Youth-serving Organizations Research Articles

Asking for Verbal Sexual Consent and Experiences of Sexual Violence and Sexual Behaviors Among High School Students - Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2023.

Adolescents' sexual consent behaviors are critical for developing healthy sexual relationships and preventing experiences of sexual violence. This report uses 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data to describe prevalence of asking for sexual consent verbally at last sexual contact among U.S. high school students. Differences in prevalence of asking for sexual consent verbally by sex, age, race and ethnicity, sexual identity, sex of sexual contacts, and gender identity were examined. Differences in asking for sexual consent verbally also were examined by experiences of sexual violence and sexual behaviors. Sex-stratified logistic regression analyses were performed to determine the association between asking for sexual consent verbally with experiences of sexual violence and sexual behaviors. In addition, data were analyzed using adjusted logistic regression models controlling for age, race and ethnicity, and sexual identity. Among high school students who reported ever having sexual contact, 79.8% reported asking for sexual consent verbally at last sexual contact. A lower percentage of female students (74.5%) reported asking for sexual consent verbally than male students (84.6%). In adjusted sex-stratified analyses, female students who asked for sexual consent verbally had higher prevalence of ever having had sexual intercourse. Male students who asked for sexual consent verbally had higher prevalence of ever having had sexual intercourse and being currently sexually active. Female and male students who asked for sexual consent verbally had higher prevalence of having first sexual intercourse before age 13 and using condoms. In addition, female students who asked for sexual consent verbally during last sexual intercourse had lower prevalence of using alcohol or drugs at last sexual intercourse. Public health researchers and practitioners, health care providers, schools, and youth-serving organizations can use these findings to better understand high school students' verbal sexual consent, improve complex measurement of consent-seeking behaviors, and guide multicomponent sexual health and violence prevention efforts across various settings.

Child Sexual Abuse and Boundary Violating Behaviors in Youth Serving Organizations: National Prevalence and Distribution by Organizational Type.

Many youth serving organizations (YSOs) implement child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention strategies. We examined the potential impact of those strategies by retrospectively estimating the prevalence of CSA and boundary violating behaviors experienced in five broad organizational settings: organized sports, religious organizations, music or arts programs, K-12 schools, and the "Big 6 settings" (i.e., 4-H, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts of the USA, and the YMCA of the USA). We compared victimization rates between nationally representative cohorts of younger adults (age 18-22; N = 3174) and slightly older adults (age 32-36, N = 3237). Across all participants and settings, 3.75% (n = 363) experienced CSA in YSOs. Among survivors, younger adults reported experiencing a lower proportion of CSA within Big 6 settings than older adults (29.1% vs. 44.5%; p < .05), suggesting that prevention efforts may be having the desired effects in Big 6 settings.

Review of Policies and Practices to Prevent Technology-Facilitated Child Sexual Abuse Within Youth-Serving Organizations in the United States

ABSTRACT Technology-facilitated child sexual abuse (TF-CSA), or child sexual abuse that occurs online or through electronic communication, is a preventable public health problem that can be addressed within youth-serving organizations (YSOs). This study is a review of a purposive sample of organizational policies and practices designed to prevent TF-CSA collected from 13 national and local YSOs in the United States. Documents were coded to identify practices to prevent TF-CSA related to YSO activities or YSO staff, volunteers, or participants. Qualitative analysis indicated that YSOs included seven common practices to prevent TF-CSA in their documents. These practices included transparent electronic communication between youth and YSO staff; codes of conduct and online behavior agreements related to youth; monitoring the YSO’s online presence; parental controls for youth online activity; safety behaviors for online activity for staff, parents, and youth; parent and youth trainings for youth online engagement and prevention of TF-CSA; and practices to address staff policy violations. Most prevention practices documented by YSOs identified in this study are consistent with emerging literature on TF-CSA prevention. Key gaps include protections for youth from groups inequitably burdened by TF-CSA and evaluation of the implementation and effectiveness of practices in preventing TF-CSA across settings and populations.

