The Prevention Study

The Sexual Behaviours Clinic (SBC) at The Royal is conducting a research study to help men with a sexual interest in children get treatment before acting on this interest. One purpose of this website is to recruit participants for our study. 

The goals of this study are to:

1. Provide treatment to men with a sexual interest in children before they act on this sexual interest, in order to:

  • Help them lead legal, healthy, and happy lives.
  • Prevent sexual offences against children.

2. Educate the public about pedophilia to reduce the stigma associated with having this mental illness.

Participating in research is always confidential, with the exception of mandatory reporting requirements (visit our Confidentiality page to find out when we have to break confidentiality). 

This study is being conducted at The Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research and has been approved by The Royal’s Research Ethics Board. It is funded by the University of Ottawa Medical Research Fund. 

Click here if you would like to receive treatment for sexual interest in children or other problematic sexual interests/behaviours without participating in research.

Participating in this study involves two parts:

  • Time 1: Meet with a member of the research team to complete questionnaires about your mood, stress, coping mechanisms, substance use, self-esteem, and sexual interests/behaviours.
  • Time 2: Complete the same questionnaires again after 6 months, either in-person or online using a secured survey program.

At Time 1, you will also be given the following options for assessment and treatment in the SBC:

(All of these options are completely voluntary and are not required for the study).

  • Research consult: Meet with Dr. Paul Fedoroff (SBC Director), who will explain what the SBC is, what treatments are offered, and what is involved in an SBC assessment.
  • SBC assessment: Involves completing more questionnaires and measuring your sexual arousal to different images and audiotaped stories.
  • Debriefing appointment: Dr. Fedoroff will review the results of your SBC assessment and discuss treatment options.

In order to participate in the study, you must meet the following criteria:

  • Adult male (18+ years of age).
  • Admit to having a sexual interest in children but never received treatment for this interest.
  • Understand and agree with Ontario’s mandatory reporting laws (read them here).
  • Fall into one of the following categories:
    1. Never sexually abused a child or viewed child pornography but are concerned about doing so.
    2. Committed a sexual offence against a child (including child pornography) but have never been charged and are concerned about repeating this behaviour.
    3. Charged or convicted of a sexual offence against a child but not currently under the supervision of the criminal justice system (with the exception of being on the sex offender registry or under a 161 order). 

To learn more about our study, read the Information and Consent form for research participants, or send us an anonymous email.

If you want to receive treatment in the SBC but do not meet these criteria, visit our Referrals page for more information.

Interested in Participating?

If you’re interested in participating, you can anonymously contact the research team using our website’s messaging system.

Simply use the form below to create a username and password (you won't be asked for any other information). This will give you access to a private inbox, where you can communicate with the research team without using your personal email. 

You can access your inbox anytime by visiting this site and clicking the 'Login' button in the top right corner of the page. 

Your identity (aside from your username) will remain completely anonymous unless you choose to participate in the study. If you do participate in the study, your identity and any information you provide will be kept confidential, unless you reveal information that we must legally report. Visit our Confidentiality page to find out when we must break confidentiality.

Please keep your username and password in a safe place. If you lose this information, we have no way of helping you recover it since we won’t have your email address. If you do forget your username or password, you can simply create a new account to continue communicating with the research team. 

Remember, thoughts are not illegal, but acts can be. You cannot be arrested just for having sexual thoughts about children. 

Create an account   

Passwords must be at least 8 characters and include both numbers and letters. Usernames and passwords are both case-sensitive.

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