Ephebophilia
Ephebophilia is the primary or exclusive adult sexual interest in mid-to-late adolescents, generally ages 15 to 19. The term was originally used in the late 19th to mid 20th century. It is one of a number of sexual preferences across age groups subsumed under the technical term
chronophilia. Ephebophilia strictly denotes the
preference for mid-to-late adolescent sexual partners, not the mere presence of some level of sexual attraction. Some authors define ephebophilia as a sexual preference for pubescent and adolescent boys. In research environments, specific terms are used for chronophilias: for instance,
ephebophilia to refer to the sexual preference for mid-to-late adolescents,
hebephilia to refer to the sexual preference for earlier pubescent individuals, and
pedophilia to refer to the sexual preference for prepubescent children. However, the term
pedophilia is commonly and mistakenly used to refer to any sexual interest in minors below the legal age of consent, regardless of their level of physical or mental development.