Description

Professionals working with young people often face uncertainty when responding to sexual behaviors in adolescents aged 13–18. This challenge is shaped by developmental differences, digital sexual cultures, peer dynamics, trauma, neurodiversity, and broader social influences. Too often, responses rely on adult-centered, risk-focused frameworks that overlook context and young people’s perspectives, leading to inconsistent, disproportionate, or even stigmatizing outcomes.

This session introduces the Young People’s Sexual Behaviour Mapping Tool (YSB-MT), a research-informed, participatory, and rights-based framework designed to support more balanced, reflective, and context-sensitive decision making. Suitable for professionals across social care, education, health, youth justice, safeguarding, and early-help services, the tool also supports supervision, case formulation, and multi-agency collaboration.

Grounded in socio-ecological theory, trauma-informed practice, and children’s rights approaches, the YSB-MT offers a clear three-stage process:

1. Describing behaviors and practitioner reflection
2. Mapping contextual influences across individual, interpersonal, community, and societal levels
3. Developing collaborative, proportionate action plans

Through practical examples, this session demonstrates how the YSB-MT can strengthen professional confidence, reduce bias, and support ethical, developmentally appropriate responses. Attendees will explore how to integrate digital behaviors, peer influence, and social context into their practice, ultimately improving outcomes for young people while promoting safeguarding, agency, and fairness.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Identify and contextualize adolescent sexual behaviors, distinguishing between typical, concerning, and harmful patterns using socio-ecological and trauma-informed perspectives
• Apply the YSB-MT framework to support consistent, proportionate, and rights-based decision making in practice and multi-agency settings
• Incorporate digital influences, peer dynamics, gender norms, and neurodiversity into assessments in ways that reduce stigma and strengthen safeguarding and young people’s voice

Speaker: Sophie King-Hill, PhD

Dr. Sophie King-Hill is an Associate Professor at the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham, UK. Her work focuses on sexual behaviours and assessment in children and young people, sexual health, sibling sexual behaviour and abuse, misogyny, and relationships and sex education, with a strong emphasis on the importance of youth voice.

Her research and practice are cross-sector and multidisciplinary, grounded in participatory and co-design approaches with stakeholders. She also has a particular interest in policy implementation, evaluation strategies, and understanding what contributes to effective and sustainable practice.

Before entering academia, Sophie worked extensively in the third sector in education and sexual health, supporting diverse groups including teenage parents and young people with social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties.

Refunds
Refunds will be given prior to 48 hours of the event date, minus a $10 administration fee.

Attendance Tracking & CE Credit Policy

ATSA is approved by the National Association of Social Workers to offer continuing education for social workers. 

ATSA is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. 

ATSA maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

(1 hour = 1 CE)