This qualitative study sought to explore the personal experiences of those who have been victims of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking (DMST), the challenges they faced as they transitioned into survivors, and the factors they attributed to their resiliency. DMST victims are among the marginalized populations enduring social injustices within our communities. Social workers seek to serve these individuals, and yet they are just one part of the system of helping professionals that will encounter these victims. The interactions that DMST victims have with each entity of the system makes a difference in the recovery process as they become a survivor. Much of the research that had previously been conducted focused on the therapist’s perspective of DMST as experienced through their own therapeutic relationships with the victims. In contrast, the primary goal of this research was to focus on the perspective of those who had been victims of DMST so those in the helping professions can more effectively help these individuals. In order to achieve such goals it is essential to build a foundation of knowledge. This involves providing educational aspects to understand the scope of the problem and the dynamics of the trafficking relationship. In the case of this research, the victims themselves provide the knowledge that was gained through their participation. In addition, the research participants were able to express their perspective of both effective and ineffective aspects of their recovery, as well as what modifications could be made to improve the experiences of those who have been DMST victims in the process of becoming a survivor. Despite the differences in the experiences of the participants, this research revealed major themes in terms of dysfunctional family dynamics in childhood, a lack of recognition of the signs of trafficking, a lack of appropriate recovery services, and provided insight into helpful strategies that could be implemented to improve the process as these individuals transition from victim to survivor. The personal experiences within the specific themes and categories provide beneficial knowledge for those involved in the helping professions as they encounter victims of DMST.

The purpose of this study is to explore methods of intervention for domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST). Due to the secretive nature of the DMST industry, victims are not only difficult to identify, but are also difficult to gain access to in order to provide effective intervention. This study seeks to overcome these barriers by gaining the perspectives of DMST survivors. This study has a qualitative design, in which 8 survivors of DMST, who are now adults, were interviewed to determine appropriate methods of intervention for child welfare social workers. In doing so, intervention was broken down into three categories; prevention, intervention, and recovery. The findings of this study indicated the need for an interagency approach to victim identification. Furthermore, the findings of this study highlighted the need for services that incorporated spirituality and a network of support; such as mentorship, life coaching, and support groups.

“Human trafficking” has become part of the everyday lexicon in the United States and globally over the last fifteen years. The issue has made its way into political platforms, scholarly work, church congregations, and international aid agendas. Florida is currently recognized as third in the nation for number of cases of human trafficking. This thesis employs ethnographic interviews and observations to understand one portion of Florida’s human trafficking problem referred to as domestic minor sex trafficking. This type of trafficking affects mostly teenage girls from marginalized populations, such as those that have experienced the child welfare system, homelessness, and impoverished circumstances. In 2013 the state passed the Florida Safe Harbor Act, modeled after the New York State Safe Harbour for Exploited Children Act, to address the needs of this population through legislation. The Act specifies certain policy and procedural changes, as well as the role of the Department of Children and Families. Further, it prohibits minors from facing prostitution charges, recognizing that they cannot consent to commercial sex because of their age. This study investigates the Safe Harbor Act’s impact on agencies and the public in terms of raising awareness about domestic minor sex trafficking. With no immediate funding attached to the bill, or dedicated in the state budget, Florida is still struggling to provide adequate care for this population. In addition to policy analysis, this study examined existing services, assessed current needs in the field, and created an interactive map to locate services for professionals working in the field. While Florida has clearly improved its ability to manage these cases over the last three years, there is still much work to be done to address domestic minor sex trafficking. Based on these findings, this thesis offers recommendations for policy and further research on successful practices in working with this population’s specific needs.

Domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) is a social problem affecting children between the ages of 12 and 17 years old. The issues related to DMST present challenges for social work practitioners because they often lack knowledge regarding how to identify and provide specialized services to this population. The purpose of the qualitative study was to collect and analyze data to develop an understanding of how social workers in the northeastern region of the United States identified challenges and thereby improved their practice skills when intervening with this vulnerable population. An epistemological paradigm, with a constructivist perspective employing Nguyen's systems theory, was used to understand the phenomena. The practice-focused research question posed to 5 clinically licensed social workers (LCSW) asked about the perceived barriers hindering social work practice when identifying victims of DMST. In addition, upon recognition of DMST victims, participants described existing community services that addressed their social work practice needs. The LCSWs attended 3 hour-long audio-recorded focus groups, offering their knowledge and experiences related to DMST in the designated region. Constant comparison was used to analyze the data provided by the participants during the focus groups. The key findings indicated a lack of proper identification tools and specialized services for this community. Findings can be used to recommend social change efforts, which included increasing communication about the victims between jurisdictions and communications with policy makers and service providers regarding the need to develop and implement training on various related topics.

No description available.

Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking (DMST) affects hundreds of thousands of youth every year. In the past, DMST youth were often viewed by law enforcement and the criminal justice system as "offenders" and were usually arrested for solicitation even though they were minors. While new laws have begun to identify youth as victims, it has not yet been ensured that social workers have adopted this perspective. This quantitative study's purpose was to examine Cal State University San Bernardino (CSUSB) Bachelor of Social Work (BASW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) students' attitudes toward DMST youth. Participants completed an online questionnaire using Qualtrics software. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21, using statistical tests including frequencies, Pearson's R, and ANOVA. The hypothesis that knowledge, exposure to curriculum, and past experiences impacted students' stigmatization of DMST youth was not supported by the data. Instead, results indicated that CSUSB social work students did not stigmatize the DMST population. Because these findings cannot be generalized to social workers in the field, future research should explore whether social workers currently working with DMST youth stigmatize this population. These findings also have implications for the CSUSB School of Social Work as they revealed that some students lacked education about this population and, consequently, felt unprepared to work with this population.

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Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking is a crime happening right in our own backyards. Social Workers are seeing this vulnerable population fall through the fingers of social services and into the clutches of traffickers at alarming rates. This research project analyzed San Bernardino and Riverside County Foster Family Agency Social Workers' Awareness of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking. This project was a quantitative exploratory research design. A paper survey was distributed to Foster Family Agency Social Workers within San Bernardino and Riverside County, California using a snowball sampling. A bivariate analysis was conducted to evaluate the relationship that social work experience in the field and the amount of DMST trainings attended have on social work awareness of DMST. The results of this research show that high number of DMST trainings result in a lower level of DMST awareness. Data also showed no significant relationship between how participants scored on the Awareness of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking survey and years of social work experience. The results of this research can be used as a baseline to study Foster Family Agency Social Worker awareness with San Bernardino and Riverside County, California and how to best implement effective DMST trainings; as federal and state laws are predicted to make Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking training mandatory within social service fields.

In spite of a paradigm shift redefining domestic minors trafficked through prostitution as victims instead of criminal offenders, many police officers experience uncertainty in the way they evaluate the nature of domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) and assess the culpability status of prostituted minors. This problem often results in revictimizing children and hindering their ability to access needed services. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore police officers' perceptions of minors engaged in prostitution and derive an understanding of the experiences, beliefs, and values that underlie these perceptions. The study also focused on how these factors influence police decision making regarding DMST. Attribution theory provided the framework. Participants included 4 police detectives assigned to a youth sex trafficking unit in a large city in the western region of the United States. Data were derived from individual interviews and significant documents. Coding and category construction were utilized to analyze single cases, and content analysis was used to analyze documents. Through cross-case analysis, data from all cases and sources were examined for common themes and discrepancies. The study's findings indicated all respondents perceived minors involved in prostitution as victims and that police empathy influenced perceptions and police decision making. The results of the study will potentially facilitate positive social change through advancing a deeper awareness of the nature of DMST and informing law enforcement policy and practices.

No description available.