Abstract

SANTANA, Olga Adoracion Leiva Cabelho de; RIBEIRO, Rosangela Kátia Sanches Mazzorana  and  BRITO, Thiago Marques de. Dysfunctional beliefs in perpetrators of sexual violence deprived of their liberty. Aval. psicol. [online]. 2026, vol.25, e25583.  Epub Apr 10, 2026. ISSN 1677-0471.  https://doi.org/10.15689/ap.2026.25.e25583.

This empirical study, conducted via videoconference, investigated and compared dysfunctional beliefs in Perpetrators of Child Sexual Violence (PCS) deprived of liberty, using the Brazilian version of the Personality Belief Questionnaire-Short Form (PBQ-SF). The sample comprised Intrafamilial PCS (mean age 41.5 years, SD=8.3, n=30) and Extrafamilial PCS (mean age 43 years, SD=10.4, n=11). The main beliefs identified among Intrafamily PCS were: I can’t fail, the other person is bad, and I prefer to be alone. In Extrafamilial PCS: I cannot fail, I cannot stand unpleasant feelings, and I am fragile and incapable. These findings converge with some of the behavioral patterns documented in this population. Comparative statistical analysis using the Mann-Whitney U test (p≤.05) did not reveal statistically significant differences between the groups regarding the beliefs investigated. Future studies using quantitative methodologies are recommended to further explore dysfunctional beliefs, validate instruments adapted from other languages to the Brazilian context, and develop Brazilian instruments for this field of research.

Keywords : child sexual abuse; sex offender; cognitive distortions.

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