Date of Award

5-1-2024

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

School of Social Welfare

Dissertation/Thesis Chair

Nancy Claiborne

Committee Members

Katharine Briar-Lawson, Charles Auerbach

Keywords

Attitudes, Families, Interdisciplinary, Perceptions, Sexual Behavior, Youth

Subject Categories

Social Work

Abstract

Problematic sexual behaviors (PSB) among youth have been a prominent public health and social concern. Although these behaviors have previously been considered to comprise a “curiosity” or an “experimentation”, PSB is now recognized as causing harm and suffering for victims and family members while also having a considerable economic influence in medical, behavioral health, social services, and criminal justice systems. Much research has examined how perceptions and attitudes impact our behaviors towards PSB among adults, but none examines how perceptions and attitudes impact our behaviors towards youth. Knowing there are several gaps in literature, the current study was conducted to explore attitudes among professionals (social workers, probation officers, and police) that may potentially interact with youth who exhibit PSB. An embedded mixed-methods design was carried out with social workers, probation officers, and police. Quantitative data were collected from professionals who interact with youth who exhibit PSB (N = 51), and qualitative data were collected from social workers, probation, and police officers (N = 12). Rigorous data analyses techniques were employed, including an inductive and deductive thematic analysis and focused coding schemas to analyze qualitative data and mixed-effects regression models to analyze quantitative data. Qualitative results revealed that experiences such as employment, prevailing language and biases influence one’s response to PSB. Quantitative results revealed that social workers, probation officers, and police respond more punitively towards more serious PSB such as rape. The models also demonstrated that although probation officers initially react more punitively to PSB compared to social workers, police officers respond even more punitively. Inherent implications suggest that there is a need for professional development and training that focuses on trauma-informed practices and current research on evidence-based practices for PSB, funding for more organizations to provide specialized PSB services, a need for solution-focused approaches and interprofessional collaboration, and a need for consistent policies across different systems. Future research should focus on delving deeper into what aspects of trauma-informed practices are more important than others. It should also explore other professional’s and paraprofessional’s attitudes and the supports needed to effectively respond to PSB among youth.

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