Gene Abel
Gene Gordon Abel | |
|---|---|
| Occupation(s) | Psychiatrist, clinician, professor |
| Known for | Creator of the Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest and the Diana Screen |
Gene Gordon Abel is an American psychiatrist and clinician who focuses on counseling men and couples, particularly those suspected of sexual deviance.[1] He is the creator of the Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest (AASI), an evaluation tool aimed at identifying sex offenders.[2] However, independent research has questioned its reliability,[3] and courts in multiple jurisdictions have deemed it inadmissible as evidence.[4][5] Abel also developed the Diana Screen, which is intended to screen potential employees for deviant sexual behaviors but has faced comparable scrutiny over its scientific credibility.
Career
Abel previously held a professorship at the Columbia University School of Medicine and currently holds teaching positions at both the Morehouse School of Medicine and the Emory University School of Medicine. He is the medical director at the Behavioral Medicine Institute located in Atlanta.
Awards and recognitions
He is recognized as a fellow by both the American Psychiatric Association and the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research, and served as president of the Society of Behavioral Medicine from 1981 to 1982. Abel's accolades include the 1990 Masters and Johnson Award from the Society for Sex Therapy and Research, a Significant Achievement Award in 1991 from the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers, and a Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013 from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine.
Lack of known scientific basis for assessment test methodology
The methodology behind Abel's assessment tools has been criticized for lacking a transparent and widely endorsed scientific foundation. The foundation for the Abel Assessment test is drawn from his report titled "The Abel and Harlow Child Molestation Prevention Study," featured in his 2001 self-published work The Stop Child Molestation Book. This report was not subjected to peer review nor published in academic journals, and it omits detailed descriptions of testing methods necessary for independent validation.
Abel has faced allegations of overstating data to bolster his claims, including assertions that sex offenders frequently exhibit multiple paraphilias—a point disputed by a 1991 journal article which highlighted methodological issues such as double counting.
Although its acceptance in U.S. courts is limited, mental health practitioners have utilized the Abel Assessment to justify civil commitment of sex offenders. Courts in Massachusetts have ruled it inadmissible as evidence, a decision that was sustained on appeal. A Texas appellate judge criticized its proprietary scoring system as lacking transparency, likening it to "magic." The 9th Circuit Court determined that the tool should be applied solely for treatment purposes rather than establishing criminal guilt. Independent evaluations conclude that the Assessment lacks reliability for adults and remains insufficiently validated for adolescent use, despite Abel advocating its application even in assessing children's sexual attractions.
Similarly, the Diana Screen—another assessment tool promoted by Abel as a commercial venture—has been contentious due to its pass/fail format purporting to identify child molesters. Notably, Abel's research controversially indicated that most American child molesters identified as Protestant.
External links
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
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<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedGuyRandy - ↑ Smith, Gillan MacLean, Testing the Reliability and Validity of the Abel Assessment, Brigham Young University, 1998