All families experience some degree of discord. When that discord becomes
severe and synergistically mediated by environmental challenges such as low
performance and disconnectedness at school, students may experience behavioral and
psychosocial risks associated too commonly with highly undesirable outcomes. Among
the most dangerous example is that students can become targets of recruiters of
prostitution by human traffickers, who are often amazingly adept at exploiting the
physiological and psychosocial needs of children and adolescents for nurturance and
attachment in numerous ways. Predators can immerse disaffected youth into networks
so convoluted that recovery is difficult, if not impossible. Engagement with the juvenile
justice system is another undesirable outcome for those youth who disaffiliate from
peers, family, and the school community, whether by choice, manipulation, or both.
Considering the severity of the potential consequences, it is incumbent upon schools to
play an assertive role in promoting resilience, connectedness, and engagement in
school community membership and fostering school success.
Keywords: Abuse, Drug mule, Dysfunctional family, Human trafficking,
Neglect, Organ harvesting, Prostitution, Sexual exploitation.
