Predicting Contribution in High Achieving Black and Latinx Youth: The Role of Critical Reflection, Hope, and Mentoring

Abstract

Contemporary approaches to adolescent development are framed by positive youth development models. A key outcome of these models is that healthy and positively developing youth are more likely to contribute to their family, schools, and communities. However, little work on contribution and its antecedents has been conducted with youth of color. As high achieving youth of color often become leaders in their communities, it is important to consider malleable predictors of contribution within this population. Therefore, through a cross-sectional design, we examined the relations between youth critical reflection, hopeful future expectations, and mentoring relationship quality and youth contribution in a sample of 177 youth of color (60% Black, 40% Latinx) attending an afterschool college preparation program at six sites around the U.S. Results indicated that youth critical reflection, hopeful future expectations, and mentoring relationship quality significantly predicted contribution. Exploratory analyses suggested that these relations were significant for Black youth but not Latinx youth. Implications of these findings for future scholarship are discussed.

Gender‐Sexuality Alliance meeting experiences predict weekly variation in hope among LGBTQ+ youth

“…In this light, scholars have pointed to hope as a means to heal from the effects of discrimination (Ginwright, 2015; Te Riele, 2010). Indeed, among LGBTQ+ youth (i.e., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth) and youth of color, hope is associated with greater well‐being and use of healthy coping strategies (Bowers et al, 2021; Christens et al, 2018; Poteat et al, 2020).…”

“…In this light, scholars have pointed to hope as a means to heal from the effects of discrimination (Ginwright, 2015;Te Riele, 2010). Indeed, among LGBTQ+ youth (i.e., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth) and youth of color, hope is associated with greater well-being and use of healthy coping strategies (Bowers et al, 2021;Christens et al, 2018;Poteat et al, 2020).With this important role of hope in mind, scholars have called for more research examining hope among LGBTQ+ youth (Kwon, 2013). An important part of this work is identifying settings that may promote hope.…”

Evidence to the Need for a Unifying Framework: Critical Consciousness and Moral Education in Adolescents Facilitate Altruistic Behaviour in the Community

“…The critical consciousness concept is anchored in Freirean thought [ 7 ] and emerged at a turning point in Brazilian history (such as, the decolonisation process in Brazil). Since then, however, social contexts have changed; nowadays, there are still many marginalised groups whose development is affected by inequitable social conditions [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 8 ]. This theory relates to the Romanian context in the idea that the social school context enables social intervention by promoting management that excels in dialogue, participation, and emancipation, which leads to affiliative social behaviour and citizenship behaviour [ 9 ].…”