Youth substance use challenges their health and well-being. There is research and practical need for rigorous evaluation of substance use prevention programs in prompting positive youth development. This study examined the program effectiveness of Health Rocks!, a youth substance use prevention program, with a quasi-experimental two-factor mixed…

Youth of Color in the United States are often leaders in movements for social justice. Evidence suggests that organizing has a positive macro-therapeutic effect on the mental health of young organizers; however, they can also experience strain and become targets of the very systems they are trying to change. In a community-based participatory…

A majority of youth in residential facilities such as residential children's treatment centers and juvenile justice facilities have a history of exposure to traumatic events, contributing to a multitude of long-term mental and physical concerns. Residential facility teachers and staff have the unique opportunity to create trauma-informed spaces -…

A sense of belonging for any young person is core to the human experience--it encompasses how much a student feels accepted, respected, and included at school and in other contexts. For youth, adolescence is a time of exploration and one where they naturally wrestle with questions of belonging and sense of self as they transition to emerging…

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) invests in mentoring programs and services to help ensure positive outcomes for youth. Successful mentoring relationships have been shown to increase youth's self-esteem, improve academic achievement, and steer them away from delinquency, substance use, and other high-risk…

For young people, connecting to the world of work during this important period can strengthen their confidence and ties to the labor market and set them on a secure and fulfilling career pathway. Focusing on young people in the workforce is also a win for employers, who can tap into a broader pool of talent. Tackling youth unemployment also…

This paper uses the framework of transition as "becoming" to explore what young people learned from participating in a post-secondary transition program that was co-designed by young people. The 9-week youth participatory action research (YPAR) involved six staff collaborators (SCs) and seven youth collaborators (YCs). Data comprised…

In recent years, investment in youth services has been contingent on the measurement of predefined outcomes as 'proof' of effectiveness. However, this approach to impact measurement has been criticised for distorting practice and reinforcing inequalities. As youth work emerges from a decade of spending cuts, there is an urgent need for new…

This research delves into analyzing and comprehending humanistic attitudes within the management framework of the Youth Red Cross (PMR) organization at Madrasah Tsanawiyah Negeri Palopo. Employing a qualitative approach, data is gathered through interviews, observations, and subsequent analysis. The study encompasses various stakeholders: the…

This qualitative research aimed to identify factors contributing to the formation and development of effective partnerships that foster positive youth development. The study involved interviews with eight adult military mentors and nine youth cadet mentees to gain various perspectives regarding mentoring relationships within the youth leadership…

This study examined the association between positive youth development (PYD) and youth social and emotional difficulties, with a specific focus on the role of parental control as a developmental asset. We surveyed 141 youth (mean age= 15.15, %female= 47.5) and parent (mean age= 41.61, %female= 63.8) dyads and conducted hierarchical regression and…

ASD is a neurodevelopmental disorder impacting 1 in 44 children and early identification of children with ASD is critical for the intervention. Several screening measures have been developed for early identification, including the "Autism Spectrum Rating Scales, 6-18 years Parent Report (ASRS)." The ASRS has been understudied, and the…

Preventing mentor-mentee relationships from ending prematurely is important because an early or unanticipated closure could lead to negative youth outcomes. In this study, the reasons for premature closure of a community-based mentoring program for youth with a visual impairment (VI) are studied. Data from 44 prematurely ended mentor-mentee pairs…

In the contemporary context of rapid digitalization and evolving youth interests, traditional art forms such as Nanjing Paper-Cutting face significant challenges in preserving their cultural significance. This study explores the semantic transformation of Nanjing Paper-Cutting symbols within digital games and their potential value in cultivating…

Families of youth with disabilities often access services to promote youth's transitions to adulthood. Such services can be oriented toward the youth or family. Using descriptive statistics and regression modeling of survey and administrative data, we explored patterns of service use and the association between outcomes for 9,013 U.S. youth with…