New article alert: Risk/needs reduction in a specialty domestic minor sex trafficking court

Dr. Cavanagh's latest article, A Specialty Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking Court: Risks and Needs Reduction and the Youth Level of Service/Case Management Inventory, is out now in Journal of Applied Youth Studies.

Our community partners started a specialty court for justice-involved youth who have experienced domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST). Not a lot is known about the DMST population's complex needs, or how to reduce their risk. This study describes the risks and needs of participating youth during their time in the program.

We found that participating youths’ average cumulative risks/needs decreased during their time under supervision in the DMST Court in 5 of 8 domains we measured: school, substance misuse, family, procriminal attitudes, and antisocial personality.

This particular DMST court is having a positive impact on participating youth in terms of reducing risk, which is great news. DMST specialty courts are new, but growing in number. It’s important to understand what types of interventions work for whom. This study is a first step to understanding more about this marginalized population.