The Beat: Relationship Violence and Sexual Exploitation
“The Influence of Running Away on the Risk of Female Sexual Assault in the Subsequent Year,” Violence and Victims, Vol. 26, No. 6, 2011.
What it’s about: Researchers wanted to know if running away increases a teen girl’s risk of being sexually assaulted in the year after she returns home. To find out, they looked at survey data on more than 5,000 girls ages 11 to 18. The data came from the Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a national survey of U.S. teens.
Why read it: Many studies have found that runaway and homeless youth are very likely to be sexually assaulted or exploited while away from home. Other studies have shown that sexual abuse at home puts youth at risk of sexual violence when they become homeless. This is the first study to look at runaway girls’ risk of being sexually assaulted...
In honor of National Child Abuse Prevention Month, here are five NCFY articles about how youth-serving organizations can help victims and prevent further abuse:
1. NCFY Recommends: Hotline Helps Child Abuse Victims 24/7
Every ten seconds, child abuse is reported in the United States. Anonymous help for victims and their families can be found by calling Childhelp's National Child Abuse Hotline 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
2. Q&A: Kathryn S. Krase on Mandated Reporting for Youth-Serving Organizations
Recent allegations of child sexual abuse in a youth-serving organization founded by a coach at Pennsylvania State University highlight the confusion that often surrounds state "mandated reporter" laws. These laws require certain professionals to report instances of...
Domestic violence and other trauma can have significant mental health consequences. The National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma & Mental Health, part of the Domestic Violence Resource Network funded by the Family and Youth Services Bureau's Family Violence Prevention and Services Program, works to provide programs with the tools and training they need to support trauma survivors and their children. You may want to
- Watch free webinars presented by experts in the field. Start with "Understanding Trauma & Mental Health in the...
Cyberbullying, or online bullying, is oft-reported in the news. But what is it, exactly? To clarify the issue for adults, young writers from the online magazine YCTeen recently discussed their experiences and views of abuse and bad behavior online. They address why youth bully and others watch, how youth can respond, and how teachers and parents can help.
If you know a youth who has bullied or been bullied, please encourage the young person to call 1-800-RUNAWAY or visit www.1800RUNAWAY.org to talk about it.
Additional Resources
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“Attitudes Affecting Physical Dating Violence Perpetration and Victimization: Findings From Adolescents in a High-Risk Urban Community” (abstract), Violence and Victims, Volume 26, Number 5, 2011.
What it’s about: The researchers surveyed over 4,000 urban middle- and high-school students to find out if attitudes about dating violence predicted whether or not teens acted violently toward their romantic partners or became victims of dating violence.
Why read it: Understanding what makes teen boys and girls more likely to act violently toward their girlfriends and boyfriends or to become victims of dating violence may help youth...
In a new Youth Speak Out podcast, two young people share how they use the common language of popular music to broach a difficult subject: teen dating violence.
Jaquil and Jalisa, youth leaders at the anti-dating violence nonprofit Start Strong Boston, bring a list of pop, rap, rock and country songs when they talk to local middle schoolers about dating and relationships. By analyzing song lyrics and discussing whether they promote healthy or unhealthy relationships, Jaquil and Jalisa help younger teens develop healthy attitudes before they start dating.
Peer Education and Leadership in Dating Violence Prevention: Strengths and Challenges (abstract), Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, Vol. 19, 2010.
What it’s about: The authors of this article interviewed 52 domestic violence and sexual assault prevention practitioners about their experiences using youth as educators and leaders in efforts to prevent dating violence and sexual assault among adolescents.
Why read it: Using peer educators, or leaders, to encourage healthy behavior among other teens is a popular component of many programs aimed at ending teen dating violence and sexual assault. This article reports on the pros and cons of the peer education approach.
Biggest takeaways for youth workers:
Pros:
- Peer education can be rewarding for both the young leaders and the...
Controlling behavior and emotional abuse in teen dating relationships are nothing new. But technologies like smart phones, texting and social networking sites have made young people vulnerable to new avenues of harassment and abuse—because abusers can reach them anytime, anywhere.
Parents and youth service providers might not understand the seriousness of so-called digital abuse or know how to help. That's why Liz Claiborne Inc.'s Love Is Not Abuse campaign against dating violence created an iPhone app to help grown-ups get the seriousness of the problem.
"Even if you have experienced some type of abuse in your life, it probably wasn't digital or on social media," says Jane Randel, director of Love Is Not Abuse.
The...
When a young person lives on the streets or in an abusive home, their brain develops differently than if they lived in a stable, safe environment. To learn more about the teen brain, trauma and healthy ways to stimulate young people’s frontal lobes, NCFY spoke with Heather Higgins, director of training and development at The Upside Down Organization, which demystifies brain science for people who work with children and youth.
NCFY: My understanding is that when youth experience trauma or neglect, parts of their brain over- or under-develop.
Higgins: Yes, if you’re in a potentially dangerous situation, the amygdala, which is the fear and emotional center of the brain, becomes overactive. If all the blood and brain activity is focused on the amygdala, it slows down the development of the frontal lobe, which...
"Residential treatment for sexually exploited adolescent girls: Acknowledge, Commit, Transform (ACT)" (abstract), Children and Youth Services Review, Vol. 33, No. 11, November 2011.
What it's about: Young people who have been sexually exploited often run away from a residential treatment program and return to the streets.They may also lack engagement in the program, behave aggressively and abuse substances. The authors of this study wanted to know what administrators at Germaine Lawrence, a residential treatment facility for adolescent young women in Massachusetts, did to prevent these situations.
Why read it: The proportion of young women who prematurely left the...
