Rind, Tromovitch and Bauserman's Writings

"The historical approach to understanding of scientific fact is what differentiates the scholar in science from the mere experimenter." --E. G. Boring

Rind, Tromovitch and Bauserman's 1998 meta-analysis was built on the foundation of the authors' previous research and writings, some of which are briefly reviewed below. Also included are writings that came after the meta-analysis which appear to extend or defend their conclusions.

A list of full references is available at the end of this document.

1989: Bauserman's first scholarly publication "Man-Boy Sexual Relationships in a Cross-Cultural Perspective." was published in Paidika: The Journal of Paedophilia. The stated purpose of the journal is to legitimize pedophilia (see "Statement of Purpose," [1987]. Paidika: The Journal of Pedophilia, 1, pp, 2-3 ). The paper consists of a historical examination of the function of man-boy sexual relationships. Bauserman (1989) concludes that these relationships have traditionally provided boys with positive male role models and teachers.

1990: Bauserman's second scholarly publication was in The Journal of Homosexuality's special double issue on "Male Intergenerational Intimacy. " The special issue is edited by three members of Paidika's editorial board. Bauserman's paper criticized those who believe that sexual relationships between men and boys "are by their very nature abusive and exploitive" or that "the younger partner is automatically incapable of consent" (p. 310). Bauserman also argued against the use of the "value-laden" terms and called for a new "scientific objectivity" in research on adult-child sex (p. 311).

NOTE:  In the same special issue of the Journal of Homosexuality was a paper on "intergenerational intimacy" that advocated most of the changes in how we view child sexual abuse recommended by Rind, Tromovitch and Bauserman in their 1998 meta-analysis. In his article, Dr. Gerald Jones, an Affiliated Scholar in the Institute for the Study of Women and Men in Society at the University of Southern California, advocated for the use of "value-neutral" terminology when discussing pedophilia as "intergenerational attraction on the part of some adults could constitute a lifestyle `orientation,' rather than a pathological maladjustment" (p. 288). In order to explore "the full range of possibilities in child-adult interactions" (p. 276), Jones advocated for a number of changes in how psychologists research and conceptualize pedophilia. For example, because studies show that negative outcomes are not inevitable, Jones argued that "intergenerational intimacy" should not be considered synonymous with child sexual abuse: "the crucial difference has to do with mutuality and control" [i.e., "consent"] (p. 278). Jones recommended that the term child sexual abuse should be limited to behavior meeting a strict definition of abuse (i.e., behavior that is demonstrably harmful). See: Jones, G. P. (1990). The study of intergenerational intimacy in North America : Beyond politics and pedophilia. Journal of Homosexuality, 20 (1-2), 275-95.

1991: Rind completed his doctoral degree in psychology. His area of study was marketing psychology. His dissertation is titled "A Model for What Makes a Message Persuasive."

1993:  Rind and Bauserman co-author a paper titled "Biased Terminology Effects and Biased Information Processing in Research in Adult-Nonadult Sexual Interactions: An Empirical Investigation." Rind and Bauserman concluded that psychologists should not engage in "the indiscriminate use of terms suggesting victimization and harm" when describing "adult-nonadult" sex (their preferred term) as the use of negative terms is based on "unsubstantiated assumptions of inherent exploitation . . . in these contacts";  "value-neutral terminology" should be used instead. Abstract

Summer, 1995:  Rind publishes "An Analysis of Human Sexuality Textbook Coverage  of the Psychological Correlates of Adult-Nonadult Sex" in Journal of Sex Research    Abstract

1995:  Rind wrote a favorable review of First Do No Harm: The Sexual Abuse Industry by Felicity Goodyear-Smith for Paidika: The Journal of Pedophilia. Rind (1995a) described Goodyear-Smith's book as "excellent" and "compelling" (p. 83) and stated that the book provides a:

...description of an unfolding modern-day social pathology which has not yet reached its peak in terms of scapegoating sex offenders, destroying families, creating iatrogenic victims, misdirecting huge amounts of taxpayers' money, social attention and legislative action to a social problem [i.e., CSA] much less serious in size and scope than an unwitting public has been led to believe .... (p. 83)

1995:  Bauserman completes his doctorate in Psychology. For his dissertation research, Bauserman measured the effects of different types of pornographic films on male college students (mean age 18.5 years).

