Teaching Adolescent Consent Certainty and Boundary Clarity through Embodied Awareness and Assertiveness Skill Development

It is far easier for a person of any age to say “No” to what they do not want sexually or relationally when they know with clarity and certainty what “Yes” is for them at their current age and stage of development. However, adolescents are bombarded with multiple and conflicting messages about sex from a variety of both reliable and unreliable sources. For a teen, this creates tension about who they are, what they “should” or “should not” be interested in, and for many— who may not have a strong knowledge base or parent or community scaffolding, sexual and relationship decision making may seem impossible—resulting in compliance-based choices or coercive experiences.

This workshop will support social work professionals engaged with adolescents to take a deep dive into a nuanced, multi-faceted approach with teens towards greater ability to navigate the intersection of consent and boundary articulation. Participants will learn activities for teaching embodied self assessment skills aimed at consent certainty, verbal strategies for articulation and negotiation, and physical exercises and skills to use with teens to increase a teen’s sense of what is right for them when faced with making sexual and relationship decisions as well as skills to “back those boundaries up” with assertive strategies for use when necessary.