A national longitudinal study examining social-emotional benefits of summer camp for early adolescents: Effects of attendance, dosage, and experience quality

Abstract

Summer camp is a popular leisure setting with potential for promoting youth development. Research has found that attending camp predicts a range of social-emotional skills, yet questions remain about the aspects of camp involvement that lead to developmental benefits. Using four waves of data from a national, longitudinal study of camp participants, we examined associations between select social-emotional skills and three aspects of camp involvement: (a) attending camp, (b) time at camp (dosage), and (c) perceived quality of youths’ experiences at camp. Mixed effects models revealed that camp attendance and dosage were minimally associated with youths’ social-emotional skills, while higher-quality camp experiences positively predicted all social-emotional outcomes, even when accounting for child and family covariates. This work suggests that the best way for summer camps to promote the development of social-emotional skills among early adolescents is to create an environment that fosters belonging, supportive youth-adult relationships, experiential learning, and engagement.