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Foster care youths can be exposed to a minefield of risks including abuse, neglect, and trauma of many kinds. Another one of the risks that has been increasingly recognized is sex trafficking. The Children’s Bureau has found that children and youths under the care of the child welfare system are particularly susceptible to traffickers and that those who seek to exploit youths target those who are vulnerable.
As founding executive director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice & Research, the author of this month’s E-News Exclusive has researched this correlation and explains how and why foster care youths are particularly vulnerable to sex traffickers.
We welcome your comments at SWTeditor@gvpub.com. Visit our website at www.SocialWorkToday.com, like our Facebook page; and follow us on Twitter.
— Marianne Mallon, editor |
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Foster Care Youths at Risk for Child Sex Trafficking
By Debra Schilling Wolfe, MEd
Involvement in the child welfare system presumes a history of maltreatment for children and youths. When children can no longer remain safely in their own homes, courts may make the difficult decision to transfer care to the responsible child welfare agency, which then secures an alternative living arrangement. Although an increasing number are placed with kin, many more reside with nonrelative families. Of the 437,465 children in foster care in the United States on September 30, 2016, 45% were placed in nonrelative vs. 32% in relative family foster homes (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2017). When responsibility shifts to a governmental agency, adults who have a contractual relationship to serve in a pseudoparental role provide the day-to-day care for these children. Does out-of-home care support an environment conducive to sex trafficking?
Prevalence of Domestic Sex Trafficking of Minors
Estimates of the rates of sex trafficking vary. Research recently published by the University of Pennsylvania’s Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice & Research examined the prevalence of sex trafficking among homeless youths in three different U.S. cities. Interviews were conducted with 270 youths at community-based agencies that serve homeless youths. All were administered the previously validated Human Trafficking Interview and Assessment Measure. This study was part of a larger research project commissioned by Covenant House International that interviewed close to 1,000 homeless youths across 13 cities.
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Study Highlights Racism, Sexual Assault as Contributors to College Mental Health Challenges
A text mining analysis of academic and news articles related to mental health issues in higher education finds that racism, violence, and sexual assault are key contributors to mental health challenges for students. The research also highlights the need for mental health services, and outlines some ways that mobile technologies may be able to help address these needs.
“We had found in our previous work that students are concerned about mental health issues, and we wanted to better define the scope of mental health challenges for students and what factors contribute to those challenges,” says Fay Cobb Payton, PhD, corresponding author of a paper on the work and a professor of information systems/technology and University Faculty Scholar at North Carolina State University.
To address these questions, the researchers used text mining techniques to analyze 165 articles published between 2010 and 2015. The researchers drew on both peer-reviewed research literature and articles published in higher education news outlets.
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Black Lives Matter Five Years Later — Sustaining a Social Justice Movement During an Adversarial Administration — Implications for Social Workers
Unlike its predecessor, the new administration brings an antagonistic attitude toward this social justice initiative. Read more »
Public Health Priorities: Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity — Social Work's Strengths Can Help Meet Healthy People 2020 Goals
A U.S. health initiative renews its targets every decade. How can social workers help it meet its objectives? Read more » |
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Percentage of Unvaccinated Children Under 2 Rises Sharply
The Washington Post reports the percentage of children under 2 years old who haven’t received any vaccinations has quadrupled in the last 17 years, according to federal health data.
World Support for Mental Health Care ‘Pitifully Small,’ Says Recent Study
According to NPR, 28 mental health researchers, clinicians, and advocates from across five continents report “pitifully small” levels of financial support from governments and assistance groups for mental health research and patient care.
Antiageism Program Encourages Listening to Older Adult Patients Outside of the Hospital
The New York Times reports on an antiageism program for medical students aiming to dispel ageist stereotypes by listening to the stories of elder patients outside of the hospital, where most education occurs and where most elders are debilitated and physically deteriorating. |
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