1997: Bauserman and Rind publish a paper in which they review the nonclinical literature on boys' sexual experiences with adults. They reported that, "Self-defined consent, like absence of force, is in all studies associated with positive outcomes or evaluations" (p. 123). They concluded that negative feelings are not inherent in sexual contacts between boys and adults, "but depend on cultural views of these behaviors" (p. 135). Abstract

"In the absence of social taboos and moral condemnation, negative feelings such as guilt and shame and doubts and conflicts about masculinity should not arise for children and adolescents who experience such contacts. The cross-cultural and historical literatures provides examples of societies where sexual contacts between boys and adults, rather than being condemned and pathologized, instead were approved of, encouraged, or even regarded as necessary for healthy development. " (p. 135)

1997:  Rind and Philip Tromovitch, a doctoral student at the University of Pennsylvania ,  collaborate on a meta-analytic review of psychological effects of a child sexual abuse using national samples . They concluded that in the general population, CSA is not associated with pervasive harm and that when harm occurs, it is not typically intense. They reported that males report fewer negative effects than females. Abstract

Excerpt: " We found that, contrary to the implications and conclusions contained in previous literature reviews that were focused on biased samples, in the general population, CSA is not associated with pervasive harm and that harm, when it occurs, is not typically intense. Further, CSA experiences for males and females are not equivalent; a substantially lower proportion of males report negative effects. Finally, we found that conclusions about a causal link between CSA and later psychological maladjustment cannot safely be made because of the reliable presence of confounding variables."

July 1998: Rind, Tromovitch, and Bauserman's paper "A Meta-Analytic Examination of Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Using College Samples" is published in the Psychological Bulletin, the leading scientific journal of the American Psychological Association. (Full text available at IPCE website:
http://www.ipce.info/library_3/rbt/metaana.htm)

September 1998: The International Pedophile and Child Emancipation (IPCE) newsletter [see link 14] includes an announcement for a Dutch conference titled "De Andere Kant van de Medaille" or "The Other Side of the Coin."  Rind, Tromovitch and Bauserman are listed as the keynote speakers. The purpose of the conference is to shed light on the positive side of sex between adults and children.

Excerpt from announcement: "Today it is hard to imagine, but less than twenty years ago sexuality between  youth and adults was being written and spoken about almost exclusively in positive terms. . . . Presently narratives and theories about sexual abuse totally dominate the scene when it comes to sexuality in which children and youth are involved. . . . In order to throw light onto this other side of the coin again, after so long  a time, the church-based Kerkelijk Sociale Arbeid (Church Social Work) foundation in Rotterdam is organizing a study conference to which the American psychologists Bruce Rind and Robert Bauserman have been invited as key speakers. (Dr. Rind has confirmed his presence.) Bauserman and Rind have distinguished themselves in professional circles in recent years by their publication of meta-analyses, research into sexuological research. Their most startling  conclusion: from nearly all available research it appears that among males who  have had sexual experiences with adults during their youth, a majority look back  upon these experiences as positive or neutral, and that they experienced no demonstrable, lasting damage." Full text of the announcement. The Other Side of the Coin. (September 1998). IPCE (International Pedophile and Child Emancipation) Newsletter, Number E3, link 14.

December 18, 1998: Rind and Bauserman are keynote speakers at pedophile advocacy conference titled "The Other Side of the Coin." (see above)

A Rotterdam newspaper article titled "Reverend Visser pleads for the acceptance of pedophilia," reports that the advertised purpose of the conference is to question if pedophilia is the same as abuse and to discuss lowering the age of sexual consent.
See: Dominee Visser pleit voor het aanvaarden van pedofilie. [Reverend Visser pleads for the acceptance of pedophilia]. (1998, December 18). Rotterdam Dagblad ( Netherlands ).
To read part of Rev. Visser's talk at the conference, click here.

