Developmental Assets Research Articles

Impact of an experiential learning curriculum on youth developmental assets in alternative high schools

ABSTRACT Adventure-based learning is used by behavioral health providers to connect clients to therapeutic activities outside traditional settings. These approaches often aim to build internal and external assets that support positive youth development. Here we evaluate the impact of an experiential learning curriculum on youth development and identify program characteristics that support development of positive assets. The evaluation included classroom field observations, a pre/post survey of developmental assets, semi-structured student interviews, and focus groups with school employees. Program staff were successful creating a supportive environment, but there was no significant difference in average student asset scores before and after each course. Students described the program as an opportunity to explore their own backyard while stepping outside their comfort zone through teamwork and leadership activities. Evaluation of individual programs can build a suite of best practices for adventure-based education. In particular, emphasis on “challenge by choice” and youth-led activities resonated with students.

Traumatic Incidents and Experiences of Racism and Sexism: Examining Associations with Components of Critical Consciousness for System-Involved Girls of Color.

Scholarship identifies critical consciousness as a key developmental asset in promoting the well-being of adolescents experiencing multiple socio-structural axes of oppression. Girls of color at acute risk for legal system involvement or re-involvement are absent from this literature. They are a critical population in which to examine this construct given their experiences of oppression and the myriad benefits of critical consciousness. The current study addresses this gap by examining traumatic incidents and experiences of racism and sexism as correlates of critical reflection and action among a sample of girls (N=220; Mean age=14.5years; SD=1.3years). Using path analysis and multigroup modeling, we examine direct associations between these three manifestations of structural oppression and critical consciousness and explore the interplay of traumatic incidents, and racism and sexism in girls' critical consciousness development. Findings suggest that experiences of sexism and racism, uniquely and positively predict critical action, but not critical reflection. Surprisingly, girls' experiences of traumatic incidents do not predict reflection or action. Finally, multigroup analyses show no evidence that these associations vary by the interplay of traumatic incidents, racism, and sexism. Implications for community psychology values and juvenile legal system practice and policy are discussed.

Youth Assets and Associations With Adolescent Risk Taking.

Positive youth development emphasizes that adaptive features of adolescence may contribute to teenage pregnancy prevention. Using data from approximately 1300 seventh-ninth graders, we describe positive youth development assets (external and internal) and their association with sexual risk taking. School-, sex-, and race/ethnicity-stratified logistic or linear models assessed associations between developmental assets and 6 outcomes (continuous attitudes about teenage sex and marriage, abstinence intentions, and nonsexual risk-taking behavior; dichotomous high risk-dating behavior, friends' sexual activity, and prior sexual activity). Associations between developmental assets and youth sexual behavior differed by school, sex, and race/ethnicity. White female respondents showed the most consistent associations between higher amounts of each of the positive youth development assets and attitudes and behaviors conducive to delaying sexual activity while black youth showed the fewest associations. These results contribute to the positive youth development literature by identifying that relationships between assets and adolescent risk differs by race and sex.

Contextual Moderators of a School-Based Ethnic-Racial Identity Intervention: The Roles of Family Ethnic Socialization and Ethnic-Racial Background.

Ethnic-racial identity (ERI) formation is a key developmental competency that contributes to adolescents' sense of self and psychosocial adjustment. A randomized controlled trial (RCT) has demonstrated the efficacy of a universal school-based health promotion intervention program to positively influence adolescents' ERI exploration and ERI resolution, compared to an attention control curriculum that was delivered by the same facilitators, had equivalent contact hours, and focused on post-secondary career and educational options. The current study extended prior tests of the RCT to better understand (a) how intervention-based ERI changes unfolded over two phases-temporally proximal pre- to post-test effects and long-term post-test effects across a 1-year follow-up period, and (b) identify for whom the intervention was more effective by testing theorized contextual moderators-baseline family ethnic socialization practices and youth ethnic-racial background (i.e., White majority vs. ethnic-racial minority). Bilinear spline growth models were used to examine longitudinal ERI trajectories in intervention and control groups across four survey assessments (baseline, 12weeks, 18weeks, 67weeks; N = 215; Mage = 15.02; 49.1% female; 62.6% ethnic-racial minority). In support of an additive effect for the role of families in school-based interventions, post-test ERI exploration significantly increased (relative to thecontrol group) to a greater extent for youth with higher (compared to lower) baseline levels of family ethnic socialization. ERI resolution significantly increased from pre- to post-test for ethnic-racial minority youth and also increased across the 1-year follow-up period for White youthin the intervention. These results highlight family ethnic socialization as a developmental asset for school-based ERI interventions and demonstrate differential pathways by which such interventions support ERI development for ethnic-racial minority and majority adolescents.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Teen Sexual Behaviors: The Role of Self-Regulation and School-Related Factors.

