144

2025

Publication date: 17.06.2026

Licence: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Editorial team

Editor-in-Chief Prof. Józef K. Gierowski

Deputy Editor-in-Chief Prof. dr hab. Dariusz Zuba

Sekretarz redakcji Anna Sałatarow-Kraciuk

Editors Dr Agnieszka Haś, Dr Tomasz Kupiec, Prof. Grzegorz Zadora

Issue content

Psychopathy and sexual sadism in the context of forensic and psychological evaluations

Beata Pastwa-Wojciechowska

Problems of Forensic Sciences, 144, 2025, pp. 229-242

https://doi.org/10.4467/12307483PFS.25.011.23646

The objective of the present article is to provide an examination of the interrelationships between sexual sadism, psychopathy, and violence. Sexual sadism and psychopathy are frequently regarded as synonymous with sexual criminality. Psychopathy is a severe form of antisocial personality disorder (AS PD) characterised by a lack of empathy and remorse, high self-esteem, a manipulative interpersonal style, and poor behavioural control [1]. Furthermore, individuals diagnosed with psychopathy are more likely to commit violent or sexual crimes and have a higher rate of recidivism in comparison to individuals not diagnosed with psychopathy [2, 3]. Conversely, sexual sadism is predominantly associated with a need for control, sexual paraphilias, and atypical behaviours observed at the crime scene. However, it should be noted that the actual prevalence of sexual sadism (and its variants, such as sadistic violence) among sex offenders is unknown [4]. Research has indicated a moderate yet statistically significant correlation between psychopathy and sexual sadism in sex offenders and sexual murderers [5]. A review of the extant literature in this area reveals that few studies have sought to ascertain the comorbidity of these two concepts, and even fewer have addressed the conceptualisation of similarities in predicting violence in each of them. Consequently, an analysis of the current debate regarding their role in the origins of criminal behaviour is of significant importance for theoretical, empirical, and clinical implications in the field of forensic science.

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Are all victims equal, but some less equal than others? The role of the ‘ideal victim’ myth in rape cases

Agnieszka Łyś

Problems of Forensic Sciences, 144, 2025, pp. 243-257

https://doi.org/10.4467/12307483PFS.25.012.23647

Studies conducted in various countries, including Poland, demonstrate that many rape cases end at the stage of preparatory proceeding and a lot of rape sentences are the suspended ones. Moreover, the data from Norway demonstrate that rape perpetrators who knew the victim/survivor before the incident, obtain 18% shorter sentences than those who were strangers to the victim/ survivor. That suggests that some decisions of criminal justice system may result from the influence of the “ideal victim” myth. According to a Norwegian criminologist, Nils Christie, an ideal victim is a victim whose victim status does not elicit social controversies. Such a victim needs to have an impeccable reputation, defend themselves even putting at risk their own life, and they should not have any personal relationship with the perpetrator. The current article is a review of the studies concerning the role of the “ideal victim” myth in the work of criminal justice system. In the review both studies of real cases and survey studies among criminal justice system professionals are included. It demonstrates that the “ideal victim” myth may have a significant impact on detection and conviction rates of rape.

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Dynamics of the risk of violence: diagnostic challenges and the role of protective factors in the institutional context of Poland

Marlena Banasik

Problems of Forensic Sciences, 144, 2025, pp. 259-276

https://doi.org/10.4467/12307483PFS.25.013.23648

The article examines the role of protective factors in explaining temporal changes in violence risk among forensic psychiatric patients and prison inmates in Poland. A longitudinal study was conducted with 403 men (201 forensic patients and 202 inmates). Participants were assessed twice at a six-month-long interval using the HCR-20v3 and SAPROF. Forensic psychiatric patients showed a significant reduction in integrated risk for vioence, while prison inmates exhibited a slight increase in this field during the same period. In the patient group, the level of motivational protective factors from SAPROF was the sole notable predictor (albeit with low predictive power) explaining the variance in risk reduction. No protective factors significantly predicted risk changes in the inmate group. The findings indicate that risk dynamics may be context-dependent. The conducted analyses require further deepening and expansion. To facilitate this within the Polish psychiatric and penitentiary systems, systemic improvements are necessary, including the further implementation of Structured Professional Judgement (SPJ) risk assessment tools.

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Risk factors for the development of criminal thinking styles in women sentenced for violent crimes

Maria Mondry, Danuta Rode

Problems of Forensic Sciences, 144, 2025, pp. 277-300

https://doi.org/10.4467/12307483PFS.25.014.23649

The primary aim of the present study was to identify risk factors for criminal thinking styles among women convicted of violent offences. Criminal thinking styles are conceptualised as the cognitive content and processes that initiate and sustain criminal activity by repudiating personal responsibility and employing rationalisations and cognitive distortions. Potential risk factors were selected on the basis of prior literature and grouped into biological, psychological, environmental, sociodemographic, and penitentiary categories. Statistical analyses yielded significant predictors for six of the eight criminal thinking styles. These predictors were: low occupational activity, a high level of the temperamental trait of endurance, elevated personal distress, and elevated fantasy as components of empathy, as well as a high level of secure and a low level of avoidant attachment style. The findings offer practical implications, including the importance of vocational activation for incarcerated women, recommendations for empathy-skills training, and the introduction of criminal-thinking assessment tools as a cyclical method for evaluating the effectiveness of rehabilitative interventions and estimating recidivism risk.

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Between an opinion from the judicial expert teams for evaluation and social expectations. Axiological sources of distrust towards the judicial expert teams for evaluation in juvenile cases

Aleksandra Sobotka

Problems of Forensic Sciences, 144, 2025, pp. 301-320

https://doi.org/10.4467/12307483PFS.25.015.23650

The aim of this article is to analyze the axiological determinants of decisions concerning responses to juvenile problems and their relationship with growing distrust of judicial officials. The study used an original Remedial Measures Questionnaire and Schwartz’s Profile Value Questionnaire (PVQ). The participants were judges (n = 44), court professionals (n = 51), parents (n = 55), and students (n = 57). The results indicate significant differences between the groups – parents were more likely than other respondents to support intervention measures. The analysis showed that conservative values favor intervention decisions, while values focused on others limit them, although these relationships differ across groups. The results have important implications for forensic science, pointing to the importance of axiological factors in the process of assessing and making decisions regarding minors. A better understanding of the role of values can support communication between experts and recipients of opinions, as well as reduce tensions and distrust towards the justice system.

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Title and imprint pages PDF Table of contents PDF Author index - volumes 141-144 PDF List of Reviewers - numbers 141-144 PDF Subject index - volumes 141-144 PDF

Słowa kluczowe: Psychopathy, Sexual sadism, Violence, Sexual offences, Rape, Sexual assault, Rape myths, Victim blaming, Violence risk assessment, Violence risk dynamics, Protective factors, Institutional context, Criminal thinking styles, Risk factors, Violence, Female offending, Schwartz Value Theory, Juvenile justice decision-making, Punitive versus rehabilitative attitudes, Expert-layperson discrepancies

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