Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age

Considerations for Clinicians, Legal Professionals and Educators

Edited by Fabian Saleh, Albert Grudzinskas, Jr., and Abigail Judge

Provides a comprehensive review of the current state of knowledge about "normal" sexual development and behaviors among children and adolescents
Explores the effects of novel electronic communication and technologies on sexual development and behavior among adolescents today
Includes an up-to-date analysis of current legal responses and discusses the legal and ethical dilemmas raised by the use of new technologies and their impact on children and adolescents
Offers guidance to courts, the criminal justice system, parents, teachers, educations, and clinicians to help inform practice while permitting for normal experimentation during these developmental phases
Several chapters are co-authored by mental health professional and attorneys/legal scholars to highlight the importance of cross-disciplinary work on these subjects

Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age

Considerations for Clinicians, Legal Professionals and Educators

Edited by Fabian Saleh, Albert Grudzinskas, Jr., and Abigail Judge

Description

The nexus between the digital revolution and adolescent sexual behavior has posed significant challenges to mental health practitioners, attorneys, and educators. These digital technologies may facilitate dangerous behaviors and serious consequences for some youth. Adolescent Sexual Development in the Digital Age considers adolescent sexual behavior in both clinical and legal contexts and provides a basis for clinicians, legal professionals, educators, policy makers, parents and the general public to understand the impact that technology has on human growth and development. The book's contributing authors are leading authorities in adolescent development, law, and ethics, fostering an interdisciplinary dialogue within the text.

New technology poses many opportunities for both normal and risky sexual behavior in youth; including "sexting," social networking, cyber-sexual harassment, commercial exploitation of children, and child pornography. Beyond just cataloging the various technologies impacting sexual behavior, this volume offers guidance and strategies for addressing the issues created by the digital age.

Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age

Considerations for Clinicians, Legal Professionals and Educators

Edited by Fabian Saleh, Albert Grudzinskas, Jr., and Abigail Judge

Table of Contents

Preface (Abigail M. Judge, Ph.D., Albert J. Grudzinskas, Jr., J.D., & Fabian M. Saleh, M.D.)

Part One: Introduction

1. New Technology Meets Old Law (Albert J. Grudzinskas, Jr., J.D., Richard Cody, J.D., Sara J. Brady, MD & Fabian M. Saleh, MD)

2. Understanding the World of Digital Youth (Andrew J. Harris, Ph.D.)

3. Sexual Development and Behavior in Children and Adolescents (H. Martin Malin & Fabian M. Saleh, MD)

4. The Internet and adolescent sexual behavior: A developmental perspective (David Smahel, Ph.D., & Kaveri Subrayanman, Ph.D.)

Part Two: Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age

5. Youth-produced sexual images, "sexting" and the cell phone (Clay Calvert, JD,
Ph.D.)

6. Chat rooms and Social Networking Sites (Charles L. Scott, MD)

7. Cyber-sexual Harassment & Suicide (Fabian M. Saleh, MD, Barry Feldman, Ph.D., Albert J. Grudzinskas, Jr., JD,& Simha Ravven, M.D.)

8. Juveniles, the Internet and Sexual Offending (Cyril Boonmann, MSc., Albert Grudzinskas, Jr. , JD, & Marcel Aebi, Ph.D.)

9. From the streets to cyberspace: The effects of technology on the commercial sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in the United States (Abigail M. Judge, Ph.D. & Mary Graw Leary, JD)

10. Legal and clinical issues in interpreting child pornography on the Internet
(Lisa Murphy, M.C.A., M. Crim, B.S.S. & J. Paul Fedoroff, MD)

Part Three: Implications and Considerations for Professionals

11. Parenting through the digital revolution (Andrew B. Clark, MD)

12. Teens, Sex, and Technology: Implications for educational systems and practice (Andrew J. Harris, Ph.D & Judith Davidson, Ph.D)

13. Problematic Internet Behaviors: Diagnostic and Treatment Implications for Clinicians
(Liwei L. Hua, MD, PhD, Scott Yapo, BS, Amy Yule, MD, & Tristan Gorrindo, MD)

14. Ethical and Legal Considerations for Psychiatry Regarding Adolescents and Technology Use (Daniel Bonnici, M.D., Ariel Seroussi, M.D., Gregory B Leong, M.D., & Robert Weinstock, M.D.)

