The Role of Personality Disorders in the Treatment of Sex Offenders

In a sample of 30 consecutively admitted sex-offenders at Justizanstalt Mittersteig (a treatment facility inside the Austrian prison system, located in Vienna) we found 23 patients with a diagnosis of personality disorder (according to DSM-111-R). The distribution of diagnoses did not differ significantly From other samples found in a general outpatient clinic with the exception of a relatively high rate of "sadistic personality disorder" (9 patients). The meaning of this diagnosis is discussed and therapeutic strategies are delineated.