The history and current state of our understanding of pedophilia 

Thore Langfeldt

It was an Austrian journalist and gay activist who in 1869 published three new concepts in sexology. It was homosexuality, heterosexuality and monosexuality. He claimed that homosexuality was an inborn phenomenon. This word, homosexuality, was grabbed by other activist at that time, and in 1886 Krafft-Ebing used the term in his book Psychotathia Sexualis. It soon became understood as a sexual orientation. Both hetero- and homosexuality were considered as an orientation. This was an important step in normalizing homosexuality. In the late 60’s and early 70’s pedophile activist wanted to have the same status and claimed that pedophilia was a sexual orientation independent of homo- and heterosexual orientation.  This term automatically entered the medical vocabulary as a truth without discussion. Because pedophilia was an orientation like homosexuality, it could not be changed. Treatment strategies appeared to help people to stop the behavior, and “Relapse prevention programs emerged” with rather limited effects. By the major revelation in 2002 of Catholic priests who had abused mainly boys, leading to that “The pedophile orientation” took responsibility away from the already vulnerable homosexual Catholic priests. This way they could exclude the pedophiles. New groups arrived trying to prove that pedophilia was a sexual orientation. In 2009 I sent a paper to Archives of Sexual Behavior about men offending children and we found that men who offended boys manly had homosexual orientation and men how offended girls were heterosexual was not well received. The paper was refused by a referee who was fighting for that pedophilia was a sexual orientation. The paper was printed I IATSO journal in 2010. When the same referee tried to coup DSM-5 new edition in 2013 by claiming that pedophilia was a sexual orientation, the American Psychiatric Association immediately stopped the first edition and changed the concept to pedophile disorder.  (Journal of psychology and behavior research. Langfeldt 2024).  New research and understanding on mirror-neurons in amygdala open up new perspectives in the development of abusive behavior against children with implications for therapy. 

Thore Langfeldt specialist in Clinical Psychology and specialist in clinical sexology. He was educated psychologist at the University of Oslo in 1972. From 1968-1971 he had a student research stipend from Medical Faculty University in Oslo, working at Neurophysiological Institute at University of Oslo working with brain research, limbic structures. From 1971-1973 he had a Research fellowship from Hoffman La-Roche, Basel, working at Neurophysiological Institute Medical Faculty University of Oslo. In 1973-1974 he had a Research fellow Norwegian Research Council in brain research at the Neurophysiological Institute in Oslo. In 1974-1976 he had a Research fellow Norwegian Research Council studying sexology at Psychological Institute Univ. in Oslo. 1976-1980 working as psychologist and district leader at The Department of School Psychology in Oslo and in 1980-1983 he was department manager of an inpatient unit at Child Psychiatric Hospital, University of Oslo. In 1983 he started private practice in clinal psychology and sexology in Oslo and founded in 1989 a private Institute for Clinical Sexology and Therapy (IKST). In Oslo having treatment programs in sexology and sex offender treatment. There were 10 therapists connected to the institute. The institute got support from the government for treating sex offenders. IKST is co-operating with Psychological Institute at the University of Oslo training students in psychotherapy and supervising their thesis. From 2004 – 2006 he was senior researcher at Norwegian Centre on Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies. University in Oslo. The IKST treatment program for sex offenders was closed in 2020 when Oslo University Hospital started to work with sex offenders. Langfeldt was one of the founders of Nordic Association for clinical sexology, and the Norwegian Association for Sexology and president in both. Langfeldt was honored in 1999 by USA Foundation for Scientific Study of Sexuality, and honorary member of the Academy for Sexological Science in Poland. Crab Award from the Norwegian Association for Psychology 1987. (For presenting psychology in the media). In 2009 he got the Gold WAS Medal Award from the World Association for Sexology and Sexual Health. In 2011 he was knighted of the Order of St. Olav, 1st Class by the king of Norway for his work with group therapy with sex offenders.