Search Institute is committed to conducting research that generates
practical implications as to how community and social change impacts and
strengthens positive human development. Our lines of inquiry in community
and social change focus on the individual, sector, community and cultural
dynamics that undergird and promote the healthy development of young people
across the first two decades of life. Our research team, often with the support
of university scholars and practitioners, focuses on understanding the processes
and dynamics of creating asset-building citizens, schools, congregations,
neighborhoods, and youth organizations. A series of community case studies
helps us identify key factors for launching and growing community-wide asset-building
initiatives. We also inquire as to how the civic sphere, encompassing elements
such as prevailing social norms, the media and public policy, can support
human development.
Purpose: This project is a series of case studies designed to examine community initiatives promoting healthy development for children and youth. Data are being collected via meetings with community initiative staff, focus groups with initiative stakeholders, and an illustrative event which is seen as symbolically representing the community effort. Data are analyzed using NVivo software for qualitative analysis. The intent is to build an understanding of why initiatives are created, what action they are taking, how the change process plays out over time, and what successes and challenges initiatives experience as they promote asset building.
Status: Site visits and data collection for the first wave of case studies (conducted in Portland, Oregon; Orlando, Florida; Traverse City, Michigan; and Moorhead, Minnesota) have been completed. A second wave of case studies is currently underway in Lawton, Oklahoma; Dayton, Nevada; St. Louis Park, Minnesota; and McPherson, Kansas.
Duration: 2000-2002
Findings: A report detailing the findings from the first four case study sites is available for download (PDF): Report text: pages 1-8 and 20-154; Color illustrations: pages 9-19 (these may take a moment to download).
More information on this line of inquiryPurpose: The project is designed to construct a survey protocol to be completed by people involved professionally and/or personally in the positive development of young people in order to understand their mind-set, values, characteristics, sense of identity, and actions in initiatives established to build healthy communities for children and youth. The intent is to create an understanding of what asset builders do, what they think, and how they are changing as they work with community members on behalf of positive child and adolescent development.
Status: Conceptualization and initial design work have been completed. Data collection will occur in 2003.
Duration: 2001-2003
Findings: Periodic reports will be issued as analyses are completed.
Back to TopFunder: Donald W. Reynolds Foundation
Purpose: To evaluate one after-school program each in Nevada, Oklahoma, and Arkansas.
Status: Search Institute staff worked with the program providers to articulate a program theory of change. An action plan was developed for each site. One program was mature enough for an outcome evaluation. A pre-test was administered to incoming students to provide baseline data. The other two programs had program improvement/development plans drawn up. At these sites formative evaluations were conducted to provide feedback to the program.
Duration: Through 2003
Findings: Reports to the sites were completed in December 2002.
Funder: The Kimberly-Clark Corporation, through YMCA of the USA
Purpose: Applied Research staff is working to understand the role of parents and families in building Developmental Assets and the sources of support that parents need to succeed. This is a long-term initiative to build a new, positive vision for strong families, and has grown out of the Abundant Assets Alliance among Search Institute, YMCA of the USA, and YMCA Canada.
Status: The first step in the initiative was a telephone survey of more than 1,000 parents, completed in spring 2002. A second study was conducted in 2004, and included telephone surveys of African American, Latino/Latina and, for some questions, Caucasion parents, along with parent focus groups in New York City and Chicago.
Duration: 2002-2005 (tentative)
Findings: The summary report for the African American and Latino/Latina
parents study was released in November 2004. See Building
strong families 2004 summary report: A study of African American and Latino/Latina
parents in the United States., Eugene C. Roehlkepartain, Marc Mannes,
Peter C. Scales, Shenita Lewis, and Brent Bolstrom (2004), Minneapolis and
Chicago: Search Institute and YMCA of the USA. Findings on the 2002 study
and other information are available on the web at www.abundantassets.org and
at www.search-institute.org/families/.
Purpose: Building on the work with Lutheran schools, two surveys—one
for students and one for staff—have been created for universal use in measuring
school climate in middle and high schools. The student survey measures
school learning climate and includes measures of 11 key constructs, including
Caring and Fair Staff, Safety, School Engagment, Sense of Belonging, and Academic
Self-Efficacy. The staff survey measures school work climate and includes
measures of 17 key constructs, including Student-Staff Relationships, Administrative
Leadership, Support for Instructional Improvement, Student Commitment to
Learning, and Staff Commitment.
Status: Field testing of the new surveys is occurring in school year 2004-2005, and the surveys and accompanying Technical Manual are expected to be available for public use early in school year 2005-2006.
Findings: After the first year of use, it is anticipated that a
journal article will be developed.
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Funder: Lutheran Brotherhood, now Thrivent Financial for Lutherans
Purpose: To develop an assessment instrument to gauge the nature of school climate in Lutheran schools.