Two members of the editorial board of Paidika: The Journal of Pedophilia also spoke at the conference. According to an article in another local newspaper, in his speech Paidika board member Dr. Gert Hekma suggested that children are sexual creatures who "so called innocence is imposed on."
See: Abrahams, F. (1998, December 21). Moet kunnen [It must be possible]. NRC Handelsblad ( Netherlands), p. 12.

In their keynote address titled, "An Examination of Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Based on Nonclinical Samples," Rind and Bauserman presented data from their 1998 meta-analysis which they claimed demonstrated that few children are harmed by sexual abuse. They stated "In the college samples, boys who were willing participants in their CSA episodes showed no evidence of impairment, which was not the case for girls. These results strongly suggest that the assumption that boys and girls react in an  equivalent manner to CSA should be abandoned." [See "Consent?" where it is demonstrated that, in reality, Rind et al. never had any data on boys who had been asked whether they had participated willingly in their abuse.]

Rind et al. blamed the assumption that child sexual abuse causes intense and pervasive harm for child abuse "hysteria" and suggested that child protection workers plant false memories of abuse in children. Rind et al. concluded their address by providing the following disclaimer: "we want to emphasize that our presentation should not be taken to advocate behaviors labeled as CSA" [emphasis added]. [Note in their meta-analysis Rind et al. recommended that "willing" sex with positive reactions no longer be labeled sexual abuse].

1998: Rind reviewed human sexuality textbooks' treatment of "man-boy" sex (p. 405). Rind reported that the texts appeared biased against Western man-boy sex, and suggested that the textbooks' authors seemed to be guided more by their own moral positions "than by a striving for scientific objectivity" (p. 406). Rind suggested that "willing man-boy sex accompanied by positive reactions may be better informed by the ancient Greek model [i.e., sexual relationship in which the older male also acts as a teacher and guardian] than by models based on the female experience (e.g., rape and incest models).

January 1999: The full text of Rind et al.'s keynote address in the Netherlands is printed in the International Pedophile and Child Emancipation Newsletter (Number E 4, January 1999). http://home.wanadoo.nl/ipce/library_two/rbt/examination.htm

Rind and colleagues present and publish a number of attacks of their critics. They vigorously defend their research as scientifically sound and blame criticism on political ideology. Below are a few examples:

• Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (1999, November 6). The clash of media, politics, and sexual science: An examination of the controversy surrounding the Psychological Bulletin meta-analysis on the assumed properties of child sexual abuse. Paper presented at the 1999 Joint Annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality and the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists, St. Louis, MO. Full text available:
  http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/99118_rbt_defense_nov99.htm
• Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (2000). Condemnation of a scientific article: A chronology and refutation of the attacks and a discussion of threats to the integrety of science. Sexuality & Culture, 4-2. Full text available:
  http://www.imo.myweb.nl/library_two/rbt/condemn_frame.htm
• Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (2001). The Validity and Appropriateness of Methods, Analyses, and Conclusions in Rind et al. (1998): A Rebuttal of Victimological Critique From Ondersma et al. (2001) and Dallam et al. (2001). Psychologican Bulletin, 127, 6, 734-758.
  Full text available: http://www.ipce.info/library_3/files/rtbval.htm
• Rind, B. (2002)."Unpopular Results: Providing Incremental Validity at the Price of Being Rejected" presented at the 2001 edition of the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society. Held in Toronto.
  Full text: http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/01sep09l_rind_at_aps.htm  

August 2001: Rind published a paper titled "Gay and bisexual adolescent boys' sexual experiences with men: An empirical examination of psychological correlates in a nonclinical  sample," in the Journal of Sex Research. Rind uses the term "age-discrepant sexual relations" to refer to sex between an adult and a boy.  NCBI PubMed Abstract; Full text at IPCE website: http://home.wanadoo.nl/ipce/library_two/rind/rind_gay_boys_frame.htm

Excerpt: "Men with ADSR [age-discrepant sexual relations, i.e., CSA] experiences were as well adjusted as controls in terms of self-esteem and having achieved a positive sexual identity. Reactions to the ADSRs were predominantly positive, and most ADSRs were willingly engaged in." (p. 345)

2003: Rind's paper "An Elaboration on Causation and Positive Cases in Child Sexual Abuse," is published in Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice.

