This study explored how mentoring begins and the benefits provided for African American sexual and/or gender minority (SGM) youth. Participants were mentors and mentees living in three Mid-Atlantic cities. Mentees (ages 15-21, n = 14) identified as African American; cisgender male, transgender female, or non-binary assigned male; and had sexual…

It is well established that positive youth development (PYD) programs improve adolescent psycho-social wellbeing; however, it remains unclear if PYD programs developed for able-bodied adolescents can be implemented with adolescents with disabilities in low-resource settings. We conducted a pragmatic trial of an evidence-based PYD program…

Connections between prosociality and antisocial behaviors have been recognized; however, little research has studied their developmental links longitudinally. This is important to illuminate during early adolescence as a sensitive period for social development in which prosociality could protect against the development of later antisocial…

Engagement in preventive health behaviors (PHBs; i.e., healthy eating, sleep, and physical activity) during adolescence is associated with reduced risks for chronic conditions, such as diabetes, in adulthood. Although several interventions seek to improve adolescents' engagement in health promoting behaviors, racial- and income-based disparities…

Identity formation is a fundamental developmental process that has significant consequences for youth adjustment during adolescence and beyond. This article presents evidence indicating that ethnic-racial identity, specifically, is an important developmental competency on which prevention science should focus in the interest of promoting positive…

Research suggests that the process of adolescents exploring and developing clarity about their ethnic-racial identity (ERI) is an important developmental competency. However, the extent to which individuals view their ERI as central to their overall self-concept (i.e., ERI centrality) informs the degree to which they choose to explore their ERI,…

In light of the increasing global population of young people, practitioners and policy makers face formidable challenges in promoting positive youth development and the successful transition to adulthood. Youth participatory research is one promising and rapidly growing approach for generating evidence to inform policy and intervention strategies…

This review aimed at identifying specific features of PYD interventions with a PA component that appear most promising at reducing bullying behaviors among pre- and early adolescents. We reviewed articles that included PYD interventions with a PA component among pre- and early adolescents aged 8-14 years from five databases and found seven studies…

We examined relations among select components of the 4-H Thriving Model, focusing on youth sparks and four presumed determinants: program quality, developmental relationships, situational engagement, and dosage. Based on our results and results of previous studies, we propose a formal theory of youth program sparks. Three hundred fifty-six Texas…

Youth participation in community-based, structured out-of-school time programs (OST) has been found to promote positive developmental outcomes by providing youth with resources to build interpersonal relationships and essential life skills. The increasing prevalence and multiplicity of youth participation in these activities leads us to expand the…

Nationally, the 4-H Youth Development Program utilizes more than 350,000 adult volunteers annually, and 25% of the nation's K-12 students identify as Hispanic or Latino; however, there is a dearth of published literature on Latino volunteerism in the 4-H Youth Development Program. Developmental relationships, a critical component of realizing…

Despite many programs for educating social skills to adolescents with autism, insufficient attention has been paid to examine the optimal conditions and strategies that are important for improvement and generalization of the learned skills. So after reviewing and searching for three PubMed, Scopus, and ProQuest databases, 20 studies were finally…

The developmental shifts encountered by boys during adolescence can have long-term implications for mental health. This paper describes a holistic approach to wellbeing and development (the On Queenslea Drive, or OQD, program), which draws upon a traditional Rites of Passage framework to support the development of boys during this period. This…

This mixed method study explored whether and how familial mentor support may have influenced the parent-adolescent relationship, and whether the impact of familial mentor support on the parent-adolescent relationship may have differed across adolescents' developmental stage. Findings from analyses of survey data from 106 Black adolescents…

Background: Summer camp is an experiential learning setting that supports youth development. Due to high fees, youth from low-income backgrounds often have fewer opportunities to attend. Subsequently, there is little literature about these youth's camp experiences. Purpose: This research examined growth and the characteristics supporting growth in…