Status: A school climate assessment instrument was created that contains three surveys (student, staff, and parent). The surveys were piloted in seven Lutheran schools in five states. Reports were created and distributed to the schools. Analysis of survey and feedback from survey takers led to revisions of surveys. A second version of the survey was administered in a pilot of public schools. Two schools took part in that process. Reports have been distributed to the schools involved. Analysis has led to further modification of the survey instrument.
Duration: Through 2002
Findings: Reports for first and second pilots were completed in 2002.
Funder: National Association of Partners in Education, U.S. Department of Education
Purpose: To explore the possible contributions that partnerships among schools and businesses make to students experiencing Developmental Assets and school success, including academic achievement; and to more deeply explore how such partnerships achieve their effects, and widely disseminate the results.
Status: Initial papers reviewing the literature on school-business partnerships, and recommending needed research, were completed in 2001. A survey assessing adolescents’ experience with school-business partnerships was developed and pilot tested that same year. A study of how Developmental Assets and school-business partnerships may affect school success was completed in an urban high school in fall 2002, in partnership between researchers from Search Institute and Harvard University's Graduate School of Education. Both quantitative and qualitative data collection were employed. Asset levels were found to be related to student exposure to school-business partnerships, and both assets and partnership experiences were associated with a variety of key developmental outcomes, such as reduced risk behaviors, increased thriving, and better student self-reported grades and school attendance. Interviews and focus groups suggested that school-business partnerships likely had an impact on the cultural value placed on education beyond high school, as well as an impact on providing resources to promote engagement with learning and plans for enrollment in higher education.
Duration: Through 2002
Findings: The final report was submitted in fall 2002. A journal article on the study will appear in Urban Education in 2005.
Funder: Thrivent Financial for Lutherans (2002); Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation (2003).
Purpose: To learn about the nature and workings of underlying shared social expectations that govern how American adults relate with children and youth, and apply the lessons in products, trainings, and consultations to help communities strengthen asset building initiatives.
Status: A nationally representative telephone survey of 1,400 adults, using survey items developed by Search Institute, was conducted by the Gallup Organization in spring 2000. A similar national survey of 1,400 adults was again conducted in spring 2002, along with a national survey of 600 youth ages 12-17.
Duration: 2000-2003
Findings:
2000 Study:
The initial report was titled Grading grown-ups:
American adults report on their real relationships with kids,
Peter C. Scales, Ph.D., Peter Benson, Ph.D., and Eugene C. Roehlkepartain
(2001), Minneapolis, MN: Lutheran Brotherhood and Search Institute.
Two journal article on the 2000 study have
been published: 1) Peter C. Scales, Peter L. Benson, Eugene C. Roehlkepartain,
Nicole R. Hintz, Theresa K. Sullivan, and Marc Mannes. (2001). The role
of neighborhood and community in building Developmental Assets for children
and youth: A national study of social norms among American adults. Journal of Community Psychology,
29, 703-727., and 2) Peter C. Scales, Peter L. Benson, Eugene C. Roehlkepartain,
Nicole R. Hintz, Theresa K. Sullivan, and Marc Mannes (2004). The role
of parental status and child age in the engagement of children and youth
with adults outside their families. Journal of Family Issues, 25(6),
735-760.
A comprehensive book on the study was published
in 2003; see Peter C. Scales, Peter L. Benson, Marc Mannes, Nicole
R. Hintz, Eugene C. Roehlkepartain, & Theresa K. Sullivan.
(2003) Other people's
kids: Social expectations and American adults' involvement with children
and adolescents. New York: Kluwer/Plenum.
2002 Studies:
The 102 page full report is titled Grading grown-ups 2002: How
do American kids and adults relate?, Peter C. Scales, Peter L. Benson,
and Marc Mannes, with Nancy Tellet-Royce and Jennifer Griffin-Wiesner
(2002), Minneapolis, MN: Search Institute.
For a 12 page summary, see Grading grown-ups 2002:
How do American kids and adults relate? Key findings from a national
study.
A journal article using the 2002 data is
in preparation.
Funder: Kansas Health Foundation
Purpose: Search Institute and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, in conjunction with the Gallup Organization, have recently completed the second nationally representative study of 1,400 American adults (and survey of youth in 2002) to ascertain how they think about their capacity, responsibility, and motivation to support young people's healthy development. In partnership with researchers from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, we are now complementing the national data with case studies that may allow us to enhance our understanding of how the social norms adults hold regarding the caring and raising of young people might shift over time as communities more intentionally attempt to create and/or sustain developmental attentiveness. We are studying how adults in several Kansas communities with differing involvement with the framework of Developmental Assets may alter their attitudes and behaviors pertaining to the positive development of young people in the endeavor to make Kansas the best place to raise children and youth. We anticipate studying several communities in order to identify and learn about norm-related changes that transpire. Search Institute field research staff will conduct the inquiry.
Status: Data collection is currently underway.
Duration: 2001-2003
Findings release date: Preliminary findings are anticipated in late 2003.
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