There is limited evidence addressing the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on adolescent sexual risk behaviors and pregnancy. In this study, we examined whether individual and cumulative ACEs increased the risk of unhealthy sexual behaviors and adolescent pregnancy. To inform intervention efforts, potential mediating mechanisms focusing on youth developmental assets were examined to explain the association. Analyses included 88,815 (9th and 11th grade) students who completed the Minnesota Student Survey in the spring of 2016. Adolescents who reported each category of ACEs were more likely to initiate sex, have multiple sex partners, engage in unprotected sex, and be involved in pregnancy. Different youth assets, included self-regulation skills, connectedness to school, not skipping school, and academic performance, were associated with lower likelihood of sexual initiation and sexual risk-taking. They served as important mediators to reduce, though not completely diminish, the adverse effects of ACEs on sexual initiation and adolescent pregnancy. The results suggest that the relationship between ACEs and adolescent sexual risk behaviors and pregnancy is strong and graded. Effective school initiatives and intervention efforts should encourage the development of self-regulation and connectedness to school among teens who had been exposed to ACEs.

Purpose Among Youth From Low-Income Backgrounds: A Mixed Methods Investigation.

Theoretical and empirical research lead to conflicting perspectives on whether youth from low-income backgrounds are likely to have access to lives of purpose. To explore this issue, this study used data collected during the 2016-2017 academic year from a sample of Southern California youth. Findings suggest (a) youth from low-income communities are as likely as youth from middle-income communities to report leading lives of purpose; (b) purpose among low-income youth is associated with many of the same indicators of positive development as it is among middle-income youth; and (c) youth from low-income backgrounds encounter personal hardships that, in the presence of familial support and other developmental assets, can inspire purpose. Implications for purpose-fostering interventions among low-income youth are discussed.

“Pray that I live to see another day”: Religious and spiritual coping with vulnerability to violent injury, violent death, and homicide bereavement among young Black men

Race-based structural inequities in the United States unequally burden Black boys, men, and families with managing life course vulnerability to violent injury, premature death, and homicide bereavement. Informed by sociocultural contexts of coping for Black homicide survivors and positive youth development research, we examined how religiosity and spirituality may function as developmental assets promoting pathways to safety and positive development for young Black men transitioning to adulthood in Baltimore. Qualitative interviews with 31 participants (ages 18–24) revealed that religiosity and spirituality: a) help young Black men process pain in the aftermath of homicide, construct meaning, and find hope, b) reduce fear of fatal victimization, c) protect against retaliatory violence and trauma recidivism, and, d) foster posttraumatic growth. Implications for research, policy, and practice to promote positive youth development are discussed.

Psychometric Study of the Scale for the Assessment of Developmental Assets in the Neighborhood in a Sample of Chilean Adolescents

The Scale for the Assessment of Developmental Assets in the Neighborhood (SADAN) has shown acceptable psychometric properties for use in Spain and Chile. However, the original factor structure of five correlated factors and a second-order factor is not yet entirely clear. This study aimed to evaluate the scale’s psychometric properties of reliability and validity in a sample of Chilean adolescents. A cross-sectional design was used, with a sample of 2638 students (female = 49.1%) with an average age of 15.79 years (SD = 1.35). The results obtained when evaluating different confirmatory factor models show that the best structure is that of five correlated factors. We carry out a multigroup factor analysis up to the level of scalar invariance. We applied this analysis to the following groups: sex, type of school, and age. We conclude that the original version of the scale can be used in the Chilean context with slight modifications as it is necessary to deepen the validity evidence with external criteria.

“Does it have to be a real story?” A social semiotic assessment of an emergent writer

ABSTRACTStandardized writing assessments based in linear progressions position teachers for deficit views of young children’s emergent writing development. Consequently, the researcher video recorded a writing assessment of his son, Daniel, at age 5 years, 4 months, as he composed a story across pages of a blank book, using an assortment of writing tools. Data sources included the transcription of the writing session and Daniel’s final product. The researcher first used open coding then coding based in systemic functional linguistics. Based in ecological and social semiotic perspectives, the researcher shows how Daniel’s writing development was expressed interpersonally, with the emerging text functioning as mediational tool. Findings show Daniel’s emergent sense of self as a writer, the role of the adult facilitator, and the dynamics of interaction and dialectic of Daniel’s internalization process. As formative assessment, next steps in instruction are suggested. The author discusses the necessities of closely observing and supporting young children’s composing process and the imperative of a developmental assets perspective when assessing young children’s writing, with implications for policy, teacher education, teaching, and research.

