LISTEN TO TLR’S LATEST PODCAST:

By: Josiah Robinson

Trottla, a company run by known pedophile Shin Takagi, creates eerily life-like child sex dolls for those with pedophilia.

The Japanese company creates the dolls to provide pedophiles with an outlet for their sexual impulses. “I am helping people express their desires, legally and ethically.” Takagi told The Atlantic.

The dolls, some modeled to be as young as five years old, are meant to be as authentic as possible. The synthetic material used for the skin is supposed to feel similar to human skin. Anatomically, the dolls are disturbingly close to real children. In fact, the more petite models even have ribs and hip bones just beneath the skin. The level of detail in each doll is unnerving.

Clients can place special orders to customize the doll’s aesthetic, including clothing, age, facial expression, and custom features like tails or horns. The materials used to create the dolls are potentially hazardous, so discarding the dolls is complicated. If they need to dispose of their doll, clients must send it back to Trottla. One client wanted Takagi to “send [the doll] back home.”

Takagi hopes his dolls give pedophiles a healthy channel for their urges. Is it possible to be a non-offending pedophile, though? The words pedophile and child molester are often used interchangeably, but is there more to it?

It is vitally important to separate pedophilia from child molestation. Doing so does not justify or condone either. It simply allows two distinct but related issues to be addressed correctly.

Despite popular usage, pedophilia is a specific and limited term. Strictly speaking, pedophilia is a persistent sexual interest in prepubescent children. Although a definitive cause for pedophilia has not been discerned, many have had unhealthy or traumatic experiences in their childhood. This sexual interest is divorced from action, meaning pedophilic attraction does not always lead to assault against a child.

This distinction has found support in scientific work. David Riegel (2004) found that the vast majority (78.6%) of respondents (self-identified boy-preferring pedophiles) reported no legal history as a result of allegations of sexual contact with a boy. Dr. Michael C. Seto (2006) studied men who are likely pedophilic (all had child pornography charges), finding that 57% had no known history of sexual contact with a child.

In fact, there are so-called “virtuous pedophiles,” who have never offended but are living with pedophilic attraction. They are committed to avoid the abuse of children while acknowledging their attraction to children. Their website provides a forum for these people to talk through everything from their sexual struggles to their favorite movie. For more on “virtuous pedophiles,” look into Barcroft TV’s video on Todd Nickerson, a member and public advocate for the group.

As troubling as this whole phenomenon is, the big questions remains. Will Trottla’s dolls help pedophiles or hurt them?

It depends on who you ask.

Takagi and his clients would wholeheartedly endorse child sex dolls. Dr. Vivienne Cass, a clinical psychologist and sexual therapist, agrees. She told BuzzFeed News that “engaging with a doll provides a safe and private outlet” for pedophiles. Furthermore, Dr. Cass said “access to sex dolls might be considered a compassionate act for such individuals.”

However, Dr. Peter Fargan does not share this sentiment. The paraphilia researcher told The Atlantic that child sex dolls may “cause [pedophilia] to be acted upon with greater urgency.”

He pointed to a study from Dr. Drew Kingston in which pornography usage was associated with higher rates of violent and sexual reoffending in high-risk child molesters. Also, deviant pornography (including child pornography) was associated with higher rates of violent and sexual reoffending across all child molesters. Dr. Fargan suggests that Trottla’s dolls may have a similar reinforcing effect.

That being said, this work was done with child molesters and pornography not pedophiles and child sex dolls. It does not translate neatly, but it is possible that the child sex dolls may rile up some high-risk pedophiles.

Dr. Seto makes this same point in The Atlantic piece. He says “for some pedophiles, access to artificial child pornography or to child sex dolls could be a safer outlet for their sexual urges, reducing the likelihood that they would seek out child pornography or sex with real children. For others, having these substitutes might only aggravate their sense of frustration.”

Specialized research is the only thing that will accurately reveal the efficacy of child sex dolls.

Whatever the result, though, this is a disheartening, troubling, and outraging topic. Pedophilia is a worldwide taboo that evokes visceral reactions. This proposed solution to the pedophilia problem is off-putting, even if it works. The use of child sex dolls is complex and controversial, to say the least. That being said, it is far from settled.

WATCH TLR’S LATEST VIDEO: