Forging help relationships with commercially sexually exploited youth: Perspectives of Israeli help providers

Previous research points to the many challenges that help providers who support commercially sexually exploited youth encounter in their professional work-yet little is known about how they overcome these challenges, particularly with regard to youth of diverse social backgrounds.

The present study applied the conceptual frameworks of help-seeking and intersectionality to explore the professional practices that help providers employ when forging a help relationship with commercially sexually exploited youth.

Israeli help providers who work with commercially sexually exploited youth at various social services.

In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted, and analyzed using constructivist grounded theory approach.

We identified six major guiding principles that support the participants' processes of forging a help relationship with commercially sexually exploited youth: Do not assume that the youth view their involvement in commercial sexual exploitation as problematic; Continuously attempt to gain the youth's trust; Start from the point where the youth are; Be available at all times, and maintain a steady long-term relationship; Treat commercially sexually exploited youth as agentic individuals and encourage them to lead the process of establishing a help relationship; Similarity in social backgrounds of help providers and commercially sexually exploited youth promotes youth's engagement in the help relationship.

Assuming the co-existence of benefit and harm in commercial sexual exploitation is essential to forging a help relationship with the youth. Applying the intersectional lens to practice in this field can help preserve the delicate balance between victimhood and agency, thereby enhancing help processes.