One special consideration that can impact the treatment of juvenile sexual offenders is awareness of the magnitude of their actions. It is important to ensure that the juvenile comprehends the offense committed and how it affects him or her and the victim. This is important because in certain instances, the juveniles are so young (11, 12, 13 or 14 years) that they do not understand the magnitude of their actions. The other consideration is presence of positive family caregiver dynamic. When dealing with juveniles, it is important to know that they often value what their family thinks about them (Kimonis et al., 2011). Juveniles may need family support for them to be ready and receptive of the treatment. In this way, the treatment for juveniles should consider family dynamics to make the treatment effective for the offender (Prescott & Levenson, 2010).
As regards ethical guidelines, parental involvement should be considered before enrolling a juvenile to the treatment. It is important to ensure that informed consent is obtained for the treatment to start and to involve the parents in helping the juvenile find a supportive environment (Kimonis et al., 2011). The other ethical consideration is the safety of the community. There are treatments for juvenile sex offenders that aim at ensuring that the offender is able to reintegrate into the community. However, it is imperative that these treatments consider the possible risks to the community in case the treatment was not effective or the offender relapses (Prescott & Levenson, 2010). According to Prescott and Levenson (2010), some scholars argue that sex offender treatments for juveniles do not consider the rights of the individual. Generally, juvenile sex offenders are required to undergo treatment whether they agree or not. Some scholars feel that juvenile sex offenders should have the right to decline treatment if they do not feel they need it. The ethical consideration here is whether it is better to force the juvenile to take the treatment for the welfare of everyone or to allow the offender have his or her rights.
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"Special Populations: Juvenile Sexual Offenders".
A juvenile sexual offender may differ from a “typical” male sexual offender with reference to awareness of the crime being committed. A juvenile sexual offender may commit the offense without really knowing what he or she is doing. For example, the crime could be committed due to peer pressure causing the juvenile to act impulsively. Basically, the juvenile’s mind is not fully developed to know what he or she is doing or the magnitude of the crime (Yates, 2013). This is unlike a typical male offender who is often an adult and understands his actions. The typical male offender calculates and prepares to commit the offense. However, juveniles commit offenses impulsively without thinking. For a typical male offender, it is often chronic offending unlike juvenile offenders that often commit one-time offenses for the first time. With rehabilitation, a juvenile has high chances of turning around and reintegrating into the society.
Aftercare planning for juvenile sex offenders would include learning life skills. Juveniles would be taught life skills that help reduce stress and keep their mind occupied to avoid relapse. The other aftercare plan is to involve people in the individual’s daily routine into the program. This means working with the juvenile’s support system to encourage them to work with the individual for better outcomes (Kimonis et al., 2011). For example, use these people to reinforce good behavior and ensuring that the individual adheres to what is taught such as taking part in the life skills program. Finally, the individual would be taught problem-solving skills. This is an aftercare plan that helps the juvenile learn how to cope and identify triggers that could lead to offending (Yates, 2013).