From abstract: "Backward reasoning, or postdiction, is usually based on models that assume that CSA invariably causes symptoms and that it is always negatively experienced..... Statistical research is reviewed that shows that causation cannot be safely inferred in the typical case. Prevalence of positive reactions is discussed. Case studies are presented to illuminate these issues."

2005: Rind's paper titled: "Pederasty: An Integration of Cross-Cultural, Cross-Species, and Empirical Data" is published in a special issue of The Journal of Homosexuality on: Same-Sex Desire and Love in Greco-Roman Antiquity and in the Classical Tradition of the West;
The article examines empirical rather than clinical data on pederasty, and supplements this with cross-cultural and cross-species perspectives. The empirical data show that pederasty is not only not predestined to injure, but can benefit the adolescent when practiced according to the ancient Greek form. Cross-cultural and cross-species data show the extensiveness of pederasty in the natural world, as well as its functional rather than pathological nature in these societies and species. An evolutionary model that synthesizes the empirical, cross-cultural, and cross-species data is proposed as an alternative to the highly inadequate feminist and psychiatric models. The animal data suggest that the seeds for pederasty were planted at the dawn of humanity. The human data suggest that pederasty came to serve a mentoring function.

EXCERPT: Pederasty, or sexual relations between men and adolescent boys, is condemned in our society as an unqualified evil that maims and destroys. In ancient Greece , samurai Japan , and numerous other cultures, pederasty was seen as the noblest of human relations, conducive if not essential to nurturing the adolescent's successful intellectual and physical maturation.

Current psychological and psychiatric theorizing have pronounced and promoted the former view, while ignoring the vast array of cross-cultural data related to the latter view. Mental health opinion has also ignored a wealth of cross-species data with important parallels. Instead, this opinion is based on feminist models of rape and incest, which are backed up by clinical research on child sexual abuse.

The current article examines empirical rather than clinical data on pederasty, and supplements this with cross-cultural and cross-species perspectives. The empirical data show that pederasty is not only not predestined to injure, but can benefit the adolescent when practiced according to the ancient Greek form. Cross-cultural and cross-species data show the extensiveness of pederasty in the natural world, as well as its functional rather than pathological nature in these societies and species.

An evolutionary model that synthesizes the empirical, cross-cultural, and cross-species data is proposed as an alternative to the highly inadequate feminist and psychiatric models. The animal data suggest that the seeds for pederasty were planted at the dawn of humanity. The human data suggest that pederasty came to serve a mentoring function.

A list of some of Rind, Tromovitch, & Bauserman's writings

Bauserman, R. (1989). Man-boy sexual relationships in a cross-cultural perspective. Paidika: The Journal of Paedophilia, 2, (Issue 5), 28-40.

Bauserman, R. (1990). Objectivity and ideology: Criticism of Theo Sandfort's research on man-boy sexual relations. Journal of Homosexuality, 20, 297-312.
Fulltext: http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/bauserman_objectivity.htm

Bauserman, R. (1995). Effects of violent, nonviolent-dehumanizing, and nonviolent-egalitarian sexual portrayals on sexual attitudes and beliefs. Dissertation Abstracts International. 56 (3-B), 1742.

Bauserman, R. (1996). Sexual aggression and pornography: A review of correlational research. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 18, 405-427.

Bauserman, R. (1998). Egalitarian, sexist, and aggressive sexual materials: Attitude effects and viewer responses. Journal of Sex Research, 35, 244-253.

