There are more similarities than differences between perpetrators of sex crimes & perpetrators of non-sex crimes, but the studies examined a narrow range of risk factors, which can result in somewhat misleading findings

Patrick Lussier, Evan C McCuish, Jesse Cale (Oct 2021) Sex Offenders Under the Microscope: Are They Unique?. In: Understanding Sexual Offending, pp 149-187. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-53301-4_5

Rolf Degen's take: https://twitter.com/DegenRolf/status/1320602292010262528

Abstract: No other offenders have been under as much scrutiny as perpetrators of sex crimes. A vast amount of research has been conducted in hospitals, prisons, and community settings to identify what is unique about these perpetrators. The research has been so extensive that multiple meta-analyses have been conducted to shed light on what is unique about these perpetrators. This chapter provides a review of these meta-analytic findings. In doing so, the chapter also provides a critical examination of research aiming to identify risk factors for sexual offending. While these meta-analytic studies highlight that there are more similarities than differences between perpetrators of sex crimes and perpetrators of non-sex crimes, the poor methodological properties that these studies are based upon and the narrow range of risk factors examined can potentially result in findings that are somewhat misleading. These findings raise the importance of moving away from searching for what is unique and common to all perpetrators of sex crimes and instead examining the multiple paths leading to sexual offending.

Keywords: Child abuse Deviant sexual preferences Intelligence Juvenile sexual offending Mental health Meta-analysis Pornography Risk factors Sexual victimization Social skills Testosterone