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The Psychological Impact of Criminal Exploitation on Young Victims

Last updated on 15th January 2025

Unfortunately for the young people of today, child exploitation is rife. In the year 2021 to 2022 alone, the number of child sexual exploitation crimes increased by 10% – and this isn’t considering other forms of criminal exploitation. There was also a 36% increase during this period in the number of reports from people concerned about child exploitation – an average of 26 contacts per day.

Criminal exploitation not only inflicts visible scares. It also leaves its mark on the emotional and psychological wellbeing of its young victims. The toll extends beyond the immediate circumstances of the situation in which young people find themselves and there are repercussions in all areas of life. 

In this article, we explore the various aspects of criminal exploitation and its effects on young people embroiled in it. In doing so, we aim to shed light on the often overlooked consequence of criminal exploitation – those that resonate long after the exploitation has ceased.

About Criminal Exploitation

The term criminal exploitation encompasses a range of elements. It is a broad term that describes the coercive tactics used by criminals to manipulate individuals. Though anyone can be a victim of criminal exploitation, it is often those who are vulnerable, including young people and children. 

Criminal exploitation manifests in various forms. This includes (but is not limited to):

At its core, criminal exploitation takes advantage of people’s vulnerabilities for illicit gains. It ensnares victims in cycles of coercion and abuse. 

Young people, in particular, are highly vulnerable to criminal gang machinations. Their vulnerability comes from many factors. These include socioeconomic deprivation, unstable family lives, poor support networks, and educational problems. This vulnerability makes them prime targets. Criminal groups prey on the naivety and desperation of young people and their need to ‘belong’ and feel validated.

Young victims are strategically coerced into illicit activities through a combination of intimidation, manipulation and false promises. Whether through outright coercion or grooming techniques, criminal gangs succeed in ensnaring young people in webs of exploitation from which escape becomes more and more difficult. 

What is grooming?

The term grooming refers to the process of building a relationship with someone, typically a child, to gain their trust, manipulate them emotionally and ultimately exploit or abuse them. The process often involves tactics like flattery, gifts, attention and manipulation. These tactics gradually erode boundaries and desensitise the person to inappropriate behaviour. Grooming can occur online or in person. It is often a precursor to various types of exploitation, including sexual abuse, financial manipulation or involvement in criminal activities.

Impact of criminal exploitation

Trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress

The trauma experienced by those involved is long-lasting and profound. By being involved in criminal activities, these young people are subjected to a range of harrowing experiences that can cause lasting psychological distress. The fear, violence and coercion involved erode any sense of safety and security. 

For many, the trauma of exploitation is shown in a number of ways. The physical abuse, sexual violence and emotional manipulation leave scars. The constant threat of harm as well as the betrayal of trust can fracture an individual’s sense of self. It can also affect a person’s ability to form healthy relationships.

The effect of traumatic experiences like these often culminates in the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This is a debilitating mental health condition that is characterised by intrusive memories, flashbacks and hypervigilance. Emotional numbness can also be a sign. 

The pervasive nature of criminal exploitation also means that escape often goes hand in hand with danger. Even when young people are out of their exploitative situations, many of them still grapple with the fear and the lingering effects of trauma. 

By understanding the profound impact of trauma and PTSD, people supporting young victims of criminal exploitation learn how to provide the best possible support to help with recovery.

Emotional Impact

Besides trauma, criminal exploitation can have other emotional consequences. People who are victims of criminal exploitation often experience feelings of guilt, shame and helplessness. They lose their sense of worth and agency.

Guilt is common. This feeling stems from feeling responsible in some way for what happened to them. Young people are manipulated into believing they are complicit. They grapple with shame and internalise the blame for any crimes perpetrated against them. This guilt and shame can become a barrier to healing, which in turn exacerbates any feelings of self-condemnation. 

The emotional impact is long-lasting and goes side by side with the trauma experienced. Many victims struggle with pervasive feelings of vulnerability and mistrust. Their emotions work to shield themselves against perceived threats long after the exploitation has ceased. 

Healing from the emotional scars is often an arduous process fraught with challenges. However, with a supportive environment and access to trauma-informed care, victims can heal and recover over time.

Behavioural Changes

Victims of criminal exploitation often exhibit a range of behavioural changes. They may become aggressive or withdrawn, for instance. Some may go down a self-destructive path and deal with substance abuse. These are simply coping mechanisms as a trauma response. 

Aggression, for example, is a defence mechanism. It is a means of asserting control in a world that feels unpredictable and chaotic. For some victims of criminal exploitation, the pent-up frustration and rage comes out as acts of verbal and physical aggression. Since many have gone through adolescence or young adulthood with a completely different experience of relationship power dynamics, they can struggle to navigate through how a healthy relationship works. 

Withdrawal is common. This occurs as people seek to retreat into the safety of isolation. This is a desperate attempt to shield from the relentless onslaught of stimuli that could trigger painful memories. Victims often withdraw from social interactions. They retreat into the confines of their own minds to seek refuge from the external world and those who have betrayed their trust.

Substance misuse and abuse is often used as a means of self-medication. This is a misguided attempt to numb the pain and despair caused by their traumatic experience. Drugs and alcohol offer temporary respite from the torment and provide a sense of relief. However, they also come with their own consequences to deal with. 

Behavioural changes aren’t, however, simply a symptom of underlying trauma. Rather, they are adaptive responses. When a young person doesn’t have healthy coping mechanisms – and this is most victims due to their age and stage of development – they resort to maladaptive strategies in order to survive.