Bauserman, R., & Davis, C. (1996). Perceptions of early sexual experiences and adult sexual adjustment. Journal of Psychology and Human Sexuality, 8 , 37-59.Rind, B. (1991). A model for what makes a message persuasive. Dissertation Abstracts International, 51 (11-B), 5642.

Bauserman, R., & Rind, B. (1997). Psychological correlates of male child and adolescent sexual experiences with adults: A review of the nonclinical literature. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 26, 105-141. [Abstract]
Full text: http://www.ipce.info/library_3/files/psycorr.htm

Rind, B. (1991). A model for what makes a message persuasive. Dissertation Abstracts International, 51 (11-B), 5642.

Rind, B. (1992). Effects of impressions of amazement and foolishness on compliance. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 1656-1665.

Rind, B. (1995). First do no harm: The sexual abuse industry [Review of the book]. Paidika: The Journal of Paedophilia, 3 (Issue 12), 79-83.

Rind, B. (1995). An analysis of human sexuality textbook coverage of the psychological correlates of adult-nonadult sex. The Journal of Sex Research, 32, 219-233.

Rind, B. (1996). Effect of restaurant tipping of male and female servers drawing a happy, smiling fact on the backs of customer's checks. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 26, 218-225.

Rind, B. (1997). Effects of interest arousal on compliance with a request for help. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 19, 49-59.

Rind, B. (1998). Biased use of cross-cultural and historical perspectives on male homosexuality in human sexuality textbooks. Journal of Sex Research, 35, 397-407. Fulltext: http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/rind_98_biased.html

Rind, B. (2001). Gay and bisexual adolescent boys' sexual experiences with men: An empirical examination of psychological correlates in a nonclinical sample. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 30, 345-68. NCBI PubMed Abstract
Full text: http://home.wanadoo.nl/ipce/library_two/rind/rind_gay_boys_frame.htm

Rind, B. (2001)."Unpopular Results: Providing Incremental Validity at the Price of Being Rejected" presented at the 2001 edition of the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society. Held in Toronto.
Full text: http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/01sep09l_rind_at_aps.htm

Rind, B. (2003). An Elaboration on Causation and Positive Cases in Child Sexual Abuse. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10(3), 352-357.

Rind, B. (2005). Pederasty: An Integration of Cross-Cultural, Cross-Species, and Empirical Data, Journal of Homosexuality, 49(3/4), 463-475.
http://www.ipce.info/library_3/files/antiquity.htm#Pederasty

Rind, B., & Bauserman, R. (1993). Biased terminology effects and biased information processing in research in adult-nonadult sexual interactions: An empirical investigation. The Journal of Sex Research, 30, 260-269.
Full text: http://www.ipce.info/library_3/files/rind_biased.htm

Rind, B., Bauserman, R., & Tromovitch, P. (1998, December 18). An examination of assumed properties of child sexual abuse based on nonclinical samples. Paper presented at special symposium sponsored by the Paulus Kerk, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Full text: http://home.wanadoo.nl/ipce/library_two/rbt/examination.htm

Rind, B., Bauserman, R., & Tromovitch, P. (1999). Interpretation of research on sexual abuse of boys. Journal of the American Medical Association, 281, 2185.

Rind, B., Bauserman, R., & Tromovitch, P. (2001).The Condemned Meta-Analysis on Child Sexual Abuse; Good Science and Long-Overdue Skepticism; In: Skeptical Inquirer July/August 2001, 68-72.  PDF file

Rind, B., & Gaudet, S. (1993). Judging personality traits of adolescents from photographs. Journal of Social Psychology, 133, 815-823. [Abstract]

Rind, B., & Tromovitch, P. (1997). A meta-analytic review of findings from national samples on psychological correlates of child sexual abuse. The Journal of Sex Research, 34, 237-255. Fulltext: http://www.ipce.info/library_3/files/marev.htm

Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (1998). A meta-analytic examination of assumed properties of child sexual abuse using college samples. Psychological Bulletin, 124, 22-53. Full text available: http://www.ipce.info/library_3/rbt/metaana.htm

Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (1999, May 12). Authors' statement. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. Full text available: http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Documentation/Documents/99-115_rbt_may_12.htm

Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (1999, November 6). The clash of media, politics, and sexual science: An examination of the controversy surrounding the Psychological Bulletin meta-analysis on the assumed properties of child sexual abuse. Paper presented at the 1999 Joint Annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality and the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists, St. Louis, MO. Full text available:
http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/99118_rbt_defense_nov99.htm

Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (2000). Condemnation of a scientific article: A chronology and refutation of the attacks and a discussion of threats to the integrety of science. Sexuality & Culture, 4-2. Full text available:
http://www.imo.myweb.nl/library_two/rbt/condemn_frame.htm

Rind, B., Tromovitch, P., & Bauserman, R. (2001). The Validity and Appropriateness of Methods, Analyses, and Conclusions in Rind et al. (1998): A Rebuttal of Victimological Critique From Ondersma et al. (2001) and Dallam et al. (2001). Psychologican Bulletin, 127, 6, 734-758.
Full text available: http://www.ipce.info/library_3/files/rtbval.htm  

ENDNOTES

1.  Paidika is a Dutch journal which provides a forum for scholarly articles defending pedophilia. A multi-disciplinary coalition of academicians from the United States and Europe sit on its advisory board. In the journal's first issue, the editors outlined their goals:

"The starting point of Paidika is necessarily our consciousness of ourselves as paedophiles. . . . But to speak today of paedophilia, which we understand to be consensual intergenerational sexual relationships, is to speak of the politics of oppression. . . . This is the milieu in which we are enmeshed, the fabric of our daily life and struggle. . . . Through publication of scholarly studies, thoroughly documented and carefully reasoned, we intend to demonstrate that paedophilia has been, and remains, a legitimate and productive part of the totality of human experience." ("Statement of Purpose," [1987]. Paidika: The Journal of Pedophilia, 1 , pp. 2-3)

2. Goodyear-Smith is a medical doctor whose husband and parents-in-law were members of a New Zealand group that encouraged sexual contact among its members -- including girls as young as three. At the time the book was written, these family members were incarcerated for sexual offenses against minors. Goodyear-Smith was charged with perjury in the case but was ultimately acquitted (Orr, 1995). The book promotes the notion of "false memories" being a major problem while at the same time arguing that sexual abuse is not necessarily harmful to children and that the age of sexual consent should be removed from the statute books.

3. Martin Seligman, Ph.D., served as president of the American Psychological Association in 1998. The passages described come from Seligman's 1994 book, What You Can Change & What You Cannot, published by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

4. Rev. Visser, who hosted the conference, gave a talk where he suggested that sexual relationships between adults and children can be "ethically acceptable."

"A relationship between an adult and a child should be reciprocal. Both must be  able to tell what's pleasant in the association, both must be able to show this silently or in words. A pedophilic relationship should also always be a joint experience and certainly not remain unilateral.

There are no recipes around about what is and is not allowed. Above we have noted that penetration is undesirable for several reasons. It can hurt the child and can be an adult form of sexuality that is strongly directed to orgasm. On the other hand I can't say that mutual masturbation is undesirable in all circumstances. It is imaginable that there are situations where it happens in a sphere of mutual respect and mutual enjoyment of intimacy. Then it would  be ethically acceptable."

Visser, H. (1998, December 18). Pastorate and pedophilia. Symposium sponsored by the Paulus Kerk. De Andere Kant van de Medaille (The other side of the coin), Rotterdam , The Netherlands. Available:  http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/pastorate_and_pedophilia.htm

5. The International Pedophile and Child Emancipation (IPCE) newsletter's stated purpose is to create "a forum for people who are engaged in academic discussion about the understanding and emancipation of mutual relationships between children or adolescents and adults." http://www.humanbeing.demon.nl/ipceweb/index.htm [link no longer active]