Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment 2014, Vol. 26(4) 330–342 © The Author(s) 2013 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1079063213492342 sax.sagepub.com Article Psychosocial and Developmental Characteristics of Female Adolescents Who Have Committed Sexual Offenses Claudia van der Put 1 , Eveline S. van Vugt 1 , Geert Jan J. M. Stams 1 , and Jan Hendriks 1 Abstract The present study aimed to examine differences in psychosocial and developmental characteristics between Adolescent Females who have committed Sexual Offenses (AFSOs; n = 40), Adolescent Females who have committed nonsexual Violent Offenses (AFVOs; n = 533), and Adolescent Males who have committed Sexual Offenses (AMSO, n = 743). Results showed that AFSOs and AMSOs were remarkably similar, whereas AFSOs and AFVOs were remarkably different on the measured variables. Compared to AFVOs, AFSOs less often had antisocial friends and problems in the domains of school (truancy, behavior problems, dropping out of school) and family (e.g., parental problems, poor authority and control, and run away from home). Victimization of sexual abuse outside the family and social isolation were found to be more common in AFSOs than in AFVOs. Victimization of sexual abuse outside the family was the only specific characteristic of female adolescent sexual offending, as this was more common in AFSOs than in both AMSOs and AFVOs. Keywords female sexual offenders, juvenile sex offender, psychosocial characteristics Sexual offending by female adolescents is an understudied area. Few empirical studies, generally based on small clinical samples, have focused exclusively on female adoles- cents who have committed sexual offenses (Adolescent Females who have committed Sexual Offenses [AFSOs]; e.g., Bumby & Bumby, 1997, n = 12; Fehrenbach & 1 Research Institute Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands Corresponding Author: Claudia van der Put, Research Institute Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 94208, Amsterdam, 1090 GE, the Netherlands. Email: c.e.vanderput@uva.nl 492342SAX 26 4 10.1177/1079063213492342Sexual AbusePut et al. research-article 2013 at Universiteit van Amsterdam on June 19, 2015 sax.sagepub.com Downloaded from