Introducing the FOCUS-S: A Screening Instrument to Identify Youth at Risk for Commercial Sexual Exploitation

Author: Williamson, Celia; Klonowski, Monica & Andretta, James

Abstract: The research literature on assessing risk for the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC-risk) is expanding, though limitations to the reliability and accessibility of screening instruments remain. Regarding reliability, only one study has utilized latent variable modeling of CSEC-risk scores, limiting insights into how items operate across different populations. Turning to accessibility, challenges such as copyrights, overly comprehensive methods, and reliance on trained interviewers, along with the demands of ongoing inter-rater calibration, restrict large agencies from effectively screening CSEC-risk. We aimed to enhance accessibility by developing an open-access, brief, and objective self-report instrument. To improve reliability, we applied exploratory factor analysis and item-response theory modeling to CSEC-risk item scores. Our methods revealed a unidimensional CSEC-risk construct among adolescents aged 12 to 17 with social service contact (N = 471; females = 189, 57%). We provide a discussion on both the discrimination and difficulty of specific CSEC-risk items in the context of previous research. While we furnished a recommended cut score (FOCUS-S score = 11.5), we also urged agencies to consider establishing cut scores based on the maximum number of youth who can be referred for intervention in their service area. Measurement invariance and other issues germane to demographics are discussed.

Keywords: commercial exploitation of children risk assessment, human trafficking, youth with social service contact, item-response theory