During this training David Prescott and Seth Wescott explore the realities of pornography use by adolescents, and discuss the clinical implications. They describe the proliferation of explicit content and how, in many cases, how it has become more concerning.

The presenters offer strategies and ideas for working with young people who struggle with pornography exposure to parents and caregivers, clinical practitioners, school counselors, and other professionals. By fostering a deeper understanding of the role of pornography in the lives of adolescents, this training empowers attendees to navigate this challenging area and better support their clients.

Professionals working with clients who have committed sexual offenses often face significant challenges in understanding and accepting their clients’ sexual preferences. While their primary goal is to prevent future sexual abuse, professionals must acknowledge that each client has their own unique sexuality. Avoiding discussions with a client about their non-traditional sexual interests can lead to missed opportunities for fostering sexual health and exploring avenues for abuse prevention. Attempting to eradicate non-traditional sexuality from the client’s life can be ineffective and unethical. Therefore, how should helping professionals proceed in such situations?

Nikole Nassen, Ph.D., a distinguished clinical psychologist and the director of the Sex Offender Treatment Program at Naval Consolidated Brig Miramar, brings her wealth of experience in working with individuals who have expressed non-traditional sexual interests to the forefront. During this training, Dr. Nassen first presents data on BDSM (Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission, and Sadism and Masochism) and other practices in the kink community, unveiling surprising insights from research studies. Dr. Nassen then examines “kink culture” and illustrates how many of its strongest values are antithetical to abuse. Enhanced comprehension of non-traditional sexual preferences among professionals can significantly enhance the effectiveness of treatment interventions.

Central to this training is the question: “What can we learn from refugees from Myanmar that can inform our forensic work with other clients?”

This training takes an in-depth look at developing skills for becoming more culturally competent, respectful, and humble within practice using the forensic assessment of refugees from Myanmar as the central example. It aims to equip mental health professionals with the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate the complexities of cross-cultural assessments and interventions, fostering a deeper understanding and respect for diverse cultural backgrounds. With an increasing number of Burmese refugees being treated in various settings, the presenters provide practical strategies for forensic evaluators to understand the cultural backgrounds and experiences of their clients through empathic listening and culturally sensitive approaches.

The integration of Motivational Interviewing (MI) and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) can provide clients with a more empowering, collaborative, and effective therapeutic experience. Rather than focusing on the issues that brought clients to seek therapy, SFBT concentrates on cultivating solutions and leveraging the client’s strengths. By combining the collaborative, empathetic techniques of MI with the future-oriented, strengths-based techniques of SFBT, professionals can help clients achieve lasting change in a brief timeframe. During this training, Dee-Dee Stout explores key concepts and strategies of both MI and SFBT.

Empathy is a crucial component of the evolving masculine paradigm, which recognizes that men can be nurturing, caring, and in touch with their emotions without diminishing their masculinity.

Across society, too many men struggle with showing empathy and report having very few meaningful relationships in their lives. Particularly, men in the criminal justice system often find it difficult to connect with their emotions, perceiving it as a sign of weakness. Many of these individuals have faced significant adversity growing up. It is no surprise, then, that men struggle to experience and express empathy towards others. However, treatment programs often demand that these men be able to demonstrate empathic capacity, despite the obstacles they have faced in developing and expressing it.

Improve your case management of adults convicted of sexual crimes by implementing the principles of risk, need, and responsivity (RNR) and trauma-informed care (TIC). Jurisdictions in many countries have implemented supervision strategies that align with the principles of effective correctional rehabilitation. However, due to public scrutiny, it is not always clear how to effectively apply RNR to supervision decisions or how to incorporate RNR and TIC into practices that are primarily aimed at reducing the risk of re-offense. This online training addresses how to effectively integrate RNR, TIC, and risk reduction practices.

In October 2023, the American Psychological Association (APA) released the second edition of its Inclusive Language Guide. In support of cultural inclusivity, it outlines the differences between person-first and identity-first language and challenges all professionals to consider how they use respectful and culturally sensitive language with their clients and in communications about their clients.

Person-first and identity-first language are important because they can have a significant impact on how individuals are perceived and treated. For example, the Inclusive Language Guide recommends avoiding the use of stigmatizing language when referring to individuals involved in the criminal justice system. Instead of using the words “criminal” or “offender,” we should instead use more neutral language. This can include “person with a history of involvement in the criminal justice system.” The recommendations in the guide aim to promote inclusivity and respect for all individuals, regardless of their history.

Using the Good Lives Model, the Becoming the Man I Want to Be workbook was written to be engaging for clients whose adverse childhood experiences and problem behaviors have caused them to fall behind academically, socially, and interpersonally throughout their lives. After attending this training, participants will better understand how to use the workbook in treatment. The training begins by reviewing the core principles of the GLM and then offers ideas for how clinicians and counselors can use each section of the workbook—in particular, the chapters that are new to the second edition. Central to this training is its focus on dovetailing the GLM and the workbook with Motivational Interviewing skills and the principles of Trauma-Informed Care.

Clinical supervision is a crucial component in the field of psychotherapy. It can involve educating newer clinicians on methods and models, helping them improve their practice in different directions, providing support and encouragement, and helping supervisees manage the inevitable reactions they have to clients’ historical behaviors. Dr. Must and Mr. Prescott’s training provides supervisors with the tools and knowledge necessary to excel in their roles within the field, ultimately contributing to improved client care and clinician development.

This is the first module in this mini course, which takes a deep dive into the heart of compassionate communication. As all seasoned professionals know, engaging clients in conversations about change is not easy. Further, while we often think of engagement as something that happens at the start of treatment, keeping clients engaged throughout the treatment experience is critical to success. This module focuses on skills for building and maintaining therapeutic engagement with clients whose lives have been characterized by adversity and distrust, thus revealing the transformative power of listening as a full-body experience.

This is the second module in this mini course, which takes a deep dive into the heart of compassionate communication. We have all felt two ways about making difficult changes in our lives. This module examines the components of intrinsic motivation, which plays a key role in our ability and willingness to enact meaningful change.

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who cause sexual harm present unique challenges that often go unaddressed by well-intentioned treatment providers and programs. This training, led by Dr. Kim Spence, a seasoned professional with 25 years of experience in this field, equips attendees with techniques to effectively support clients with ASD who have exhibited sexually harmful behavior.

Through case examples, the training emphasizes common vulnerabilities and co-morbid conditions experienced by clients with ASD, highlighting the intricate interplay between their neurodivergence and the manifestation of sexually harmful behavior. Attendees gain teaching methods that foster appropriate social interactions between clients with ASD and their peers, paving the way for positive behavior change.