At-risk adolescent girls: protective factors and effects of a positive youth development intervention

Adolescence is a tumultuous time, and for those with risk factors, it can be even more difficult. This study examined the relationships among intrinsic and extrinsic protective factors such as high self-esteem, high self-efficacy, mattering to others, positive sense of identity, and healthy peer relationships in female adolescents. Additionally, the current study assessed the impact of a positive youth development intervention designed for this particular population. The potential sample consisted of adolescent girls who were students at an alternative high school in the Southwestern region of the United States. Of the 25 girls at the school, 12 participated in the study and completed pre-test instruments measuring self-esteem, self-efficacy, mattering to friends and parents, identity distress, and relational aggression. The instruments were administered before and after a positive youth development intervention of which 10 of the 12 participants attended. The intervention, Girls Circle, consisted of activities designed to foster self-acceptance, identity formation, healthy friendships, and goal setting in adolescent girls. While the study's intervention did not result in significant changes over time, several important findings emerged. Self-esteem was positively related to both mattering to friends and mattering to parents. Likewise, a negative correlation was found between relational aggression and mattering to parents. Girls who felt they were more important to friends and family had higher self esteem and were less likely to engage in covert aggression tactics such as spreading rumors and maliciously excluding peers from their social groups. These results support the literature and highlight the important interconnection of social relationships and subjective well-being. Teachers, counselors, social workers, and other helping professionals who work with adolescents need to understand these relationships and use this understanding to design and implement interventions that will best serve at-risk girls, such as those in this study.