Exploring the Modus Operandi of Coaches Who Perpetrated Sex Offenses in Canada

Elisabeth St-Pierre; Sylvie Parent; Nadine Deslauriers-Varin

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.856798

Exploring the Modus Operandi of Coaches Who Perpetrated Sex Offenses in Canada

Front Psychol. 2022 Apr 13:13:856798. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.856798. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Elisabeth St-Pierre^{1

2

3}, Sylvie Parent^{1

2

3}, Nadine Deslauriers-Varin^{2

4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Physical Education, Laval University, Quebec City, QC, Canada.
² Research Chair on Security and Integrity in Sport, Laval University, Quebec City, QC, Canada.
³ Interdisciplinary Research Center on Intimate Relationship Problems and Sexual Abuse, Montreal, QC, Canada.
⁴ School of Social Work and Criminology, Laval University, Quebec City, QC, Canada.
⁵ International Center for Comparative Criminology (ICCC), Montreal, QC, Canada.

Abstract

This study investigated the modus operandi strategies employed by 120 coaches who committed sexual abuse toward 331 athletes under their authority. More than 2,000 Canadian court judgements and media reports were identified using online search databases. Using descriptive analysis, 51 strategies used in six modus operandi stages were identified. Results highlighted the most frequent strategies used by coaches for each stage of the crime commission process. Additionally, findings revealed the influence of the victims' gender, coaches' sport level and year of coaches' first offenses on modus operandi strategies used. Implications for crime prevention measures are discussed.

Keywords: athletes; coaches; modus operandi; sex offenders; sexual abuse; sports.