15. Conclusion: Understanding Adolescent Sexual Development & the Law in the Digital Era (Christopher W. Racine, MD, MPH, & Stephen B. Billick, MD)

Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age

Considerations for Clinicians, Legal Professionals and Educators

Edited by Fabian Saleh, Albert Grudzinskas, Jr., and Abigail Judge

Author Information

Dr. Fabian M. Saleh is a medical doctor who specializes in forensic and child & adolescent psychiatry. He is Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He is the director of the Sexual Violence Prevention & Risk Management Program (SVP&RMP) at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. His forensic practice focuses on criminal and civil cases, including but not limited to, civil commitment, sexual dangerousness, and risk assessment and risk management.

Albert J. Grudzinskas, Jr., J.D. received his undergraduate degree at Northeastern University and his law degree at Syracuse University. After 12 years of private legal practice Attorney Grudzinskas served as Assistant General Counsel to the Department of Mental Health of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for eight years. Currently Attorney Grudzinskas is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Coordinator of Legal Studies in the Law and Psychiatry Program. Attorney Grudzinskas consults widely to state governments and court systems. He has lectured on and authored more than 60 book chapters, peer reviewed articles, law review articles, and papers.

Abigail Judge, Ph.D. is a clinical and child forensic psychologist in private practice in Cambridge, MA and an Instructor in Psychology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Judge specializes in psychotherapy with adolescent girls and young adults as well as child and family forensic evaluation. Her scholarship examines the intersection of adolescent sexual development and technology, and also the commercial sexual exploitation of children in the United States. Visit Dr. Judge online at www.abigailjudge.com.

Contributors:

Marcel Aebi, Ph.D
Stephen B. Billick, MD
Daniel Bonnici, M.D
Cyril Boonmann, MSc
Sara J. Brady, MD
Clay Calvert, JD, Ph.D
Andrew B. Clark, MD
Richard Cody, J.D.
Judith Davidson, Ph.D
J. Paul Fedoroff, MD
Barry Feldman, Ph.D
Tristan Gorrindo, MD
Albert J. Grudzinskas, Jr., J.D.
Andrew J. Harris, Ph.D
Liwei L. Hua, MD, PhD
Abigail M. Judge, Ph.D.
Mary Graw Leary, JD
Gregory B Leong, M.D.,
H. Martin Malin
Lisa Murphy, M.C.A., M. Crim, B.S.S.
Christopher W. Racine, MD, MPH
Rebekah Ranger, BSS, BA
Simha Ravven, M.D
Fabian M. Saleh, MD
Charles L. Scott, MD
Ariel Seroussi, M.D
David Smahel, Ph.D
Kaveri Subrayanman, Ph.D
Robert Weinstock, M.D
Scott Yapo, BS
Amy Yule, MD

Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age

Considerations for Clinicians, Legal Professionals and Educators

Edited by Fabian Saleh, Albert Grudzinskas, Jr., and Abigail Judge

Reviews and Awards

"This is a superb book on many, many levels, addressing critical issues at the intersection of adolescent sexuality, the digital age, and the law's disproportionate and often counterproductive approach. It takes a topic that is so emotionally (and politically) fraught and holds it up for rational, careful, and thoughtful research and analysis. It should be read by judges, advocates and more importantly, policy makers. I wish it had been available during my 17 years as a federal judge." --Judge Nancy Gertner, U.S. Dist. Court (Retired)

"Adolescent Sexual Behavior in the Digital Age addresses the effects that digital technology and social media have on adolescent development by taking a research-based, empirical approach. A major resource for clinical and forensic mental health professionals, legal scholars, and practitioners involved with adolescents, it is particularly helpful for those of us on the other side of the 'Generation Divide' as we struggle to keep up with fast-paced changes that impact the social and psychological live of adolescents." --Roy J. O'Shaughnessy, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia

"I highly recommend this book. ... Overall, this is a great addition to a personal and a professional library." Weighted Numerical Score: 100 - 5 Stars! --Doody's Health Sciences Book Review

"...This is an extremely helpful book for all the audiences that the author and editors have aimed to address. Its proactive and substantive approach provides normative and current approaches to complex problems." -- PsycCRITIQUES