Amplifying Youth Voices Using Digital Technology: A Case Study in Collaborative Research With Youth Service Organizations

This paper presents three participatory methods informed by design techniques for engaging youth and youth services providers in research activities online. We detail two data collection methods: 1) a priming activity completed before a focus group to prompt reflection before direct interaction with the research team; and 2) a focus group activity imagining future organizational goals. We also share our technique for collaboratively analyzing preliminary research findings with a focus group activity. We developed these methods as a part of a larger research project examining how teens and those who provide services to teens through community programs conceptualized success in their experiences, sense of community, and program implementation. This paper discusses work with five organizations in a mid-size community in the midwestern United States during the COVID-19 pandemic (July 2021–February 2022). We aimed to amplify the voices and perspectives of teens in both research and the organizations they engaged in, bringing their participation to our data collection and analysis and to the adults and decision-makers of community organizations. We wanted to understand how youth or teens, defined as 13–19 years old, describe successful experiences in these out-of-school settings, how adults define success, and to identify connections and differences between these two perspectives. This paper details the techniques we developed and tested, shares examples from our research, and discusses the impacts and implications of these methods for future participatory work. We contribute evidence for the value of drawing on design methods for participatory methods, articulate benefits and considerations for intentionally doing so online, and share techniques that emphasize voice in both research and organizational partners’ program development and management.

Building Bridges and Strengthening Bonds: An Exploratory Investigation Into Social Capital and Youth Programming

Abstract: Background: Social capital is increasingly recognized as a key component of adolescent development, providing important opportunities to grow and strengthen their social networks while increasing access to resources such as jobs and social support. Objectives: This study explored how youth-serving organizations (YSOs) across California address social capital development and assessed need for a social capital curriculum or measurement tools. Methods: The sample for this study was drawn from the 2019 IRS Business Master File from the National Center for Charitable Statistics Data Archive . We contacted a random sample of 169 California YSOs and implemented a 15-item survey to capture organizational perspectives on the importance of social capital, tools to measure this construct, and the use of programming related to social capital. Results: Among 41 YSOs completing the survey, only 24 (59%) had heard of the term "social capital," but when the term was described, 88% felt it was a highly important asset for youth. Thirty YSOs (73%) provided programming designed to promote social capital. Most respondents (68%) said being able to measure social capital would be very important and nearly all said they would be interested in adopting a tested social capital curriculum. Conclusions: Strong interest from YSOs for additional social capital tools highlights the need for additional work in this area. With support, YSOs can connect young people to institutions and influencers significantly outside of normal social circles, thus creating an increasingly sustainable and diverse range of resources available to youth as they navigate life milestones.

Best Practices for the Hiring Process in Youth-Serving Organizations

There is a growing need for private-sector youth-serving organizations (e.g., dance studios) to enhance the hiring process to ensure the cultural and financial health of the business and the safety and well-being of the students it serves. Historically—anecdotally—dance studios would not necessarily employ systematic practices when hiring. With no governing body or industry regulations, dance studio owners, for example, would not have any best practices to follow, leaving a gap in this area of their business. Through recommendations of sound hiring practices employed across small businesses, this article offers ways in which private youth-serving organizations can strengthen and systemize the hiring process, resulting in a healthier business, happier workers, and safer students.

Barriers and opportunities to supporting youth of color and LGBTQ + youth experiencing homelessness during COVID: A qualitative assessment

PurposeYouth homelessness is a major public health issue that impacts millions of youth across the United States, with a disproportionate impact on LGBTQ + youth and youth of color. This study engaged adults who work at youth-serving organizations (YSO) in New Britain, Connecticut to better understand the perspectives and experiences of administrators and frontline workers serving youth experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic. MethodsPurposive sampling was used to recruit 19 key informants over the age of 18 years old. Key informant interviews were guided by a semi-structured guide to understand three areas of interests from the perspective of youth-serving personnel: (1) identified needs of youth experiencing homelessness; (2) organizational and community barriers to addressing identified needs, and (3) communal assets and needs to be better positioned to serve youth experiencing homelessness, with a particular emphasis on youth of color and LGBTQ + youth. Constant comparative method was subsequently applied to analyze qualitative findings. ResultsMajor themes that emerged from the key informant interviews included: homeless youth lacking access to needed mental health services and a trusted support network; youth-serving professionals not being adequately equipped to address the unique needs of LGBTQ + youth and youth of color experiencing homelessness, and; a need for a centralized referral system for connecting YSOs with each other. ConclusionThe key informant interviews were a valuable way to engage YSOs and better understand, from their perspective, the health and health-related social needs of youth, particularly youth of color and LGBTQ + youth, experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as potential policy and programmatic solutions for addressing these challenges.

