are experts in this field, so that when such cases arise, they can be adequately attended to. The legal implications shouldn’t be the only priority, proper mental rehabilitation must be made.
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