Promoting Equal Developmental Opportunity and Outcomes Among America’s Children and Youth: Results from the National Promises Study

Abstract

Building on a developmental framework positing five types of assets or inputs needed for children's development, referred to as promises, we investigated the extent to which American children and youth experience the five Promises articulated by the America's Promise Alliance. These are: (1) Caring Adults, (2) Safe Places and Constructive Use of Time, (3) A Healthy Start, (4) Effective Education, and (5) Opportunities to Make a Difference. Data came from a nationally representative poll designed to assess these five resources and involved more than 4,000 teenagers and their parents. Results showed that only a minority of young people experienced rich developmental nourishment (having 4-5 of the Promises). Males, older adolescents, adolescents of color, and adolescents from families with less education and lower parental annual incomes were significantly less likely to experience sufficient developmental opportunities and were also less likely to experience desirable developmental outcomes. However, among those young people who reported experiencing 4-5 Promises, the great majority of demographic differences in developmental outcomes were either eliminated or significantly reduced. The results suggest that increasing children's experience of these Promises would reduce developmental inequalities among America's young people. EDITORS' STRATEGIC IMPLICATIONS: Longitudinal studies with representative samples will be necessary to further validate this approach and study causal contributions of assets, but this integration of Positive Youth Development frameworks holds great promise for theory, practice, and policy.