E-Connect: Linking probation youth at risk for suicide to behavioral health services.

Youth involved in the justice system (YIJ) have higher rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) and associated behavioral health (BH) problems, yet lower levels of service use compared to youth in the general population. This study examined the efficacy of e-Connect, a digital clinical decision support system (CDSS), at improving STB risk identification, referral, and linkage to BH services by probation officers. As the intervention spanned pre- and post-COVID-19 shutdown periods, we also examined the disruption in public agencies' service provision on study outcomes. Administrative record data (1,488 youth, ages 10-18 years, 56% male, 56% White) allowed examination of differences between care-as-usual (baseline) and e-Connect in screening, identification of STB and BH problems, referral, and treatment initiation. Compared to care-as-usual, probation officers using e-Connect were over five times as likely to identify YIJ with STB (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 5.86; 95% confidence interval, CI [3.24, 11.7]) and over 11 times more likely to refer YIJ in need of BH services to treatment (aOR = 11.04; 95% CI [6.54, 19.43]). In turn, youth referred to treatment via e-Connect were nearly 17 times more likely to initiate (aOR = 16.92; 95% CI [9.17, 32.60]). Results remained unchanged during the pre- and post-COVID-19 shutdown periods. e-Connect is one of the first digital STB screening, referral, and linkage-to-service systems that use CDSS technology to successfully assist probation officers in linking youth on their caseload to treatment. Such an approach may support identification of STB and cross-systems linkage in other youth-serving organizations, such as schools, that increasingly manage youth BH problems with minimal clinical support. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

"It's Their Consent You Have to Wait For": Intimate Partner Violence and BDSM Among Gender and Sexual Minority Youth.

Gender and sexual minoritized (GSM) youth are more likely than their cisgender heterosexual peers to experience intimate partner violence (IPV) and practice bondage and discipline, domination and submission, sadism, and masochism (BDSM). Although IPV and BDSM are vastly different phenomena, superficial similarities (e.g., violent behaviors) can lead to misidentification in both practice and research. This study explores how GSM youth (a) experience and understand the differences between IPV and BDSM and (b) report consensual violent and controlling behaviors when answering items on IPV measures. Nine demographically diverse GSM youth (mean age 21.2) were drawn from a GSM youth-serving organization in the Northeast United States. Participants were interviewed about their experiences with IPV, BDSM, and consent. Participants also were asked to describe the process of completing two standardized measures of IPV. Interviews were coded using conventional and directed content analysis. Eight of nine participants reported IPV victimization, and seven reported BDSM interest or experiences. Four themes emerged: (a) GSM youth experience a spectrum of IPV victimization, often related to their gender and sexual identity; (b) interest in BDSM does not imply an acceptance of IPV; (c) GSM youth have a nuanced understanding of consent and strategies to communicate consent with their partners; and (d) Consent is the organizing framework by which GSM youth distinguish IPV from BDSM. Participants reported various degrees of certainty that they would include BDSM behaviors when answering questions about violent behaviors. Findings underscore the importance of conceptually and operationally differentiating IPV and BDSM. Programs that serve GSM youth should address IPV victimization, offer sex-positive education regarding healthy relationships and BDSM, and assist GSM youth in differentiating abusive behaviors from consensual BDSM. Standardized measures that do not conflate BDSM with IPV are crucial for studying IPV among GSM youth.

