All publications for The Kinder & Braver World Project: Research Series

Cultivating Young Women's Leadership for a Kinder, Braver World

There is not much research exploring leadership development and civic participation among youth, and even less among young women. Policymakers and others seeking to better serve youth in pursuit of a “kinder, braver world” should take into account the research that does exist. This research indicates that youth who engage in service to their communities learn leadership skills through civic action and may be more likely to vote and be civically engaged as adults. Youth who demonstrate leadership skills can, and should, be considered current assets to their communities.

authored by anna rorem, monisha bajaj, published on 17 dec 2012

Engaging Youth, Serving Community: Social Change Lessons from a 4H Rural Youth Development Program

Social change targeted at empowering youth requires youth and adults to work together as equals. Youth-adult partnerships create a platform to amplify youth voices. To succeed, youth-adult partnerships must be built on open communication and equal voice. Using a case study, this paper shares six broadly applicable lessons learned through the Engaging Youth, Serving Community (ESYC) program. Based on evaluation and understanding of the EYSC experience, it highlights examples of how youth-adult partnerships can promote social change and civic engagement.

authored by donna j. peterson, barbara a. baker, joanne leatherman, michael e. newman, sally miske, published on 17 dec 2012

The Value of Youth Organizing

Across the country, adolescents have become deeply involved in struggles for equity and social justice, as they work to promote a kinder, braver world. Although youth have long been leaders in social change efforts, today’s young people are increasingly supported in this work through youth organizing programs. This paper explains what youth organizing is, identifies four ways in which it benefits the young people involved, offers suggestions for mitigating any downsides of participation, and addresses barriers that youth organizing groups may face.

authored by jerusha conner, published on 17 dec 2012

Youth Organizations and Positive Development: Lessons Learned from a Century of Girl Scouting

Since its inception in 2000, the Girl Scout Research Institute has employed a research-to-action approach so that insights from our work with girls and young women can directly inform Girl Scouts of the USA’s program and policy development, as well as impact the larger youth development field. In the last decade, GSRI’s research and evaluation work has touched numerous organizations in the public and private spheres, making a practical impact on the lives of youth and providing other organizations with evidence needed to make a case for their own work.

published on 17 dec 2012

Out of the Box: Positive Development & Social Change Through the Arts

From early childhood to adolescence, the arts can foster youth movements for social change through positive development. Students who experience high levels of arts enrichment show greater academic performance, enrollment in and graduation from high school and college, civic and community service, news consumption, and engagement in local politics. Moreover, participation in the arts—even as a spectator—predicts increases in civic engagement, tolerance and altruism, regardless of age, race, or education.

authored by ping ho, published on 17 dec 2012

Youth and Social Movements: Key Lessons for Allies

We have much to learn from young people who are already engaged in mobilizing their peers, families, and communities towards positive social transformation. This paper discusses challenges, and provides recommendations for educators and adult allies of youth movements.

authored by sasha costanza-chock, published on 17 dec 2012

How to Engage Young People: Lessons From Lowell, MA

A youth organization’s success depends on young people’s participation within the local community. Many of the issues facing young people today reflect a poor engagement with community politics, cultural identity formation, and risk-taking behaviors based on that identity formation. The Teen Block was founded in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1990 with the goal of addressing these issues. Since that time, it has served over 8,000 young people, integrating social, behavioral, mental, and physical health.

authored by sopheap linda c. sou, darcie deangelo, masada jones, monica veth, published on 17 dec 2012

How Participatory Action Research Can Promote Social Change and Help Youth Development

Participatory Action Research (PAR) is a process through which people investigate meaningful social topics, participate in research to understand the root causes of problems that directly impact them, and then take action to influence policies through the dissemination of their findings to policymakers and stakeholders. Like other types of youth organizing, PAR promotes youth’s involvement in their communities and the development of leadership skills. It emphasizes the development of young people’s knowledge, skills, and abilities to be experts on issues of importance to them, and catalyze systemic change in collaboration with their peers and supportive adults.

authored by cara berg powers, erin allaman, published on 17 dec 2012

Bullying in a Networked Era: A Literature Review

This research update presents an aggregation and summary of recent academic literature on youth bullying. The purpose of this document is to “translate” scholarly research for a concerned public audience, which may include but is not limited to parents, caregivers, educators, and practitioners. This translation highlights recent findings and developments in the literature and makes them accessible to the informed but non-expert reader.

authored by nathaniel levy, sandra cortesi, urs gasser, edward crowley, meredith beaton, june casey, caroline nolan, published on 18 sep 2012

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Implementing Bullying Prevention Programs in Schools: A How-To Guide

This document represents a “how to” guide for schools trying to determine how to implement effective bullying prevention and intervention programming. It offers ideas on how to think about the process and how to identify and evaluate the right program for their community.

authored by lisa jones, mia doces, susan swearer, anne collier, published on 16 apr 2012

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