The effectiveness of interventions for youth that activate the social network: a meta-analytic study

Abstract

This meta-analysis aimed to examine the effectiveness of interventions for youth that activate the social network for improving youth outcomes (e.g. psychological problems, child safety). A literature search yielded 37 studies with 35 independent samples (N = 712,269) of youth aged 0-26 years (M = 7.20), and 409 effect sizes. A three-level meta-analysis controlling for the dependency among effect sizes within studies showed no overall effect of interventions activating the social network (d = 0.11, p = .241). Yet, moderator analyses revealed positive effects for youth-initiated mentoring interventions (d = 0.46), youth deciding who to involve (d = 0.52), interventions that involve only one person (d = 0.56), European samples (d = 0.40), interventions targeting youth with mental health needs (d = 0.75), data retrieved through questionnaires (d = 0.10) and official records (d = 0.14), assessments completed by professionals (d = 0.34) or parents (d = 0.17), and outcomes that were corrected for pretest differences between conditions (d = 0.27). This meta-analysis demonstrates that social network activation matters for intervention effectiveness under specific conditions.