February 2001

Working Together to Create Healthy Communities for Adolescents

Our 7th Year

Welcome to another year with "The Ups & Downs of Adolescence," a national newsletter for youth, parents and all adults who play a role in the lives of young people and their communities.

Editing Change

The new editor of the newsletter is Dr. Rosalie J. Bakken, Adolescent Development Specialist working with Cooperative Extension at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Bakken invites your suggestions, comments and questions, and may be contacted by writing to the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, 114 HE, P.O. Box 830801, Lincoln, NE 68583-0801; by calling (402) 472-0309; or by e-mail at rbakken@unlnotes.unl.edu. We are very appreciative of the work done by Dr. Stephen T. Russell, 4-H Youth Development Specialist, University of California-Davis, as editor for the past two years, and we are fortunate that he will be continuing his involvement as co-editor this year. Beginning next month, "The Ups & Downs of Adolescence" will resume its usual format, providing topical research summaries on its front page, while offering practical, applied information on its back page.

Theme for 2001

This year the newsletter will focus on "creating a healthy community for adolescents." Each month experts in the field of adolescent development from across the country will contribute to the newsletter, addressing the ways that community and its many sectors influence the social, emotional, cognitive and physical health and development of adolescents.

Promoting Healthy Adolescence is a Community-wide Responsibility

• Parents
• Youth
• Peers
• Relatives
• Neighbors
• Schools
• Local Businesses
• Juvenile
• Justice System
• Community Coalitions
• Advisory Boards
• Local Media
• Spiritual Leaders
• Government and Nonprofit Agencies

Creating a Healthy Community

Recent research highlights the role of "community" in creating an environment that supports the healthy development of adolescents. The term "community" usually refers to a geographically defined area. In this context, however, it refers to an adolescent's social network—all of the influences on adolescent development, including those which may fall outside the hometown or neighborhood, such as television or the Internet (Benson, Leffert, Scales, and Blyth, 1998). Each of the different sectors within communities has the potential to promote positive development among adolescents. This potential is maximized when all the parts work together toward this goal, using a community-wide approach. This also increases communication and agreement (Dryfoos, 1990).

The use of a community-wide approach increases chances of success in promoting healthy adolescent development for several other reasons. Most obviously, it results in greater availability of resources that can be used for planning, implementing and evaluating efforts to support healthy adolescent development. It also encourages a feeling of ownership among community members, making the community more committed to keeping the program for the long-term.

Finally, when a variety of community members come together to learn, share and plan for supporting healthy adolescent development, a more consistent message about values and norms can be presented to adolescents. When adolescents are given consistent messages about expectations from many different sources in their communities, they are more likely to behave in positive ways (Benson, Leffert, Scales, & Blyth, 1998; Roth & Brooks-Gunn, 2000).

Sources: Barton, W., Watkins, M., & Jarjoura, R. (1997); Youths and Communities: Toward Comprehensive Strategies for Youth Development; Social Work, 42, 483-493. Benson, P., Leffert, N. Scales, P. and Blyth, D. (1998); Beyond the "Village" rhetoric: Creating Healthy Communities for children and adolescents; Applied Developmental Science, 2, 138-159. Dryfoos, J.G. (1990); Adolescents at risk: Prevalence and Prevention New York: Oxford University Press. Roth, J. & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2000); What do adolescents need for healthy development? Implications for youth policy; Social policy report; Society for Research in Child Development, 14 (1).

This issue of Ups & Downs was contributed by Rosalie Bakken, Ph.D., Editor, Adolescent Development Specialist, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Ups & Downs is co-edited by Stephen T. Russell, Ph.D., 4-H Youth Development Specialist, University of California-Davis.