What it is
Positive youth development is a holistic process of growth in which young people create a strong sense of self that enables them to be actively involved in the leadership of their own lives. Positive youth development pioneers Gisela Konopka (1973) and Karen Pittman (1991) identified critical elements essential to the healthy development of young people. Youth programs that cultivate healthy development provide young people with opportunities to
- Feel physically and emotionally safe
- Experience belonging and ownership
- Develop self-worth
- Discover self
- Develop quality relationships with peers and adults
- Discuss conflicting values and form their own
- Feel the pride and accountability that comes with mastery
- Expand their capacity to enjoy life and know that success is possible
Why it matters
When we can cultivate these elements of positive youth development, young people learn to create good habits, work effectively with others, and act on behalf of the common good while cultivating their skills, knowledge, and interests in meaningful ways that serve as a basis for their growth. Focusing on positive youth development as the basis of our youth programming makes our programs more effective and meaningful.
What effective practice looks like
We can support positive youth development in our youth programs by
- Paying attention to and cultivating a safe and welcoming environment. This means having clear, consistent expectations in our programs, insisting on kindness and respect, helping youth learn to resolve conflicts rather than punishing them for handling it badly, and providing a balance between structure and flexibility.
- Structuring opportunities that allow youth to make decisions. These opportunities should help youth feel valued and included.
- Providing a way for youth to meaningfully contribute and be recognized for the effort and progress they are making. Adults tend to underestimate youth capability and fail to challenge them enough. Quality youth programs intentionally plan ways for youth to contribute to the group experience in a variety of ways that help them see and experience their value.
- Encouraging youth to try new things in order to learn about themselves. Young people need the opportunity to direct their learning towards their own budding interests. They need safe spaces to explore, to fail and try again, and to try on different ways of being and thinking.
- Making space for youth to build healthy relationships. Adults should remember that developing healthy relationships takes time, practice and guidance. Proactively teaching relationship-building is better than waiting for conflicts as our opportunity to teach.
- Taking on the hard work of discussing the tough stuff. Youth need a safe place to talk about and figure out the things that are important to them.
- Providing appropriately challenging activities. Youth need to have the experience of getting good at something. Quality youth programs ensure that young people have opportunities to build skills in a way that provides meaningful feedback they can use to improve and prove to themselves that they can succeed.
- Helping youth understand they can DO THIS. Not everyone grows up in happy circumstances. We all need a sense of hope. Building hope in programs can involve making space for fun, showing youth we can find success from failure, and providing them plenty of time to explore and take healthy risks.
Tips for youth development program staff
A helpful exercise to ensure positive youth development in our programs is to think about each of the 8 keys as a fundamental need and then ask ourselves, “what might it look like in my program if a young person is not getting this need met? What types of behaviors might I see?” For instance, if a child is feeling unsafe, they may withdraw from the activities, or they may lash out. If a child is not getting a chance to feel a sense of mastery, they may get bored and disengage; or if they are feeling too challenged by an activity, they may also disengage. Think through each of the 8 keys. What might it look like when that need is not being met? Then, think about what you might be able to do in your program to make sure that need is met.
We cannot control a child’s experience at home or at school, but we can control how we structure their experience when they’re with us. The best way to foster positive youth development in our programs is to make it an intentional focus of what we do.
Requirements for health development of adolescent youth, by G. Konopka, 1973, Adolescence, 8 (31), 2-25, and A rationale for enhancing the role of the non-school voluntary sector in youth development, by K.J. Pittman and M. Wright, 1991 (Commissioned for the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development.) Washington DC: Center for Youth Development.
Reviewed in 2023