Overview

The goal of this randomized trial is to learn if the Stepping Stones (StSt) intervention has a positive impact on the sexual health and relationship behaviors of sexually active youth between the ages of 12 and 22 years old who are at risk for or involved in the legal or child welfare systems. The primary research questions it aims to answer are:

• Three months after being offered the intervention, does StSt impact youth's receipt of sexually transmitted infection testing in the past four months?
• Nine months after being offered the intervention, does StSt impact youth's frequency of having vaginal and anal sex without condoms in the past four months?
• Nine months after being offered the intervention, does StSt impact youth's perpetration of emotional abuse in the past four months?

Researchers will compare participants randomized to receive StSt (treatment group) to participants randomized to receive a control condition that contains no sexual or reproductive health information (control group).

Participants randomized to the treatment group will be offered StSt as an-person, individual-based intervention delivered over four sessions during a 6-8 week period. Participants randomized to the control group will be offered a virtually delivered control condition.

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• At risk for or involved in the legal or child welfare systems
• Has had vaginal or anal sex in the past 3 months
• Comfortable reading, speaking, and writing in English

Exclusion Criteria:

• Currently trying to start a pregnancy
• Currently in jail or being detained in a facility