Patterns of Tobacco Use and Related Protective Factors Among Somali Youth in the United States.

Anti-smoking norms and educational aspirations are established tobacco prevention targets for general United States (U.S.) adolescent populations but protective factors remain poorly characterized for Somali-American youth. Here we describe patterns of past 30-day tobacco use and associated protective factors among eighth, ninth, and eleventh grade Somali adolescent respondents (n = 2009) to the 2016 Minnesota Student Survey using multivariate logistic regressions. E-cigarette (5.7%) and hookah (5.0%) use were most prevalent. Male youth reported higher levels of tobacco use across products. Adjusted odds ratios showed that internal developmental assets (e.g., e-cigarettes aOR 0.37, 95% CI 0.37, 0.79) and parental anti-smoking norms (e.g., e-cigarettes aOR 0.19, 95% CI 0.09, 0.38) protected against use of all tobacco products. E-cigarettes and hookah are prevalent among U.S. Somali youth, highlighting the need for prevention efforts that address emerging tobacco products and leverage protective factors such as internal assets and parental anti-smoking norms.

Learning from Friends and Terminating Friendships: Retrieving Friendship as a Moral Educational Concept

AbstractIn contrast to ancient times, friendship is rarely discussed nowadays as a resource in moral education. Even within Aristotle‐inspired character education, where it could naturally claim pride of place, its coverage is miniscule compared, say, to that of the emulation of moral exemplars. The aim of the present article is to retrieve friendship as a moral educational concept: to explain how moral educational goals define and sustain deep friendships, and how the thorny issue of when friendships should be terminated is best understood in terms of considerations as to whether they have exhausted their educational potential. By arguing that education is the raison d'être of deep friendship, Kristján Kristjánsson shows how friendship is developmentally constituted and, in its most complete form as “character friendship,” educationally executed. There is no such thing as friendship per se, but rather friendship at a certain developmental niveau (or level), with its specific developmental assets and liabilities: qualitatively differentiated according to its educational affordances. While operating within a broad Aristotelian framework, Kristjánsson devotes two sections to charting the moral educational liabilities that may dissipate even the most complete friendships, a topic mostly overlooked by Aristotle himself.

Recursos personales y contextuales predictors de afectos positivo y negativo en adolescentes

Este estudio tuvo como objetivo explorar la relación entre la experiencia de recursos del desarrollo —Developmental Assets®— personales y contextuales y los afectos positivo y negativo. Fue evaluada una muestra de conveniencia constituida por 503 estudiantes, entre los años escolares 9° y 12°, con edades comprendidas entre los 13 y los 19 años (M = 15,92; dp = 1,17), mayoritariamente del género femenino (63 %). Los resultados indican que los adolescentes que experimentan un mayor número de recursos tienden a revelar una experiencia superior de afecto positivo e inferior de afecto negativo. Los datos sugieren el impacto de los subconjuntos de recursos del desarrollo en la predicción de los afectos positivo y negativo (explicando el 30 y el 31 % de varianza en los resultados, respectivamente). Ambos recursos, internos y externos, contribuyeron con la varianza de los resultados, y constituyeron los recursos internos predictores más fuertes. Se sugiere la utilidad del modelo de recursos de desarrollo para comprender la experiencia de afecto positivo y afecto negativo en la adolescencia, con el propósito de promover un desarrollo exitoso.

Youth Experiences in Evaluating the Canadian SNAP® Boys Youth Leadership Program

For children and their families who have experienced success in middle years mental health interventions, adolescence represents a developmental period when additional challenges can emerge and potentially threaten positive gains. For youth who have a history of disruptive behaviors, addressing risks and balancing interventions with a focus on skill development, leadership, and resiliency can serve to support these youth in reaching their potential. This paper will present the development of the Canadian SNAP-Boys Youth Leadership Services, a continuing-care component for youth who have had previous involvement in children’s mental health services, designed to enhance protective factors or developmental assets. This exploratory qualitative study was conducted in 2017 and examined 12 youths’ perspectives on what they have gained from participation in the program, and why they consider this program to be of value. We used thematic analysis to analyse interview transcripts. We identified themes of motivation, “second home”, and personal growth. What youth value and their investment in the program can be linked to key positive youth development components of a skills focus, explicit leadership and employment opportunities, program structure, supportive relationships and a sense that they matter. Implications for practice, research, and policy are shared.

