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Requested feedback: Is the article using a NPoV? Do the lead paragraphs represent a global viewpoint? How can I improve the new sections I have created? Is there any other information it would be useful to add or research?

My plan for the article is to develop a more comprehensive definition of youth empowerment and discuss the framework for empowerment as well as types of prgrams with some examples of programs around the world.


(Definition and lead paragraph)

Youth empowerment is a process where children and young people are encouraged to take charge of their lives. They do this by addressing their situation and then take action in order to improve their access to resources and transform their consciousness through their beliefs, values, and attitudes.[1] Youth empowerment aims to improve quality of life.

Youth empowerment is different than youth development because development is centered on developing individuals, while empowerment is focused on creating greater community change relies on the development of individual capacity.[2]

Youth empowerment programs are aimed at creating healthier and higher qualities of life for underprivileged or at-risk youth.[1] The five competencies of a healthy youth are: (1) positive sense of self, (2) self- control, (3) decision-making skills, (4) a moral system of belief, and (5) pro-social connectedness. Developmental interventions and programs have to be anchored on these competencies that define positive outcomes of healthy youth.[1] These programs can be through non-profit organizations, government organizations, schools or private organizations.

Empowerment movements, including youth empowerment, originate, gain momentum, become viable, and become institutionalized.[1] Youth empowerment is often addressed as a gateway to intergenerational equity, civic engagement and democracy building. Activities may focus on youth-led media, youth rights, youth councils, youth activism, youth involvement in community decision-making,[3] and other methods.

Elements of empowerment[edit]

Types of Empowerment[edit]

Youth empowerment examines six interdependent dimensions [1][4]: psychological, community, organizational, economic, social and cultural. Psychological empowerment enhances individual's consciousness, belief in self-efficacy, awareness and knowledge of problems and solutions and ways that individuals can address problems that deal with their quality of life. [1] This dimension aims to create self-confidence and give youth the skills to acquire knowledge.[4] Community empowerment focuses on enhancing the community through leadership development, improving communication, and creating a network of support to mobilize the community to address concerns. [1] Organizational empowerment aims to create a base of resources for a community, including voluntary organizations, unions and association that aim to protect, promote and advocate for the powerless. [1] Economic empowerment teaches entrepreneurial skills, how to take ownership of their assets and how to have income security.[4] Social empowerment teaches youth about social inclusion and literacy as well as helping kids find the resources to be proactive in their communities.[4] Cultural empowerment aims to recreate cultural practices and redefine cultural rules and norms for youth.[4] Through these dimensions of empowerment, programs can work on empowering youth in one or more aspects of their lives.

Measurable empowerment[edit]

Over the last two decades, quality of life (QOL) has emerged as an important unit of measurement to evaluate the success of empowerment programs.[1] It is used as a goal of programs and as well as an indicator of effectiveness. However, there is no standard definition of QOL. A person's QOL is dependent upon subjective evaluation of the individual aspects of that individual's life.[1]

Positive Development Settings[edit]

Youth empowerment programs thrive in positive developmental settings. Positive developmental settings promote youth competence, confidence and connections.[5] Two features of the positive developmental youth settings are supportive relationships and support for efficacy and mattering. Supportive relationships are those that are between youth and non-familial adults that foster trust and respect. Support for efficacy and mattering specifically focuses on youth being active, instrumental agents of change in their communities, collective decision-making and adults listen to and respect their voice.[5]  

Youth empowerment programs[edit]

There are many types of empowerment programs across the globe that empower youth through many different tactics and programs. Programs can operate in many settings. The majority of programs operate in more than one setting, which may be a key factor in their success.[6] The beneficial outcomes to youth empowerment programs are improved social skills, improved behavior, increased academic achievement, increased self-esteem and increased self-efficacy.[7]

Some programs are aimed at just empowering women and young girls. Regardless of specific goals or methods, empowering effects include improving women’s wellbeing, self-esteem, and self-efficacy, and enhancing social status by teaching technical and organizational skills.[4]

Other youth empowerment programs are focused on poverty alleviation. Living standards are for those living in poverty are declining causing forms of deprivation as it relates to food, resources and education.[8] Programs aimed at empowering poor youth, work toward livelihood protection or livelihood promotion.[8]

There are also empowerment movements that use the social action model, aiming for disadvantaged people to become empowered, organized, and educated so that they may create change.[1] These programs advocate for constructive confrontations to enhance the social power of people who are considered disadvantaged.

Another model is the 5C's model that focuses on emphasizing competence, confidence, connection, character and caring.[9] A sixth C of contribution to society was later added. [9] This model focuses primarily on engagement as a key marker of positive youth development, emphasizing the need to foster initiative.

Youth-adult partnerships are another type of empowerment method used around the world. This method has been defined as a developmental process and a community practice. The partnership involves people of different ages working together on community issues over a period of time.[5] The method emphasizes reciprocity among adults and youth with a focus on shared decision making and reflective learning. The concept of shared control is key for empowering youth.