Primary Versus Secondary Prevention Effects of a Gender-Transformative Sexual Violence Prevention Program Among Male Youth: A Planned Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial.

Engaging adolescent males is a promising violence prevention strategy. This study explored primary versus secondary prevention effects of a gender-transformative program (i.e., Manhood 2.0) versus job-readiness training on multiple forms of violence perpetration. Adolescent males, ages 13 to 19 years, were recruited through youth-serving organizations in Pittsburgh, PA, between July 27, 2015, and June 5, 2017, to participate in an unblinded community-based cluster-randomized trial in 20 neighborhoods. The intervention curriculum, Manhood 2.0, focused on challenging norms that foster gender-based violence and building bystander skills. The control program was job-readiness training. We completed a planned secondary analysis of surveys from baseline and 9 months post intervention (follow-up), wherein we stratified participants based on any sexual violence/adolescent relationship abuse (SV/ARA) at baseline and examined risk of perpetration of SV/ARA, incapacitated sex, sexual harassment, cyber sexual abuse, peer violence, bullying, and homophobic teasing at follow-up. Among 866 participants, mean age was 15.6 years, 70% identified as Black, 6% as Hispanic, and 6% as multiracial. In both the Manhood 2.0 intervention group and job-readiness control groups, youth who reported SV/ARA at baseline were significantly more likely to report any form of SV/ARA, incapacitated sex, sexual harassment, cyber sexual abuse, bullying, and homophobic teasing at follow-up. Among participants who reported no SV/ARA perpetration at baseline, participating in the Manhood 2.0 intervention program was associated with increased risk of SV/ARA at follow-up compared to participating in the job-readiness control program. Among participants who reported SV/ARA perpetration at baseline, participating in the Manhood 2.0 intervention group was associated with lower risk of peer violence at follow-up. Synergizing gender-transformative approaches with job-readiness training may offer opportunities for crosscutting prevention programming to address multiple forms of violence.

Mind the Gaps: The Need for Inclusion of Male-Identified Voices in Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health.

Adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) inequities are well documented for historically excluded youth (i.e., youth of color, LGBTQIA+ youth, youth with disabilities, recently im/migrated youth) living in the U.S. Northeast. However, the lived experience of male-identifying young people from historically excluded backgrounds in ASRH remains largely unexamined. The purpose of this paper is to present findings related to male-identified perspectives on social constructions of sexuality, sexual and reproductive health, and sexuality education. A research team composed of two local youth-serving organizations, eight youth researchers, and university researchers, used Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) methods to examine how structural violence contributes to inequitable ASRH outcomes for historically excluded youth. Photovoice and community mapping were used as YPAR methods. We also completed individual interviews on the same topic with the youth and with 17 key stakeholders that either provide services to youth or are emerging adult service recipients. Community-driven data reveal two major themes around the silencing of male-identified voices in ASRH: lack of culture-centered and gender-expansive approaches for ASRH, and the subsequent toll of sexism and (cis)gendered social and educational norms on young people. Our findings highlight that sexuality education, cisgender hetero culture, and social norms have put the onus of responsibility on people identifying as women for sexual and reproductive health. An unintended consequence of that is that young people identifying as men may feel powerless and uninformed around their own SRH. Our findings illustrate the importance of using culture-centered and gender-transformative approaches to ASRH to address inequity.

Border Shifts: On the Relationship Between Residential Care, Flight and the Police in Germany

Abstract Young people of color are affected by criminalization. This article addresses the question of how social work in the context of institutionalized out-of-home placement is framed by the ubiquity of national borders and police practices. It empirically traces that racial profiling manifests itself through ritualistic repetition. It is shown that the formal character of so-called dangerous places classified as criminogenic is transferred to youth-serving organizations through informal police practices.

