What are Youth-Adult Partnerships?

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Stephen T. Russell, Ph.D., University of California, Davis
Nicole Polen, M.S., University of California, Davis
Karen Hoffman Tepper, Ph.D., University of Arizona

Youth-adult partnerships happen when young people and adults become engaged together in their communities; they are relationships between youth and adults where there is mutuality in teaching, learning, and action (Zeldin, McDaniel, Topitzes & Lorens, 2001). Mutuality is what distinguishes youth-adult partnerships from parent-child, student-teacher, and mentoring relationships (Camino, 2000). Youth-adult partnerships focus on nurturance; they emphasize youth and their contributions rather than problems. There are three components of successful youth-adult partnerships (Camino, 2000).

• The first component involves the principles and values that youth and adults use to orient these partnerships by challenging the roles and the power that characterize typical youth-adult relationships. Ideally this means that both youth and adults will avoid hierarchical relationships in which adults act as the authority and youth hold inferior positions (Camino, 2000). Youth and adults are both appreciated as having unique and valuable contributions to the partnership.
• The second component involves skills and competencies that youth and adults need to master for successful partnerships: communication, teamwork, and coaching (Camino, 2000). These three areas are important not only to the functioning of the partnership but are useful for both youth and adults in other areas of life including school, jobs, and social situations.
• The third component to youth-adult partnerships involves the development of a plan for community action. This may involve a change in community services provided youth, development of a new program, or increased youth involvement in community decision-making. Youth-adult partnerships are built on the assumption of cooperation with a common goal in mind.

Why are Youth-Adult Partnerships Important?

Research has shown that youth benefit from partnerships with adults when they are seen as individuals who are competent and able to contribute to important decisions that impact their communities (Camino, 2000b). Research shows that youth involvement in positive social relationships and activities with adults is associated with a decrease in risk behaviors, stronger communication skills and leadership experience, increased status and stature in the community, and improved competencies and self-esteem. In the case of sexuality education and pregnancy prevention, youth who are involved in their communities with adults have been shown to be less likely to engage in risky sexual behavior (Kirby & Coyle, 1997). In addition to positive effects for youth, these partnerships have proven to be beneficial for adults as well. Youth-targeted programs that involve youth in the program design, implementation, and evaluation stages are inclined toward increased relevancy and effectiveness. By involving youth, the program will be more "in-touch" with the unique characteristics of the target group and will more likely appeal to and speak to that population. In addition to these benefits, having youth involved in the decision-making and implementation of a program has been shown to produce positive outcomes for programs. Involving youth in an organization may result in the following benefits (Klindera & Menderweld, 2001):

• Fresh, new ideas,
• New perspectives on decision-making, including more relevant information about the needs and interests of youth,
• Open and honest responses about existing programs or services,
• Additional human resources due to the sharing of responsibilities between youth and adults,
• Greater willingness by youth to accept the services and messages of the program, and
• Greater credibility of the program or organization to both youth and advocates.

How do I develop youth / adult partnerships in my community?

• Have equal numbers of youth and adults on advisory boards, councils and committees.
• Select youth and adults who are willing and/or able to engage in the mutuality of the process that youth-adult partnerships require.
• Give opportunities for youth and adults to explore what each brings to the table. Encourage open communication concerning mutual expectations.
• Emphasize the mutuality of these relationships. Youth and adult should be seen as having unique and valuable contributions to the partnership.
• Allow young people to make significant program or community decisions.
• Allocate resources to youth.
• Offer young people the opportunity to regularly reflect on their work.

References

• Barkman, S.J., & Machtmes, K.L. (2000). Measuring youth development programs: The four-fold youth development model. CYD Journal, 1(4), p. 40-49.
• Camino, L. (2000a). Putting youth-adult partnerships to work for community change: Lessons from volunteers across the country. CYD Journal, 1(4), p.27-31.
• Camino, L. (2000b). Youth-adult partnership: Entering new territory in community work and research. Applied Developmental Science, 4(Suppl.1), p. 11-20.
• Center for Youth Development & Policy Research. What is Youth Development? Available online: http://cyd.aed.org/whatis.html
• Family and Youth Services Bureau. (1998). Translating Youth Development into Action. The Exchange: News from FYSB and the Youth Services Field, p. 1-11.
• Hoover, A.B., & Weisenbach, A. (1999). Youth leading now: Securing a place at the table. New Designs for Youth Development, 15(3), p. 29-36.
• Hughes, D., & Curnan, S.P. (2000). Community youth development: A framework for action. CYD Journal, 1(1). Available online: http://www.cydjournal.org/
• Kirby, D. & Coyle, K. (1997). Youth development programs. Children and Youth Services Review, 19(5/6), p. 437-454.
• Klindera, K., & Menderweld, J. (2001). Youth involvement in prevention programming. Issues at a Glance. Publication provided by Advocates for Youth, August 2001. Available online: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/iag/involvement.htm
• Pagliaro, S., & Klindera, K. (1999). Youth development: Strengthening prevention strategies. Issues at a Glance. Publication provided by Advocates for Youth, May 1999. Available online: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/iag/ythdevelop.htm
• Silliman, B., & Frost, A. (1999). Chinook. Family Life Newsletter, March 1999, p.1-10.
• Smilovitz, B. (1999). Youth representation leads to better public education. Spotlight on Youth, 15(3), p. 6-7.
• Youth Development: Issues, Challenges and Directions (Fall 2000). Public/Private Ventures Organization. Available online: http://www.ppv.org/content/reports/youthdevvolt.html
• Zeldin, S., McDaniel, A., Topitzes, D., & Lorens, M.B. (2001). Bringing young people to the table: Effects on adults and youth organizations. CYD Journal, 2(2) p. 20-27.

Links

• Cyfernet: http://www.cyfernet.org/
  There is a youth section of cyfernet that has a topic listing of youth-adult partnerships. This section includes valuable resources from national Cooperative Extension professionals.
• Advocates for Youth: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/peereducation.htm
  This web site includes a section of Peer Education, Youth Development, and Youth-Adult Partnerships. This section provides excellent resources for actively involving young people in their own learning.
• League of Minnesota Cities: http://www.lmnc.org
  This web site has a great section of resources to aid in understanding youth development and involvement in programs. Do a search on the website using the key terms "youth involvement."
• National 4-H Council: http://www.fourhcouncil.edu
  4-H is known for their lengthy history of fostering youth/adult partnerships in a variety of different projects. Come here to find out more about the national 4-H program.
• Youth Leadership Institute: http://www.yli.org
  An organization that provides information for training youth leaders, adult allies and the systems that support them.
• Search Institute: http://www.search-institute.org
  An organization and web site that has several resources on youth-adult partnerships, youth development and mentoring

Building Partnerships for Youth is part of the John and Doris Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences, in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona, and gratefully acknowledges the hosting of this website by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

This website is supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 5U58DP000456 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The contents of this document are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Last Updated On November 20, 2009