Differences in the dispositional empathy of juvenile sex offenders, non-sex-offending delinquent juveniles, and nondelinquent juveniles

Differences in dispositional empathy between juvenile sex offenders, non-sex-offending delinquent juveniles, and nondelinquent juveniles were explored controlling for age and race. Participants were 81 males ranging in age from 13 to 18 from a southwestern state. Their scores on Davis's Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) were analyzed using a one-way randomized block multivariate analysis of variance. Postomnibus analyses included mean vector comparisons followed by univariate analyses comparing the means on each IRI subscale. Juvenile sex offenders and non-sex-offending delinquent juveniles scored significantly higher than nondelinquents on the Personal Distress subscale. Non-sex-offending delinquent juveniles scored significantly higher than the juvenile sex offenders on the Empathic Concern subscale.