Understanding and Preventing Harmful Sexual Behaviors Among Children and Adolescents: Evidence, Practice, Professional Responses and Policy

Harmful sexual behaviors (HSB) among children and adolescents have emerged as a growing area of research and, practice across psychology, education, child protection, public health, and justice systems. As an umbrella term, HSB encompasses a range of concerning sexual behaviors and experiences, including problematic sexual behaviors and sexual offending, while emphasizing the behavior itself rather than labeling the child or young person. This perspective recognizes that children and adolescents who engage in harmful sexual behaviors differ from adult sexual offenders in important developmental, relational, and contextual ways. Increasing evidence highlights the need to better understand the developmental pathways, psychosocial mechanisms, family and social contexts, digital influences, and experiences of victimization that may contribute to these behaviors. At the same time, significant challenges remain regarding prevention, early identification, professional responses, and the implementation of evidence-based interventions across diverse settings and populations.This Research Topic aims to advance knowledge on harmful and problematic sexual behaviors among children and adolescents to strengthen prevention efforts, improve professional responses, and promote healthy sexual development. We seek interdisciplinary contributions that examine developmental trajectories, risk and protective factors, trauma-informed perspectives, technology-assisted sexual harms, and pathways to resilience and positive behavioral change. Particular emphasis will be placed on research that informs prevention and early intervention, supports children, adolescents, families, and affected communities, and contributes to evidence-based policies and practices. By bringing together perspectives from psychology, education, child protection, public health, criminology, and social work, this Research Topic seeks to foster a more nuanced, developmentally informed, and prevention-oriented understanding of harmful sexual behaviors in childhood and adolescence.This Research Topic welcomes contributions that advance understanding, prevention, assessment, and intervention related to harmful sexual behaviors (HSB) and problematic sexual behaviors (PSB) among children and adolescents. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: conceptualization and definitions of HSB/PSB; developmental pathways and underlying mechanisms; risk and protective factors; trauma, adversity, and victimization experiences; family, peer, school, and community influences; technology-assisted harmful sexual behaviors; prevention and early intervention strategies; professional and institutional responses; assessment and treatment approaches; resilience and desistance processes; implementation science; and policy and systems-level responses across diverse cultural and socioeconomic contexts.We welcome Original Research, Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses, Brief Research Reports, Methods articles, Community Case Studies, Policy and Practice Reviews, and Perspective papers from disciplines including psychology, education, child protection, public health, criminology, social work, and related fields. Topic editors: Abigail Casas Muñoz, Miriam Arroyo-Belmonte Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82882/understanding-and-preventing-harmful-sexual-behaviors-among-children-and-adolescents-evidence-practice-professional-responses-and-policy