Daneshvari Mohsen, Nami Mohammad, Ashrafi Arsalan, Najibi Sayyed Hamid, Zahedian Nasb Roohollah, Moghimi Sarani Ebrahim
Department of Neuroscience, School of Advanced Medical Sciences and Technologies, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuropsychology Unit, Department of Social Sciences, FCAS, Canadian University Dubai, Dubai, UAE.
Iran J Med Sci. 2025 May 1;50(5):304-315. doi: 10.30476/ijms.2024.103138.3633. eCollection 2025 May.
Child sexual abuse (CSA) is one of the most sensitive crimes in the world. Some perpetrators of CSA suffer from paraphilic disorders, including pedophilia (PE). This research is designed and implemented with the aim of neurocognitive evaluation of CSA perpetrators.
A case-control study was conducted over a period of 6 months from October 2022 to the end of March 2023 in Shiraz, Iran on the Experimental group (EG) (CSA perpetrators) (n=12) and the Control group (CG) (n=13). During these evaluations, information was obtained about sexual orientation, history of sexual activity, cognitive distortions, and cognitive performance of both groups. Physiological arousal factors were also measured using a polygraph device while participants viewed half-naked digital paintings of immature and adult individuals. Additionally, the study utilized functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure hemodynamic changes in the left frontal pole (Fp1) and the right frontal pole (Fp2) while participants performed the Stroop task (ST).
Compared to CG, EG showed a greater tendency towards homosexuality in the past (P=0.017), present (P=0.019), and ideal (P=0.022). Using the mini-mental state examination, cognitive distortion was shown more common in the EG group (P=0.001). Additionally, there was a significant relationship between sexual abuse between the ages of 12 and 16 and committing a crime (P=0.041). Cognitive performance during ST was poorer in EG than CG. Moreover, in the statistical comparison between groups, the amount of oxyhemoglobin (HbO) and deoxyhemoglobin (HbR) was significantly different in areas Fp1 (HbO: P=0.006 and HbR: P=0.014) and Fp2 (HbO: P=0.008 and HbR: P=0.005). Based on polygraph data, EG exhibited less emotional control than CG when viewing half-nude images of children (skin conductance: P<0.001 and heart rate: P=0.004).
Based on the results of this study, the CSA perpetrators seem to have a poorer neurocognitive function than the control group.
儿童性虐待（CSA）是世界上最敏感的犯罪之一。一些CSA犯罪者患有性偏好障碍，包括恋童癖（PE）。本研究旨在对CSA犯罪者进行神经认知评估。
2022年10月至2023年3月底，在伊朗设拉子进行了为期6个月的病例对照研究，实验组（EG）（CSA犯罪者）（n = 12）和对照组（CG）（n = 13）。在这些评估过程中，获取了两组的性取向、性活动史、认知扭曲和认知表现等信息。在参与者观看未成熟和成年人的半裸数字绘画时，还使用测谎仪测量生理唤醒因素。此外，该研究利用功能近红外光谱技术，在参与者执行斯特鲁普任务（ST）时，测量左额极（Fp1）和右额极（Fp2）的血流动力学变化。
与CG相比，EG在过去（P = 0.017）、现在（P = 0.019）和理想状态（P = 0.022）下表现出更高的同性恋倾向。使用简易精神状态检查表，认知扭曲在EG组中更为常见（P = 0.001）。此外，12至16岁之间遭受性虐待与犯罪之间存在显著关系（P = 0.041）。EG在ST期间的认知表现比CG差。此外，在组间统计比较中，Fp1区域（氧合血红蛋白（HbO）：P = 0.006，脱氧血红蛋白（HbR）：P = 0.014）和Fp2区域（HbO：P = 0.008，HbR：P = 0.005）的氧合血红蛋白和脱氧血红蛋白含量存在显著差异。根据测谎数据，EG在观看儿童半裸图像时表现出比CG更少的情绪控制（皮肤电导率：P < 0.001，心率：P = 0.004）。
基于本研究结果，CSA犯罪者的神经认知功能似乎比对照组更差。
