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Symposia

Criminal Justice / Forensics

Addressing Mental Health Needs among Justice-Involved Youth: Risk, Intervention, and Systemic Barriers

3 - (SYM 63) Prevalence and Risk Factors of Sexual Grooming of Youth in the Juvenile Justice System

Sunday, November 23, 2025
2:32 PM - 2:46 PM CST
Location: Bolden 2, Level 2
Keywords: Legal Issues, Vulnerable Populations, Underserved Populations
Recommended Readings: Kemp, K., Sheerin, K., Pederson, C., Grant, M., Modrowski, C., & Spirito, A. (2025). Youth with Behavioral Health Symptoms in the Juvenile Legal System: From Assessment of Needs to Interventions to Scalability. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 21.,   Beaudry, G., Yu, R., Långström, N., & Fazel, S. (2021). An updated systematic review and meta-regression analysis: Mental disorders among adolescents in juvenile detention and correctional facilities. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 60(1), 46-60.,   Winters, G. M., Kaylor, L. E., & Jeglic, E. L. (2022). Toward a universal definition of child sexual grooming. Deviant Behavior, 43(8), 926-938.,   ,  
Abstract Body
Sexual grooming is the process by which abusers facilitate contact with youth and evade detection, often through developing trust with youth and their guardians, desensitizing them to physical contact and sexual content, and isolating them (Winters et al., 2022). Research suggests that sexual grooming of youth is a critical public health concern within multiple youth-serving systems, including schools, foster care, and community and religious institutions (O’Leary et al., 2017; Winters & Jeglic, 2022, 2024). Indeed, Jeglic and Winters’ (2025) study of child sexual abuse by educators found that sexual grooming behavior was present in 100% of cases analyzed. However, no current empirical work has investigated sexual grooming in juvenile justice (JJ) settings, a system that serves thousands of youth. Beyond elucidating the prevalence of sexual grooming in JJ settings, it is critical to identify factors that may place youth at risk of being groomed while incarcerated. Research on sexual grooming shows that perpetrators target youth whom they perceive to be vulnerable, including those with prior maltreatment experiences, disability status, and mental health difficulties (Colton et al., 2013). Thus, these factors may be related to the sexual grooming of youth within JJ settings. Consistent with the minority stress theory (Meyer, 2003) and research demonstrating that LGBTQ+ individuals are more susceptible to victimization due to anti-LGBTQ+ stigma (Collier et al., 2013), sexual minority (SM) and gender minority (GM) youth may also be more vulnerable to grooming within the JJ system. To explore the prevalence of sexual grooming and its associated risk factors within the JJ system, the present study leveraged self-report data from a sample of 6,049 incarcerated youth. In the sample, 60.2% of youth endorsed experiencing sexual grooming by JJ facility staff. Results of a multiple-regression indicated that older age (B = .03, p = .025), prior physical (B = .32, p < .001) and sexual (B = .10, p < .001) abuse, and greater psychological distress (B = .04, p < .001) were positively associated with sexual grooming. Surprisingly, the relations among SM identity, GM identity, disability status, and grooming were not significant. The findings underscore the alarming prevalence of sexual grooming within JJ facilities and highlight the relevance of a trauma-focused lens when identifying youth at risk of being targeted. Overall, these results emphasize the need for more research, and prevention and intervention efforts focused on sexual grooming within JJ settings.