The Effect of Youth Participatory Evaluation and Youth Community Action Training on Positive Youth Development

The Effect of Youth Participatory Evaluation and Youth Community Action Training on Positive Youth Development

Author: David Joseph White

Publisher:

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 388

ISBN-13:

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The bi-directional relationships within the personal and contextual environments of adolescents are critical to the development of adolescents and their transition into adulthood. Opportunities for youth to participate in and provide leadership in meaningful programs, gain life skills, and interact with adults in sustained relationships are key features leading to positive youth development(PYD). Youth engagement in research and evaluation is described as an engaging pathway to PYD. The purpose of this study was to measure changes in levels of PYD through adolescent participation in youth participatory evaluation and youth community action training (YPE/YCAT). Seventy-four conveniently sampled senior 4-H members from eight Oregon County 4-H programs participated in a longitudinal study over the course of six months. Each county was represented by a treatment and comparison group. County teams in the treatment group were trained in youth participatory evaluation and youth community action (YPE/YCA). The county teams within the treatment group were expected to return to their respective counties and conduct youth participatory evaluation (YPE) projects using community issues forums. Significantly and consistently higher levels of the PYD indicators of competence, confidence, connection, character, caring, and contribution (six Cs) were predicted for the treatment group participating in YPE/YCAT relative to the comparison group not participating in YPE/YCAT. A multi-dimensional survey comprised of the Generalized Self- Efficacy Scale(competence), the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (confidence), and Connection, Character, Caring and Contribution Scales was emailed monthly over the course of six months, via Survey Monkey, to the 74 subjects in the eight counties. Twenty-three subjects (31%) completed the survey at all six time points: 14 subjects in the treatment group and nine in the comparison group. Given the small sample size, age, gender, and ethnicity were not considered in the analysis. The nonparametric Mann-Whitney U and Wilcoxon Signed Rank Tests were used to analyze the data. The dependent variables included competence, confidence, connection, character, caring, and contribution as indicators of PYD. The independent variable consisted of YPE/YCAT administered to the treatment group. The one-tailed Mann-Whitney U Test found no significant and consistent differences (p > .05) in mean scores between the treatment and comparison groups relative to the six Cs following the training of the treatment group in YPE/YCA. The one-tailed Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test found no significant and consistent differences (p > .05) in scores within the treatment group relative to the six Cs following the training of subjects in YPE/YCA. The treatment group's participation in YPE/YCAT did not significantly and consistently affect the levels of competence, confidence, connection, character, caring, and contribution as indicators of PYD.


Youth Participatory Evaluation: A Field in the Making

Youth Participatory Evaluation: A Field in the Making

Author: Kim Sabo

Publisher: Jossey-Bass

Published: 2003-08-12

Total Pages: 116

ISBN-13:

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Youth participatory evaluation (YPE) combines action research and participatory evaluation's commitment to stakeholder empowerment with the new philosophy of positive youth development, which emphasizes young people as community assets and resources rather than as a source of social problems. This volume illustrates a broad range of approaches YPE advocates have used to enrich evaluation practice and strength programs for youth by involving young people as researchers and evaluators. Kim Sabo begins by arguing that youth-led evaluation by it's very nature promotes youth development, because these evaluations constitute Vygotskian zones of proximal development, situations where developmental learning through performance can take place. Les Voakes uses a case study of a conference organized by Town Youth Participation Strategies to illustrate how involving youth in the planning, operational decision-making, and evaluation of programs that directly affect them can benefit both the young participants and the programs themselves. Jonathan K. London, Kristen Zimmerman and Nancy Erbstein provide case studies of evaluation methods that link community and youth development practices. Genevieve Lau, Nancy H. Netherland and Mary Haywood show how YPE can be used as a training process for youth workers, one that enables them to better understand the needs and desires of youth and therefore design better programs for them. Roger A. Hart and Jasmine Rajbhandary examine Nepal's "children's clubs", and Save the Children's YPE-inspired evaluation of these clubs, to show how children can be encouraged to develop their own programs and largely evaluate them by themselves. Bonny L. Gildin describes the All Stars Talent Show Network, an innovative program that unites youth, program funders and adult volunteers in program development and evaluation. Finally, David Fetterman sums up and reflects on the lessons learned by the contributors to this volume. This is the 98th issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Evaluation.


