Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment and Trauma
Volume 27, Issue 6, 2018, Pages 577-597

Ambiguous Agency as a Diagnostic of Power: Efforts of Child Welfare Providers to Promote Responsible Agency Among Youth Involved in Sex Trades (Article)

Johnson L.* , Sapiro B. , Buttner C. , Postmus J.L.
  • a Center on Violence Against Women and Children, Rutgers University School of Social Work, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
  • b Center on Violence Against Women and Children, Rutgers University School of Social Work, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
  • c Center on Violence Against Women and Children, Rutgers University School of Social Work, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
  • d Center on Violence Against Women and Children, Rutgers University School of Social Work, New Brunswick, NJ, United States

Abstract

Ambiguous agency is a term which has been used to describe the ways in which young people demonstrate their agency in ways that challenge traditional ideas about how youth are supposed to behave. State and nongovernmental actors, such as service providers, generally view these behaviors as deviant and have utilized a variety of interventions to transform these youth so that they engage in acts of responsible agency instead. This article will explore how the concept of ambiguous and responsible agency relate to youth involved in sex trades by analyzing the case records of eight youth who were identified as survivors of domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) by child protective services within New Jersey through this framework. Specifically, this study seeks to determine the views and perceptions of caseworkers related to ambiguous and responsible agency of these youth. Drawing on notions of agency, this manuscript provides new understandings about how youth involved in sex trades potentially exert their own limited power. Implications for the provision of services to youth involved in sex trades and research are also discussed. © 2018, © 2018 Taylor & Francis.

Author Keywords

Domestic minor sex trafficking ambiguous agency Adolescent responsible agency Youth agency trauma

Index Keywords

medical record review New Jersey perception health promotion health care personnel human health service Data collection method social worker child protection sex trafficking childhood psychotherapy conceptual framework female juvenile Child Welfare clinical article child sexual abuse Article minor (person) domestic minor sex trafficking powerlessness talk therapy ambiguous agency psychotropic agent systematic review Child
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85046664311&doi=10.1080%2f10926771.2018.1468375&partnerID=40&md5=1aefef7925b047918708681fceac5d51
DOI: 10.1080/10926771.2018.1468375
ISSN: 10926771
Original Language: English