Psychiatria pre prax 1/2019

Inadequate definitions of paraphilias in current psychiatric classifications

In current psychiatric classifications the paraphilias are defined by quantitative and qualitative attributes of sexual interest or sexual arousal that can be very loosely interpreted. Their definitions are too general and imprecise, and therefore inadequate from the perspective of contemporary medicine based on scientific evidence. Paraphilic disorders are defined as paraphilias that cause distress of the individual or harm to others. Harming of others, as a characteristics of paraphilic disorders, resembles rather personality disorders or legally described criminal acts than mental disorders per se.

Keywords: paraphilias, paraphilic disorders, sexual deviations, atypical sexual arousal, disorders of sexual preference