For most of the 20th century, society has denied, minimized, and repressed juveniles' involvement in sexual behavior, whether consensual or exploitative. The more recent challenging of the denial of youths' sexually abusive behavior has led to the earlier identification and intervention for juvenile sex offenders, but at the same time, public concern about the risks such youths pose in the community is fueling more punitive and repressive responses. Practitioners must now be concerned that current responses that stigmatize and isolate these youths may work against the treatment process. Although it is becoming apparent that some of these youths are at risk for continuing sexually abusive behavior despite intervention, it is equally clear that many are able to return to a more normative course of development and can avoid further sexually abusive behaviors. The challenge is now to be able to differentiate responses based on the unique characteristics of each youth who is identified, differential diagnosis and treatment, the measurement of change, predictive risk assessment, and relapse-prevention planning. This challenge is addressed by advocating offense-specific treatment that considers the developmental and contextual realities of these youths. 14 references