A critical review of social work interventions and programmes that support disabled youth with their sexual well-being

ABSTRACT

Sexual well-being (SWB) is closely related to overall health and life satisfaction, which are essential to social work practice. Some individuals are disproportionately affected by many barriers that limit access to professional services to support their SWB. For instance, disabled youth face societal barriers such as ableist notions of asexuality and hypersexuality that restrict them from fully participating in supportive services. Social workers are well-placed in the community to respond to young people’s needs regarding SWB but report feelings of discomfort and unpreparedness that can discourage them from intervening. This critical review examines nine studies focused on either (1) interventions or programmes in social work practice designed to support disabled youth and their SWB or (2) social workers’ experiences in the field supporting disabled youth and their SWB. The findings suggest a dearth of empirical literature related to disabled youth and SWB. Key findings that describe social work practice with disabled youth and their SWB and the barriers and challenges social workers experience will be discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Disability
• youth
• sexual well-being
• social work practice
• critical review

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ami Goulden

Ami Goulden is a registered social worker and PhD candidate at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto. Her research focuses on best practices and contemporary challenges in supporting disabled youth with their sexual well-being. Ami has been practicing social work for over ten years in various settings including healthcare and child welfare.