Five Significant Changes in the Last 20 Years
Publication year:
2012
| Cataloged on:
Feb. 11, 2013
ANNOTATION: The “most dramatic” changes over 20 years in the understanding of youth who have sexually abused are described. What is so useful about this article is that the authors place related references within the sections they are related to. This makes it easier for the reader to look up the citations for additional information as they are reading. Changes discussed are: adolescents are not little adults; most adolescents do not re-offend sexually; assessment remains complicated—while current measures are useful, they are not stand-alone tools; the right person-centered treatment can make a difference, such as community-based and cognitive-behavioral approaches; and therapist qualities make a difference in outcomes. “There is a growing consensus that adolescents who sexually abuse are in most ways like other adolescents who are delinquent. Professionals will therefore need to have both specialized knowledge about youthful sexual aggression and general knowledge about adolescent development … while teaching sexual health and respect is vital to prevention, it is essential that these curricula also address past traumatic and other adverse experiences” (p. 4).
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