Youth Participatory Evaluation

Youth Participatory Evaluation

Author: Kim Sabo Flores

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2007-11-05

Total Pages: 210

ISBN-13: 0787983926

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Youth Participatory Evaluation: Strategies for Engaging Young People is a groundbreaking book that provides step-by-step, playful, and accessible activities that have proven effective and can be used by evaluators, educators, youth workers, researchers, funders, and children’s and human rights advocates in their efforts to more effectively engage young people.


Youth Participatory Evaluation: A Field in the Making

Youth Participatory Evaluation: A Field in the Making

Author: Kim Sabo Flores

Publisher: Jossey-Bass

Published: 2003-08-12

Total Pages: 112

ISBN-13: 9780787970741

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Youth participatory evaluation (YPE) combines action research and participatory evaluation's commitment to stakeholder empowerment with the new philosophy of positive youth development, which emphasizes young people as community assets and resources rather than as a source of social problems. This volume illustrates a broad range of approaches YPE advocates have used to enrich evaluation practice and strength programs for youth by involving young people as researchers and evaluators. Kim Sabo begins by arguing that youth-led evaluation by it's very nature promotes youth development, because these evaluations constitute Vygotskian zones of proximal development, situations where developmental learning through performance can take place. Les Voakes uses a case study of a conference organized by Town Youth Participation Strategies to illustrate how involving youth in the planning, operational decision-making, and evaluation of programs that directly affect them can benefit both the young participants and the programs themselves. Jonathan K. London, Kristen Zimmerman and Nancy Erbstein provide case studies of evaluation methods that link community and youth development practices. Genevieve Lau, Nancy H. Netherland and Mary Haywood show how YPE can be used as a training process for youth workers, one that enables them to better understand the needs and desires of youth and therefore design better programs for them. Roger A. Hart and Jasmine Rajbhandary examine Nepal's "children's clubs", and Save the Children's YPE-inspired evaluation of these clubs, to show how children can be encouraged to develop their own programs and largely evaluate them by themselves. Bonny L. Gildin describes the All Stars Talent Show Network, an innovative program that unites youth, program funders and adult volunteers in program development and evaluation. Finally, David Fetterman sums up and reflects on the lessons learned by the contributors to this volume. This is the 98th issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Evaluation.


Youth Participation and Community Change

Youth Participation and Community Change

Author: Barry Checkoway

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2012-11-12

Total Pages: 278

ISBN-13: 1136449310

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Empowered youth CAN and DO make a difference! Young people become empowered by their participation in the institutions and decisions that affect their lives—which in turn can lead to real positive change in the community. Youth Participation and Community Change presents leading authorities providing the latest research and effective approaches on how young people can be drawn to participate in organizations and communities. The diverse perspectives discuss youth participation in today’s society, the models and methods of its practice, the roles of youth and adults, and the future of youth participation and community in a diverse democracy. Approaches include those which promote participatory community-based research and evaluation, and involve youth groups in poor and racially segregated areas. The mainstream view of much of today’s youth is that of being victims of society rather than a being a possible positive influence on society as a whole. Youth Participation and Community Change seeks to shift the viewpoint from youth as being problems to empowering them to enact positive social change. The book explores community agency efforts to involve young people, and the process by which youth civic engagement promotes empowerment. Social work and public health approaches are examined, with cogent discussions on conceptual and theoretical issues. Empirically based case studies illustrate best practices and interdisciplinary work that draws upon psychology, sociology, social work, public health, education, and related academic disciplines and professional fields. Topics in Youth Participation and Community Change include: key dimensions of critical youth empowerment a case study of youth leadership development in Hawaii—the Sariling Gawa Youth Council the Lexington Youth Leadership Academy—a leadership development and community change program a new model for youth civic engagement in Hampton, Virginia three projects that engage urban youth in community change through participatory research youth engagement strategies and the benefits of youth participation in health research ten projects which used photovoice to represent, advocate, and enhance community health a participatory action research process with youth in Bosnia and Herzegovina the Growing Up in Cities project of UNESCO training students as facilitators for the Youth Empowerment Strategies (YES!) project four characteristics of engagement in the research literature and a school-community-university project differences in developmental outcomes among youth organizing, identity-support, and traditional youth development agencies Youth Participation and Community Change is thought-provoking, enlightening reading that is perfect for organizers, planners, policymakers, advocates, youth service workers, agency administrators, educators, students, and professionals in psychology, sociology, social work, urban planning, public policy, and public health.