Emerging Tensions in Data Work: Staff and Youth Perspectives in Youth-Serving Organizations

Emerging Tensions in Data Work: Staff and Youth Perspectives in Youth-Serving Organizations

Self-Reliance Projects

In Kenya today majority of the youth are out of school and not employed in the formal economy and private sector jobs are also scarce. Acknowledging this reality, the Kenyan government and other youth service organizations are learning that proper strategies need to be put in place to help youth penetrate into the formal economy. The strategies should further assist and accelerate this process while improving the short-term well-being of youth and their households. When appropriately engaged and adequately prepared for roles in the worlds of work, family life, and society, youth can be definite assets for sustainable development. However, if governments and communities disregard the huge numbers of youth with mini­mal attachment to the formal sector, youth can also become a profoundly de-stabilizing force. Specifically, the absence of livelihood develop­ment opportunities for youth can impede a nation’s development in the form of increased crime, violence, extrem­ism, and both social and political instability. This paper examines the self-reliance projects as a future core driver of rural youth livelihood development outcomes in Kenya. The paper is based on a study conducted to determine the effects of self-reliance projects on the livelihoods of youth in selected rural areas of Nakuru County. A descriptive survey research design was used for the study. Data was collected using interviews and questionnaires. Data collected was analyzed using SPSS where frequencies and percentages were derived. Descriptive statistics was used in providing relevant information. Findings indicate that successful rural self-reliance projects have to integrate important basic services such as entrepreneurial training; infrastructure as well as financing. The study further established that development partners enhancing youth participation in self-reliance projects should ensure substantive dialogue or the involvement of youth from the rural areas. The recommendation is that interventions designed for youth self-reliance projects must engage and support youth. Most of the youth are already economically active and focused on the im­mediate needs of their households, and the rural youth desire is to realize more sustainable and socially construc­tive livelihood means.

Maximizing Youth Leadership in Out-of-School Time Programs: Six Best Practices from Youth Driven Spaces

This paper aims to provide strategies for youth-serving organizations to maximize opportunities for youth to develop leadership skills within the out-of-school time program context. The sample includes 5 youth-serving agencies who participated in the Youth Driven Spaces initiative led by a Midwest program. Data for this project included observations of youth–adult meetings, field notes from youths’ reflections on key model activities, and interviews with adult staff to identify common challenges and supportive solutions. We identified 6 emergent themes for supporting youth leadership: (a) engage youth in meetings, (b) create opportunities for youth to learn how to be leaders, (c) recognize resistance to youth voice, (d) encourage youth and adults to share constructive feedback, (e) navigate youth–adult boundaries, and (f) practice intentional strategies to retain youth and to onboard new youth and staff. Results provide concrete strategies for practitioners and researchers to empower youth with the skills and resources they need to be effective leaders.

Youth Development Staff Experiences During the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Mixed Methods Study.

BackgroundYouth-serving organizations in the United States provide programs, activities, and opportunities for young people before school, during school, after school, in summer, and on weekends. At the core of youth-serving organizations are the adults; that is, youth development staff.ObjectiveIn this explanatory sequential mixed methods study we explored youth development staff’s stress and worries, their compassion satisfaction, and whether stress and compassion satisfaction varied by race/ethnicity and gender during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic – a collective trauma event.MethodsWe surveyed 283 youth development staff and interviewed a subset of 25.ResultsResults suggest that youth development staff experienced stress and compassion satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic.ConclusionWe recommend organizational leaders provide youth development staff with support before a collective trauma event. They can work to change, add, or remove policies, practices, and routines to help decrease stress and increase compassion satisfaction. In addition, based on our results from this study our primary recommendation specific to collective trauma events, after taking care of their own personal wellness, is for youth development staff to focus on what is in their control and work to do those things for as many young people as they can.

Impact Potpourri: A Multimethod Survey Study on Youth Substance Use During COVID-19.

