Behavioral Health Articles
The Value of Positive Youth-Adult Relationships
by Erica Danega, Contributing Writer
The Cortland Youth Bureau’s Teen Center provides a plethora of services and programs to local teens. One of the most beneficial programs we offer is also one of the easiest to overlook. Through an informal counseling program, staff provide area youth the listening ear they so desperately long for. Studies have shown the value that youth-adult relationships have on young people and the community to which they belong.
Recent research has shed new light on the importance of focusing on youth-adult relationships while working with young people. In 2008 the Evaluation of the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development Out-of-School Time Programs for Youth Initiative found that when youth-adult relationships are present, positive social and educational benefits emerge. Staff members in these beneficial programs reported that they intentionally talked with youth about their personal lives and goals while coupling this with one-on-one outreach to show their concern for the child. Youth who participate in these programs boast of strong personal ties with the staff members and appreciate the respect they earn from their youth workers.
Fundamentally the Teen Center’s informal counseling program focuses on providing teens with a nonjudgmental listening ear. Staff provide individualized advice and valuable referral information. Referrals to local services offer youth further assistance within our community. Teen Center staff and teens establish healthy expectations for all who participate in our programs. Each day a teen enters our doors he or she is met with staff who model positive behavior and discuss real life obstacles that face our teen population. This honest and open dialogue sets clear standards. These combined approaches wrap around each child to provide scaffolding as they work towards attaining their goals. Scaffolding is a support approach that helps a child achieve a set goal while meeting him/ her where he/she is developmentally. The supporter begins to gradually provide less support as the youth approaches his or her goal.
The value of healthy connections between young people and adults has gained the support of psychologists and mental health researchers. These researchers are aiming to find new ways to encourage communities to focus on promoting mental health and well-being. According to Eccles and Gootman, relationships with caring adults, development of positive life goals, and belief in a positive future have all been consistently linked to healthy social and emotional functioning in youth and adults. The findings indicate that environments such as the Teen Center build positive connections between teens and adults. These environments provide the support needed to reduce mental disorders and promote the overall positive mental health of youth and adults. Clearly having a positive relationship with a young person alone cannot reduce the risk factors that teens face on a daily basis. If left unchecked, these risk factors have the potential to lead to mental health crises.
Adults who form positive trusting relationships must also be comfortable providing accurate information to teens. The challenges that the teen population brings on a daily basis present providers with the opportunity to share teachable moments with youth. These challenges are constantly evolving and can range from pregnancy to negative adult attitudes towards youth. Teenagers are often stigmatized as being a population of self-absorbed people interested only in having fun. In the health care field some view working with this population as a massive challenge. Other providers notice the opportunity for making a lasting impact.
One of the most beneficial steps a parent, coach, or neighbor can do to make a difference in the life of a young person is to be that caring listener. The Teen Center’s informal counseling program provides a number of positive youth-adult relationships that last far beyond the doors of our Center.
Erica Danega is the Youth Services Supervisor at the Cortland City Youth Bureau.
The local Think Again! Group (TAG) is celebrating three years of working in the Cortland area to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness and to promote emotional and behavioral wellness. Look for our messages around the community.