Positive Youth Development

Positive Youth Development

Author: Richard Lerner

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2011-09-26

Total Pages: 435

ISBN-13: 0123864925

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Each chapter provides in-depth discussions and this volume serves as an invaluable resource for Developmental or educational psychology researchers, scholars, and students. Includes chapters that highlight some of the most recent research in the area of Positive Youth Development Each chapter provides in-depth discussions An invaluable resource for developmental or educational psychology researchers, scholars, and students


Toward Positive Youth Development

Toward Positive Youth Development

Author: Marybeth Shinn

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2008-04-10

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 0199716595

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Social settings have enormous power to promote or hinder positive youth development. Researchers and practitioners know a great deal about features of schools and programs for youth that affect development, but much less about how to transform settings to bring about these desirable features. This book shows how to harness the power of settings. It shifts the debate from simply enhancing youth outcomes at the individual level to improving the settings of youths' daily lives. The book offers researchers and practitioners blueprints for creating and changing influential settings including classrooms, schools, universities, out-of-school time programs, ethnic systems of supplementary education, and other community-based programs. Leading scholars in psychology, education, human development, sociology, anthropology, economics, law, and public policy discuss a wide array of social change strategies, and describe how to measure key features of settings as a target and guide for change. The authors also demonstrate how larger social structures - such as school districts, community coalitions, community data resources - can support change. Many of the chapters describe ways to make settings work for all youth, including those marginalized by reason of race, ethnicity, social class, or sexual orientation. Toward Positive Youth Development will guide researchers, educators, administrators and policy makers to improve schools and youth programs for all of America's youth.


Designs and Methods for Youth-Led Research

Designs and Methods for Youth-Led Research

Author: Melvin Delgado

Publisher: SAGE

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 328

ISBN-13: 9781412915281

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Youth-led research is increasing in popularity around the globe and empowers today's youth to help shape social interventions seeking to reach this population group. Designs and Methods for Youth-Led Research provides a foundation from which to plan and implement social research and program evaluation projects that place youth in central roles. In this text, author Melvin Delgado emphasizes how youth-led research represents a profound political and social statement about making relevant research result in significant changes to programs in the field of youth services. Key Features: Brings together the worlds of practice and academia by providing numerous examples of field-based youth-led research projects Encourages a partnership between youth and adults to facilitate mutual respect and give young people the opportunity to make significant and lasting contributions to the creation of solutions to many of their concerns and needs Examines future challenges in the field to help develop programs that will enrich tomorrow's youth Designs and Methods for Youth-Led Research is an excellent textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate students studying youth development in a variety of Social Work, Psychology, Education, and Social Research courses. It is also a valuable resource for practitioners in the fields of youth development and youth services.


Community Programs to Promote Youth Development

Community Programs to Promote Youth Development

Author: Institute of Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2002-02-12

Total Pages: 432

ISBN-13: 0309072751

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After-school programs, scout groups, community service activities, religious youth groups, and other community-based activities have long been thought to play a key role in the lives of adolescents. But what do we know about the role of such programs for today's adolescents? How can we ensure that programs are designed to successfully meet young people's developmental needs and help them become healthy, happy, and productive adults? Community Programs to Promote Youth Development explores these questions, focusing on essential elements of adolescent well-being and healthy development. It offers recommendations for policy, practice, and research to ensure that programs are well designed to meet young people's developmental needs. The book also discusses the features of programs that can contribute to a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. It examines what we know about the current landscape of youth development programs for America's youth, as well as how these programs are meeting their diverse needs. Recognizing the importance of adolescence as a period of transition to adulthood, Community Programs to Promote Youth Development offers authoritative guidance to policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and other key stakeholders on the role of youth development programs to promote the healthy development and well-being of the nation's youth.