By recognising behaviours and behavioural changes as a trauma response, victims of criminal exploitation can be helped to navigate their recovery. Support systems can provide survivors with appropriate tools and resources to deal with their behaviours whilst also dealing with the underlying trauma. 

Criminal exploitation on young victim

Mental Health Challenges

Criminal exploitation has a huge toll on the mental health of young victims. Survivors often risk a range of debilitating conditions. Besides PTSD, many experience depression, anxiety and self-harm. The insidious nature of exploitation leaves lasting scars that manifest as mental health challenges. These can endure long after the trauma has ceased. 

Depression is often experienced with a pervasive sense of hopelessness and despair. There can be a sense of emotional numbness as their brain tries to protect them from future harm. Anxiety is also common. The constant fear of retribution alongside a feeling of uncertainty for the future can exacerbate feelings of vulnerability. This can be so severe that it causes panic attacks and intrusive thoughts. 

Mental health challenges can also cause self-harm as young victims use this as a coping mechanism to feel relief from their overwhelming emotions. This manifests through cutting, burning or other forms of self-injurious behaviour. For some, there is suicidal ideation and attempts at taking their own life too. 

There is here a profound need for good mental health support. However, young victims of exploitation often face challenges in accessing such support. For one, they are often deterred from seeking help due to shame, stigma or fear. This perpetuates the cycle of silence and suffering. Systemic barriers including limited resources and inadequate training among service providers further impede access to appropriate care.

Young victims require a multifaceted approach when it comes to addressing their mental health needs. The support needs to be trauma-informed and supportive. 

The Physical Impact of Trauma

Despite the trauma experienced by young victims of criminal exploitation generally being mental (while recognising that physical abuse and sexual abuse occurs), there are often associated physical symptoms too. It is fairly common for survivors to also experience somatic complaints. These include:

  • Sleep disturbances like insomnia.
  • Gastrointestinal problems like irritable bowel syndrome.
  • Cardiovascular disorders like arrhythmias.
  • Neurological problems like working memory problems.
  • Musculoskeletal issues like muscle tension and spasms as well as temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction.
  • Respiratory problems like hyperventilation and breathlessness.
  • Urological problems. Stress has been known to affect the bladder’s function and may lead to overactive bladder syndrome or other lower urinary tract symptoms.
  • Dermatological disorders like stress-induced skin conditions such as the exacerbation of psoriasis and eczema. Stress and trauma can also cause psychogenic skin disorders like trichotillomania (hair-pulling disorder), dermatillomania (skin-picking disorder) and dermatitis artefacta (self-inflicted skin lesions).

Recovery and Support

Specialised trauma support and therapy are important for young victims’ recoveries. Specialist support programmes recognise the unique needs and challenges of these individuals and interventions can be tailored accordingly. Conventional therapy isn’t often appropriate in these situations. 

Care needs to be trauma-informed. This means that those delivering support understand the profound impact of exploitation on victims’ psychological wellbeing. Trauma-informed care seeks to create a supportive and safe environment where victims can heal. There might be techniques like cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) and eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) used. These help equip survivors with strategies and tools to help them navigate the complexities of their condition and rebuild their resilience and self-worth.

Specialised support also includes advocacy and practical assistance where needed. Many young people need ongoing support and intervention and a comprehensive approach to healing is needed. 

Besides working on an individual level, victims often find solace in peer support groups of community-based programmes. These can offer invaluable opportunities for connection and solidarity. It can help foster a sense of empowerment and belonging. By sharing experiences with others, these young victims can offer each other mutual support. They can also validate others’ experiences as well as have their own experiences validated, which lessens the feelings of isolation. 

The impacts of unresolved trauma

When trauma is not dealt with it can have an impact on adult life. Childhood trauma, including child exploitation, can actually lead to chemical and structural changes in the brain. For example, the connectivity between the hippocampus and amygdala can be affected. The brain’s ability to use the neurotransmitter serotonin can also be affected. Since this helps produce feelings of emotional stability and wellbeing, it is important. 

A toxic stress response can also cause brain alterations that diminish executive functioning. This can cause a weakened ability to maintain attention, for instance.

Psychological impact of criminal exploitation on young victims

Conclusion

In conclusion, we’ve shed light on the profound psychological impact of criminal exploitation on young victims. What’s clear is that these experiences are highly complex, as too are the scars and trauma left in their wake. From post-traumatic stress to behavioural changes and emotional turmoil, the toll of exploitation is large. When young people fall victim to criminal exploitation, their mental health and wellbeing are also exploited, often long after the exploitation itself has ended. 

It’s important to recognise the urgency of addressing the psychological needs of young victims. By providing them with specialised therapy and support and acknowledging their unique challenges, survivors can rebuild their lives, heal and recover. 

Through specialist treatment including trauma-informed therapy and peer support, young people who have experienced criminal exploitation can overcome their experiences. 

Finally, it’s important for the general public to support initiatives that raise awareness of child criminal exploitation. Knowing the signs that someone is being exploited can mean it comes to an end much sooner. What’s more, with collective action that advocates for the rights of young people, whole communities can stand in solidarity with victims and work to prevent others from going through the same. 

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About the author

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Louise Woffindin

Louise is a writer and translator from Sheffield. Before turning to writing, she worked as a secondary school language teacher. Outside of work, she is a keen runner and also enjoys reading and walking her dog Chaos.