Positive youth development: A longitudinal quasi-experiment in Jamaica

The present study represents an effectiveness trial of a positive youth development program to improve self-efficacy, workplace skills, and developmental assets of unattached emerging adults in Jamaica. Using a longitudinal quasi-experimental design with propensity score matching, study participants (n = 598, Mean Age = 19.04, SD = 1.83, 66.1% female) were observed from two groups: program/treatment participants, and a matched comparison group. HLM piecewise models were used to examine change by group and time. In the first piece we observed substantial gains in treatment participants across many outcomes. In the second piece that followed participants for more than a year subsequent to treatment, we observed considerable regression based on effect magnitudes. We review relational-developmental systems theory for implications relative to policy and practice in developing countries on the implementation of PYD programs for unattached emerging adults. Findings support the need for additional investment to sustain developmental changes beyond program implementation.

Improving Girls’ Developmental Assets Using a Mentor-Led Approach in Atlantic Canada

Gender inequality and the hyper-sexualization of girls places them at risk of poor positive youth development. This is compounded by factors such as race, sexual orientation, and economic status. Rural settings contain unique systemic barriers such as isolation, and limited access to confidential and culturally appropriate services. Canadian data shows that adolescent girls’ self-esteem drops significantly through ages 12 to 15. This paper reports on the results of our research testing the effectiveness of an adolescent girls-specific positive youth development program called Amplify. This program was mentor-led within public schools in a province in rural Atlantic Canada. The Search Institute’s Developmental Assets Profile Survey was used to assess the developmental assets of the girls prior to, and after the program. Our results show that girl-specific mentor-led programs can support girls to maintain and build key developmental assets. Specifically, girls who scored as vulnerable on one or more assets at the start of the program saw gains in key assets, including positive identity, after the program.

Resilience and adjustment trajectories amongst children in displacement-affected communities in Zarqa, Jordan.

BackgroundThe experiences of protracted conflict and displacement are clear threats to children’s developmental progress. Understanding the factors that shape the trajectories of children’s well-being and adjustment in such contexts is important for informing interventions.MethodsWe collected data at three time points from a sample of Syrian refugee and Jordanian children (n=650) residing in Zarqa, Jordan who met eligibility criteria for humanitarian programming. We assessed primary outcomes of protection concerns, caregiver stress, mental health, and developmental assets at three time points: baseline (T1), three months later (T2), and fifteen months after baseline (T3).ResultsOver the fifteen-month study period (T1-T3) child protection concerns and mental health symptoms improved, caregiver stress remained constant, and developmental assets deteriorated. School attendance was independently associated with improvements in protection concerns (β = −1.05, P=0.01), caregiver stress (β = −0.66, P =0.02), and developmental assets (β = 3.84, P =0.02). Concern over lost livelihoods significantly predicted higher protection concerns (β = 4.08, P <0.001) and caregiver stress (β = 2.32, P <0.001). Attending child-focused programming did not significantly impact primary outcomes.ConclusionsThis study documents the capacity for adjustment and adaptation of children in the context of protracted displacement. The significant influences of attending school and concern over lost livelihoods on observed trajectories indicate the importance of addressing structural factors, such as education and employment, in supporting processes of resilience in these populations. Programmatic activities for children may secure valuable shorter-term impacts but here, as elsewhere, failed to impact outcomes longer-term.

Amir’s Life Story: Resilience and Other Soft Skills Development to Thrive, Despite Vulnerable Beginnings

This article explores the life story of Amir, a young adult from a rural village in Malaysia, who built resilience and developed soft skills to thrive in his life despite his vulnerable beginnings. Amir’s strong resilience and other soft skills that assisted him to be outstanding in his academics and career may have resulted from his caring and supportive authoritative mother, countering his strict and harsh authoritarian father, with an ecological system of protective factors and developmental assets strengthened by religiosity and spirituality. However, both his parents’ extremely different confrontive and coercive methods appeared to have worked together towards the development of certain soft skills, such as his entrepreneurial mindset. This fresh outlook may provide guidance to assist vulnerable children and youth from rural areas to thrive, while raising new questions for future research.

