Teenage relational violence: A framework for recognition, assessment, and prevention

Please note that the start time for the December 5 session has been updated to 11:15 a.m. ET.

December 5, 2025 | 11:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET

December 12, 2025 | 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET

Facilitator: Marshall Korenblum, MD, FRCP (C).

CE hours: 8

This training is suitable for:

• Mental Health Professionals: psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists, social workers.
• Medical Professionals: nurses, psychiatrists, pediatricians, family doctors.
• Educators: teachers, ECE, school administration, support staff.

Client age category: For professionals who work with clients 12 years to adulthood.

Level of training: Introductory/Intermediate

Trigger warning: Participating in our programming may evoke powerful feelings and can trigger participants who have experienced personal trauma. A brief snippet of a violent video is shown.  Parents of teenagers may identify with the parents in the show, and may thus experience heightened emotions. Feel free to take breaks at any time, consistent with prudent self-care.

Description: Adolescents today must navigate a world shaped by digital relationships, social pressures, and rapidly changing expectations around identity and connection. These pressures effect both boys and girls, but this workshop will focus on the impact on boys. One consequence of these changes is a rise in relational violence, leaving clinicians and educators wondering what they can do to prevent its spread.

This timely, skills-based training equips mental health professionals with evidence-informed tools to recognize and assess teens at risk of relational aggression. Through a case-based discussion anchored in the critically acclaimed Netflix series, “Adolescence”, participants will gain a deeper understanding of the interplay between trauma, peer pressures, parental confusion, and digital influences such as “the manosphere”.  Each session blends developmental theory with practical application, offering tools that can be used in clinical settings.

"What does it take to push a seemingly normal teen over the edge? This course will offer a practical approach to understanding the teen male psyche. In the process, both the complexity and simplicity of an answer will become apparent." - Dr. Marshall Korenblum.

Learning objectives:

• Core drivers of teen relational violence, including distorted masculinity and the need to impose social hierarchies.
• The impact of social media, cyberbullying, and online echo chambers (including  “the manosphere”).
• Hallmarks of effective clinical assessments and red flags of the transition from ideology to action.
• Strategies for recognizing and supporting distressed/overwhelmed parents.
• Understand ways in which we can improve the safety and security of today’s teenagers.

Training format: This course uses a flipped-classroom model. Participants will independently watch two episodes of Netflix's Adolescence each week, which will serve as a springboard for moderated discussion and clinical application during the live webinar. The live webinars will include:

• A facilitator-led reflective group exercise in which clinical issues raised by each episode will be addressed by peer consultation amongst the attendees.
• An academic debrief led by Dr. Marshall Korenblum, synthesizing research, practice insights, and actionable strategies.

Overview of session topics and discussion themes:

Day 1: Pre-watch episodes 1 and 2

• The Roots of Relational Violence. How at-risk teens can appear quite “normal”; the disconnect between fathers and sons; how little parents know about their adolescents’ lives.
• Social Pressures in School and On-line (cyber-bullying). Who’s in charge? Teachers or students?; If/when adults are ineffective or unavailable, who/what fills the void?; Anonymity and speed—why cyber-bullying is so harmful; society’s over-emphasis on appearance.

Selected scenes from Episodes 1 and 2 will be used to anchor discussion and deepen reflection.

Day 2: Pre-watch episodes 3 and 4

• Assessing Mental Health in a Relational Context—Identify the effective elements of an assessment of potential relational violence.
• Family Trauma and Societal Impact—Parental guilt, shame, and confusion when their child has committed a crime; the power of denial in families; understand how a youth’s behaviour both effects and is effected by his caregivers; how to support families through a trauma journey; understand the ubiquity of societal factors (e.g., “incel” culture) and fragmented systems of care.

Selected scenes from Episodes 3 and 4 will be used to anchor discussion and deepen reflection.

This training gives practical clinical skills to better engage with teens and create meaningful change for them and their families when trying to prevent and address relational violence.  Whether you work in community settings, schools, or hospitals, this training will deepen your clinical understanding and provide new perspectives, thus empowering you to better handle the psychological needs of adolescent boys today.