Examples of Youth Empowerment Programs[edit]

Around the globe there are many empowerment programs focused on a wide variety of things and this is not a comprehensive list. Unsuccessful youth empowerment programs have not been carefully documented or published in case studies.[1]

In Namibia, one popular empowerment program is Pots of Hope. Pots of Hope's main goal is to reduce the vulnerability youth to HIV and Aids through education, information and awareness, as well as income security projects.[10] Pots of Hope works by educating, and providing counseling to those in rural settings who do not have access to those resources.[10] This program focuses on organizational empowerment within the community.   

Within the United States there are many empowerment programs for youth. Urban 4-H is a culturally responsive, community-based practice that authentically engages families, youth and the community in the development of youth.[11] Urban 4-H is an example of community empowerment that focuses on the economic and social dimensions of empowerment. The program helps youth build skills to enable them to overcome economic and social barriers while recognizing the importance of self-directed learning for youth. Urban 4-H focuses on empowering youth to think critically, communicate across cultural boundaries and lead others.[11]   

The United Nations has many development programs, one of them being youth empowerment programs. The United Nations provides support to national policy development surrounding empowerment within the five regions.[12] They do this by providing evidence-based policy guidance and programmatic support by promoting the active participation of youth in society. The UNDP promotes inclusive youth participation in effective and democratic governance, economic empowerment of youth, strengthened youth engagement in building resilience in their communities, inclusion of youth in the future development agenda, including through consultations and discussions.[12] The United Nations youth empowerment programs examine all four dimensions of youth empowerment and seeks to improve all of them.   

USAID has youth empowerment programs set up around the world that are aimed at civic engagement, access to resources and opportunities for education and employment.[13]   

For a more comprehensive list: List of youth empowerment organizations

Benefits of empowerment[edit]

When youth participate in established empowerment programs they see many benefits. The practices of youth involvement and empowerment become embedded within the organizational culture and the community culture.[2] Adults and organizations also benefit from empowerment programs. The both become more connected and responsive to youth in the community, which leads to program improvements as well as increased participation from youth.[2]

Critiques of youth empowerment[edit]

One major critique of youth empowerment is that most programs take a risk-focused approach.[9] There has been a major emphasis on what is going wrong for youth in their lives rather than what goes right. This portrays young people as a problem that need to be fixed, and displays the process of development as a process of overcoming risk. This may deter youth from joining youth development programs. The risked-based model can obscure the fact that adolescence is a time when young people master skills and concepts. [9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Kar, Snehendu B; Pascual, Catherine A; Chickering, Kirstin L (1999-12-01). "Empowerment of women for health promotion: a meta-analysis". Social Science & Medicine. 49 (11): 1431–1460. doi:10.1016/S0277-9536(99)00200-2.
  2. ^ a b c Ledford, Meredith King; Lucas, Bronwyn (2013). "Youth Empowerment: The theory and its implementation" (PDF). Youth Empowerment Solutions. Youth Empowerment Solutions. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
  3. ^ Sazama, J. & Young, K. (2006) 15 Points to Successfully Involving Youth in Decision-Making, Boston: Youth On Board.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Edralin, Divina M.; Tibon, Maria Victoria P.; Tugas,, Florenz C. (Jan 2015). "Initiating Women Empowerment and Youth Development through Involvement in Non-Formal Education in Three Selected Parishes: An Action Research on Poverty Alleviation". DLSU Business & Economics Review. Vol. 24 (Issue 2,): p108–123. ISSN 0116-7111. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
  5. ^ a b c Krauss, Steven Eric; Collura, Jessica; Zeldin, Shepherd; Ortega, Adriana; Abdullah, Haslinda; Sulaiman, Abdul Hadi (2013-10-12). "Youth–Adult Partnership: Exploring Contributions to Empowerment, Agency and Community Connections in Malaysian Youth Programs". Journal of Youth and Adolescence. 43 (9): 1550–1562. doi:10.1007/s10964-013-0027-1. ISSN 0047-2891.
  6. ^ Catalano, Richard F.; Berglund, M. Lisa; Ryan, Jean A. M.; Lonczak, Heather S.; Hawkins, J. David (2004-01-01). "Positive Youth Development in the United States: Research Findings on Evaluations of Positive Youth Development Programs". The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 591 (1): 98–124. doi:10.1177/0002716203260102. ISSN 0002-7162.
  7. ^ "Youth empowerment programs". County Health Rankings & Roadmaps. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
  8. ^ a b Matin, I., & Hulme, D. (2003). Programs for the poorest: Learning from the IGVGD program in Bangladesh. World Development, 31(3), 647-665.
  9. ^ a b c d Guerra, Nancy G.; Bradshaw, Catherine P. (2008-12-01). "Linking the prevention of problem behaviors and positive youth development: Core competencies for positive youth development and risk prevention". New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development. 2008 (122): 1–17. doi:10.1002/cd.225. ISSN 1534-8687.
  10. ^ a b Mutumbulwa, Fransina. "Empowering youth and women through Pots of Hope." Sister Namibia 20.3 (2008): 16+. Global Issues In Context. Web. 9 Oct. 2015.
  11. ^ a b Landrieu, Josey; Pierson Russo, Jessica. "The What, How, and Why of 21st Century Urban Youth Development". Reclaiming Children & Youth. Vol. 23 (Issue 3): p48–52. ISSN 1089-5701. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Youth empowerment". UNDP. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
  13. ^ "Global Highlights: USAID Youth Programs". www.usaid.gov. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
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