Promoting Developmental Assets in Positive Youth Development: Identity Development Process through Youth Leadership Mentoring in Malaysia

Involvement in leadership activities is one of the approaches that enhances Positive Youth Development (PYD) among youths. The focus on mentoring process in a leadership program serves as the basis for developing these positive youth elements and has the potential to increase youth's readiness to lead Youth leadership development is a primary focus in Malaysia’s development agenda as outlined in the Malaysia Youth Policy (2015) and Youth Societies and Youth Development Act 668 (2019). Research and practice concur that the involvement of young leaders can be strengthened through wider exposure and professional training through mentoring. Mentoring offers a unique learning process that has been shown to enhance youth development outcomes and strengthening competence of youth leaders. The study was conducted to explore the identity development process in promoting developmental assets through the youth leadership mentoring. The study was conducted using a qualitative approach informed by the case study paradigm that involved 13 informants through in-depth interview data collection, participant observation and document analysis. Empirical findings from the study show that identity development resulted from the mentoring process through the value of tolerance, promotes empathy and shaping philanthropy spirit among youth leaders. In conclusion, data indicated that mentoring clearly has the potential to constitute the process of identity building among youth, and this process contributes to the development of their leadership capacities.

Investigating the process through which National Hockey League Player Development Coaches ‘develop’ athletes: An exploratory qualitative analysis

The emergence of Player Development Coaches (PDC) in professional sports demonstrates recognition for the importance of fostering personal and professional development. Nonetheless, the processes by which PDCs facilitate such development are largely unknown. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions, experiences, and responsibilities of current/former National Hockey League (NHL) PDCs. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight experienced NHL PDCs (M age = 50.5, SD = 9.7). The PDCs reported working closely with athletes to oversee their development, which involved frequent meetings and evaluation of performances. They also described the necessity of establishing trust and ensuring transparency with their athletes, providing support (e.g., emotional), and engaging in reflective practice. In using these sport specific, relational, and introspective competencies, player development coaches guide athletes towards various professional (e.g., physical, psychological performance) and personal developmental outcomes (e.g., character). The findings indicate that PDCs act similarly to mentors, whereby the pillars of trust and respect are central to their perceived ability to impact athlete’s personal and professional development. In conclusion, in order to expedite the ultimate performance goal of getting athletes into the NHL, PDCs work collaboratively to reinforce and develop a range of developmental assets that span from improvements in performance to personal growth. Lay Summary: Eight player development coaches were interviewed to examine how they helped their athletes develop into full-time National Hockey League players. These individuals reported the importance of developing trusting relationships with their athletes, monitoring athlete performance/progress, and providing them with the necessary resources to facilitate sport-specific skill development as well as healthy and desirable personal growth.

发展资源在减少青少年外化问题行为中的累积效应及关系模式

<p id=C2>Adolescent externalizing behaviors as a general and persistent form of maladaptiveness have received widespread attention. In the past, research in the field of developmental psychology has focused more on the impact of risk factors on adolescent externalizing behaviors. Although these studies had an important role in reducing these behaviors, focusing on positive factors not only can reduce adolescent externalizing behaviors, but can also replace externalizing behaviors by promoting the development of positive behaviors. In recent years, studies have begun to examine the impact of positive factors on adolescent externalizing behaviors, and have identified multiple positive factors in the prevention of these behaviors. Few studies, however, have explored the accumulative impact of positive factors on adolescent externalizing behaviors. Concerning this topic, the developmental assets model provided us with an ideal research tool. Based on this model, the present study used a longitudinal study design to examine the cumulative effects of multiple developmental assets on adolescent externalizing behaviors. In addition, this investigation also examined the relationship model between cumulative developmental assets and externalizing behaviors, as well as the possible moderating roles of gender in this model. A sample of 1, 219 adolescents were recruited from three middle schools in Shandong, China. Quantitative surveys were administered to participants in December, 2015 (T1) and December, 2016 (T2). Adolescents only participated in the first survey, completing a self-administered questionnaire involving demographic variables and developmental assets. The head teachers participated in both surveys and completed an assessment of the externalizing behaviors of the students in their class. A series of analyses were conducted using SPSS 22.0 software, including descriptive statistics and correlation analysis, logistic regression analysis, and hierarchical multiple regression analysis. The results of the study were as follows: (1) the developmental assets had a cumulative effect on the reduction of adolescents’ current and subsequent externalizing behaviors. In the cumulative effects relationship model, there was a differentiation between current and subsequent externalizing behaviors, which was characterized by the nonlinear pattern of the quadratic function between cumulative developmental assets and current externalizing behaviors, and a linear pattern between cumulative developmental assets and subsequent externalizing behaviors. (2) The moderating effect of gender was only significant in the nonlinear relationship of the quadratic function between the cumulative developmental assets and current externalizing behaviors. In short, the present study is the first to demonstrate the cumulative effects of developmental assets on adolescent externalizing behaviors, as well as the relationship model of the cumulative effects and the moderating effect of gender underlying the relationship model. This study provides a basis for targeted asset construction and the prevention of adolescent externalizing behaviors.