This study examined whether viewing time (VT), a cognitive measure of sexual interest, aligns with penile plethysmography (PPG)-derived deviance differential (DD) classifications (child arousal, undifferentiated, or adult arousal) in 146 civilly committed adult males at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program, assessed between 2017 and 2023.
Significant group differences in VT emerged for female stimuli only: the child arousal group spent longer viewing small child and pre-juvenile female images, while the adult arousal group spent longer viewing adult female images (small child female: ηp²=0.14, d=0.93; adult female: ηp²=0.11, d=0.82; both p<0.001). No significant differences were found for male stimuli.
The sample is limited to civilly committed adult males, restricting generalizability to lower-risk offenders or community populations. Social desirability and deliberate manipulation of both PPG and VT responses are plausible concerns, especially given participants' incentive to appear lower-risk for release. Lack of standardization in VT stimuli, scoring procedures, and PPG protocols limits cross-study comparisons.
VT measures (e.g., Affinity 2.5) appear to converge with PPG-based arousal classifications and may serve as a useful, less invasive adjunct—particularly when PPG is unavailable or refused—but should always be used as part of a multi-method assessment rather than in isolation.
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