QUESTION #3241:	Is it possible for a person to become a pediphile by seeing an older sibling molested?
ANSWER:	Pedophilia is a complicated disorder, and like most psychiatric disorders, it has a multi-modal causation. This means many things contribute to its formation, not just one thing. Additionally, it is often very difficult to actually pinpoint causation. When I do therapy, finding causation is not always the main issue I am looking for, at least, not right away. Finding the cause, for some people, is all about blaming someone or something. It doesn't always lead to treating or curing a person. It is part of the issue, but not the entire issue in and of itself. That also may be because of the psychological principles I follow, which differ from therapist to therapist. While this disorder is not my specialty, having only treated a limited number of cases, it has been my experience that one incident does not "cause" this behavior to exhibit itself in the future. More to your question, one incident, or one type of incident can, but often is not the only contributing factor to a psychiatric disorder. Can a traumatic sexual experience contribute to disorder formation? Yes. Is it alone responsible, usually not, except in a trauma based diagnosis. There are exceptions to most rules when dealing with human behavior as well. What causes a psychiatric disorder in one person, may not in the next person. I will not be able to give you a clear cut yes or no answer to such a complicated question. Perhaps you can give me more information about how this applies to your script and we can go from there. Feel free to email again. Take care, Kevin
EXPERT:	Kevin Sielky