Youth Participation (youth + participation)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


ENSURING AUTHENTIC YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN DELINQUENCY CASES: CREATING A PARADIGM FOR SPECIALIZED JUVENILE DEFENSE PRACTICE

FAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 3 2007
Patricia Puritz
In delinquency courts, juvenile defense attorneys are essential for guaranteeing children's due process rights and encouraging their meaningful participation in the proceedings. Yet, indigent defense delivery systems are largely failing youth accused of committing crimes. This article highlights the importance of developing systems that support the highly specialized practice area of juvenile defense. To protect their clients' rights and meet their ethical obligations, juvenile defense attorneys must zealously advocate for their clients' expressed interests and must strategically address the biases and misunderstandings prevalent in delinquency courts. Specifically, defense attorneys must vigorously challenge systemic race, class, and gender injustices; incorporate expert knowledge of youth development into their advocacy; and protect clients' mental health and educational interests. Such holistic representation promotes rehabilitation and reduces recidivism. Because of numerous obstacles that currently impede defense attorneys from engaging in such exemplary practice, systemic reforms are necessary to support high-quality defense representation and, ultimately, ensure that youths' rights are protected. [source]


Youth participation in public policy at the local level: New lessons from Michigan municipalities

NATIONAL CIVIC REVIEW, Issue 4 2009
Katie Richards-Schuster
First page of article [source]


Associations between youth assets and sexual activity: does adult supervision play a role?

CHILD: CARE, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 4 2007
L. Harris
Abstract Background, Youth participation in sexual risk behaviours continues to be a critically important public health topic. Additionally, as youth are frequently being left alone during the day without adult supervision, there are increased opportunities for sexual risk-taking behaviour. This study examined how the relationships of nine youth assets and sexual activity may vary according to the stratification of youth into two groups: self-care and supervised. Methods, Data were collected through at-home, in-person interviews from a random sample of inner-city youth (mean age = 15.4 years; 51.5% female; 48.8% White; 22.4% Black; 18.5% Hispanic; 10% Native American) and their parents (n = 1079 parent/youth pairs). Nine youth assets were analysed using multiple logistic regression. Examples of assets youth may possess are: positive role models, family communication, school connectedness, constructive use of time and aspirations for the future. The item used to assess sexual intercourse was ,Have you ever had sexual intercourse ("done it", "had sex", "made love", "gone all the way")?'. Asset/risk behaviour associations that were unique to one of the two strata were the focus of the study. Results, Thirty-seven per cent of youth spent two or more hours per day home alone. Youth who were supervised had a greater number of unique significant associations between assets and sexual activity than youth who were in the self-care group. Conclusions, Youth in supervised settings may be less likely to participate in sexual activity because of the presence of assets. Certain assets may also be important in deterring sexual activity for youth who are in self-care. [source]


Protective factors for youth considered at risk of criminal behaviour: does participation in extracurricular activities help?

CRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR AND MENTAL HEALTH, Issue 1 2005
Jodi M. Burton
Background There is a lack of research investigating the potential protective effect of participation in extracurricular activities on youth who are at risk of engaging in delinquent activity. Aim This study examined the potential for participation in extracurricular activities to act as a protective factor for youth deemed at risk of engaging in delinquent activity. Method One hundred and sixty-nine secondary students from Glasgow, Scotland completed two questionnaires (the Youth Self-Report and an additional information sheet) requesting information about their participation in extracurricular and delinquent activities as well as their possible risk factors. Activities included sports, non-sports (hobbies and games), current activities (youth clubs and other organisations) and previous involvement in activities. Risk factors included residing in a broken home, having four or more siblings, academic failure and lacking a nonparental very important person. Delinquent activities included rule-breaking and aggressive behaviours. Results Independent samplest-tests found that females participated in significantly more non-sports and previous activities than males and that males participated in significantly more rule-breaking behaviour than females. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses found that gender and participation in sports were strong predictors of rule-breaking behaviour. A significant positive correlation was found between participation in sports and involvement in aggressive behaviour. Conclusion The results suggest that participation in extracurricular activities does not act as a protective factor for youth, regardless of whether or not they are considered to be at risk of engaging in delinquent activity. The significant correlation found between participation in sports and involvement in aggressive behaviour suggests that youth participation in sports may act as a risk factor. Copyright © 2005 Whurr Publishers Ltd. [source]


Youth Voices as Change Agents: Moving Beyond the Medical Model in School-Based Health Center Practice

JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, Issue 7 2005
Leslie A. Mandel
Freshmen were recruited to participate in a Youth Advisory Board Project that included weekly afterschool meetings. Adult supervision was provided by SBHC staff that included 2 clinical social workers and 1 youth empowerment specialist. Through this effort, students were (1) trained in nonprofit board development and governance structures; (2) urged to identify gaps in services; (3) taught to select, prioritize, and implement action projects; and (4) offered clinical support around personal issues. Students brought a wealth of life experiences, knowledge of teen attitudes, information regarding trends in risk-taking behaviors, and feedback about experiences in the SBHC. In addition, their increased awareness of the SBHC service elements led to identification of obstacles to youth participation in care, feedback regarding positive and negative health care experiences within the SBHC, as well as with external health care providers, and ideas about unrecognized needs leading to gaps in services. This experience demonstrated that young health care consumers, with support, can focus their attention and begin to utilize analytical thinking skills to shape health outcomes and inform service delivery. (J Sch Health. 2005;75(7):239,242) [source]


Introduction: Moving youth participation forward

NEW DIRECTIONS FOR YOUTH DEVELOPMENT, Issue 96 2002
Jennifer L. O'Donoghue
Given the emerging interest among researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in youth participation, it is important to examine and assess carefully the promise and challenges of youth engagement. [source]


Evaluating Content Validity and Test,Retest Reliability of the Children's Health Risk Behavior Scale

PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING, Issue 4 2006
Susan K. Riesch
ABSTRACT Objectives: Describe the instrument development process and report the validity and reliability of the Children's Health Risk Behavior Scale (CHRBS), a scale designed to screen for health risk behaviors among youth aged 10,13 Years. Methods: Domain identification and item generation using the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and testing relevance and test,retest reliability among a target audience sample of 77 fifth graders in their classrooms in two separate public school districts. Results: Youth performed their tasks as expert item reviewers effectively. Twenty-one items comprise the CHRBS with a reading level determined to be at the third grade. Conclusions: We have developed a reliable and valid measure to assess late elementary youth's participation in health risk behavior. [source]