Given the important implications of youth substance use, it is essential to document and describe changes in substance use during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. This multimethod survey study examines the impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on youth substance use among 149 Canadian youth who were using substances at a mid-pandemic period. Participants were 21.9 years of age on average (SD=2.2), including 99 girls/young women, 42 boys/young men, and 8 transgender or nonbinary individuals. The majority were Caucasian and born in Canada. Qualitative and quantitative findings are reported, with thematic analysis combined with descriptive and inferential statistical analyses. Qualitatively, many youth reported increases or shifts in their substance use over the course of the pandemic. Youth reported using substances with limited numbers of peers, with family, or alone. Many reported using substances out of boredom and to cope. While legal substances remained highly accessible, illegal substances were reported to be more difficult to acquire and less trustworthy. Spending had increased. Quantitative findings suggested alcohol use has decreased, but other substance use has remained stable in the sample as a whole, although for each substance, some youth reported increases. Despite minimal quantitative change, qualitative findings show that some youth increased their use of some substances during the pandemic, decreased others, changed their motivation to use, and decreased in safety behaviors. Youth-serving organizations should be aware of individual differences, the changing context of substance use, and the potential long-term impacts.

Identifying Root Causes: Evaluation of a Program to Engage Youth in a Social Justice Approach to Tobacco Control.

Movements designed to engage youth in tobacco control have been an important part of tobacco prevention for decades. Today, young people are increasingly diverse, and their primary issues of concern are gun control, racism, mental health, and climate change. To engage today's young people, tobacco control programs need to draw connections between youth's identities, top issues, and tobacco. UpRISE is a social justice youth tobacco control movement that engages diverse youth in identifying the root causes of youth nicotine use. In 2018-2019, 21 youth-serving organizations and schools hosted youth coalitions. Coalitions engaged in a six-session workbook called "Getting to the root cause," and adults were provided training and reflective supervision. Pre/post surveys with youth participants (n = 180) and end-of-year interviews with adult facilitators (n = 22) were used to assess outcomes. The primary outcomes were supportive adult relationships, youth voice in decision-making, anti-tobacco industry attitudes and beliefs, psychological empowerment, critical consciousness, and global belief in a just world. Quantitative measures of supportive adult relationships, youth voice in decision-making, psychological empowerment, and anti-tobacco industry attitudes and beliefs all increased significantly over time (p < .0001, p < .0001, p < .0001, p = .0034, respectively). Critical consciousness and global belief in a just world did not change significantly. During interviews, adults reported learning how: to engage in youth-adult partnerships, the tobacco industry abused its power, to engage in critical reflection about power. Adults also felt empowered. UpRISE may be a promising approach to increase racially diverse youth's engagement in social justice-oriented tobacco control efforts that advance equity.

Exploring the G.E.A.R.S. of Learning for Youth through Community Development

Learning leads to development and change for youth. It is through learning that the youth acquire knowledge, skills, values, and worldview that effect change that is based on the asset or strength-based youth development model. Such learning develops from their informal and nonformal learning that involves skill building, exploration, reflection, creativity, role experimentation from their leisure and play opportunities. Informal and nonformal learning take place from supervised Out-of-School (OST) programs where the young people develop various social skills. This paper examines the literature and theories related to OST settings, social learning, youth development, and how youth learn within a community. The youths referred here are those from Generation Z who were born between 1995 and 2010 or the late Millennials. Not all the youths’ time in school are in the formal learning settings. Part of it is in the OST settings such as extracurricular activities of their school activities or in recreational pursuits for those not in the school system such as those in sports, recreational, or youth-serving organizations. Studies have found that OST programmes contribute to academic outcomes, social/emotional outcomes, prevention outcomes, and health and wellness outcomes, as well as developmental benefits where one of one of its programme elements is active forms of learning to enable youths to learn skills. Theoretically, OST relates to Vygotsky’s (1978) sociocultural activity theory (AT). Since youth is a transition from childhood to adulthood, likewise, so is their learning, that is, low pedagogy/high andragogy. Together with a study on Gen Z learning and that of Bandura’s social cognitive/social learning theories, a new model of youth learning was conceptualized for community of practice. This model is G.E.A.R.S – Guided, Experiential, Activity-oriented, Reflection, and Self-understanding. This model is a form of nonformal learning that is practical, holistic, and real world that complements formal classroom learning.

Confronting Child Maltreatment in Youth Sports.

Confronting Child Maltreatment in Youth Sports.