Transcript An Introduction to: THE YOUTH DEVELOPMENT APPROACH TO

THE YOUTH
DEVELOPMENT
APPROACH TO
ZEALOUS ADVOCACY
The Youth Advocacy Project
Committee for Public Counsel Services
Roxbury, Massachusetts
May 4, 2009
Special Thanks
 Dr. Ann Tobey and Dr. Penny Haney
 Laurie Jo Wallace and Mo Barboza of the
Medical Foundation
 Glenn Daly, Director of Youth
Development Massachusetts EOHHS
 Judge Jay Blitzman and all the staff of
the Youth Advocacy Project
 Katie Rollins, Tufts University
Starting the Conversation
 Explorers?
 Advocacy Presentation
 Broad brush
 Exceptions
 Not New Knowledge, New
Organization
Goals
 YDA
 What is it?
 Why should we use it? (What do we do
now?)
 How do we use it?
The New Yorker. July 28, 1997, p. 40
Youth Development Approach
Practical Definition
A simple set of concepts and strategies
that help adults better understand
and support youth in developing the
personal, social, academic and
citizenship competencies necessary
for adolescence and adult life based
on their capacities, strengths, and
formative needs.
Borrowed from The Medical Foundation, BEST Initiative
Context is Everything
 The Adversarial System
 Adult Corrections
 Court Involved Youth
YDA in an Adversarial System
Litigation
Legal Team
- Zealous Advocacy
- Youth Development Approach
- Nurturing Adult
Best Possible
Legal Outcome
Short Term
Long Term
- Care & Support
- Expectations
- Participation
Problem Free
Outcomes
YDA Domains
Health
Safety
Relationships
Education/Work
Community
Best Possible
Life Outcomes
Achievement
Outcomes
Developmental
Outcomes
The Adversarial System
 Truth Seeking and Dispute Resolution
 Winning v. Understanding
 Impartial Decision Makers
 Judges
 Juries
 Parties
 Those with Rights
 Those with an Interest
Chronically Court Involved
Adults
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Education
Wealth/Career/Employment
Family circumstances
Mental Health
Alcohol/Substance use
Place in the Community
Court Involved Adults
 Problem Solving skills?
 Social Competence Skills?
 Sense of the Future?
 Autonomy?
Youth in Juvenile Court
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School?
Money?
Out of School Time?
Family?
Health and Health Care?
Safety?
Community engagement?
Adolescents
 Problem Solving skills?
 Social Competence Skills?
 Sense of the Future?
 Autonomy?
The Current Juvenile Court
Approach
 Decision makers often rely upon a carrot and
stick approach
 Court processes often focus on the
“accountability” of each individual child and sees
all behavior as essentially willful
 Adults attempt to cure bad behavior by
unilaterally imposing our will
Positive Youth Outcomes
Problem Free Outcomes
Achievement
Outcomes
Developmental
Outcomes
Kids who can do well
will do well
Definitions of Outcomes
 Problem Free Outcomes
 Not having a negative occurrence (e.g., no arrests)
 Achievement Outcomes
 Positive successes (e.g., honor roll, learning a skill)
 Developmental Outcomes
 Overall healthy development
Examples of Outcomes
Achievement
 High School
Diploma
 Job
 Passing the
MCAS
 Earning a
certificate of
completion
Problem-free/Prevention
 Not doing drugs
 Not stealing a
car
 Not getting
pregnant
 Not joining a
gang
Examples of
Developmental Outcomes
Aspects of Identity
 Safety & Structure
 Self-Worth
 Mastery & Future
 Belonging &
Membership
 Responsibility &
Autonomy
 Self-Awareness &
Spirituality
Areas of Ability
 Physical Health
 Mental Health
 Intellectual Ability
 Employability
 Civic & Social Ability
 Cultural Ability
CLIENT
EXAMPLE
Adolescent Development
Cognitive/intellectual
formal operations, think
systematically about possibilities;
abstract thought; anticipate
consequences; executive
functioning; flexibility
Spiritual/Moral
consider complexity of moral
issues; meanings/beliefs
Physical/physiological
brain dev’l; puberty
Intrapersonal
Development of identity separate
from family; body image; sense
of competence
Emotional/psychological
Social/Interpersonal
Conformity to expectations and
influences of peers; social skills
Able to hold multiple
perspectives
emotional regulation
Adolescent Brain
Development
Adolescence is key stage of brain development
• intense overproduction and pruning of gray matter  thinking
• myelination of white matter  precision and efficiency
• FRONTAL LOBE DEVELOPMENT
• undergoes more change during adolescence than any
other stage
• last part of the brain to develop
• executive functioning, adult-like vs. emotional reasoning
Adam Ortiz. Adolescence, Brain Development and Legal Culpability. American Bar Association, Juvenile Justice Center.
Challenges of
Adolescent Development
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Time Perspective
Risk Taking/Sensation Seeking
Egocentrism
Magical/Wishful Thinking
Impulsivity
The Constellation of Youth
Development Needs
Independence
Usefulness
Competence
Belonging
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M.
& Van Bockern, S. (December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
All Youth Will Find Ways to:
 Meet their basic needs
 Build skills and values
 Use their skills, talents, energies and
time in ways that make them feel good
and powerful
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M. &
Van Bockern, S. (December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
Why is Meeting Youth Needs so
Important?
What Happens to Youth?
If Need
is Met in
Positive Ways
If Need is
is Met in
Negative Ways
If Need
is unmet
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M.
& Van Bockern, S. (December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
If Youth Needs are Met in
Positive Ways
Youth develop these characteristics:
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M. & Van Bockern, S.
(December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
If Youth Needs are Met
in Negative Ways
Unmet needs can become defining factors in the lives of youth...
Belonging
Mastery
Power
Generosity
Gang Loyalty
Craves
Affection
& Acceptance
Promiscuous
Clinging
OverlyDependent
Overachiever
Arrogant
Risk-seeker
Cheater
Workaholic
Perseveres
Delinquent
Skills
Dictatorial
Reckless
Bully
Sexual Prowess
Manipulative
Rebellious
Defies
Authority
Overinvolved
Plays Martyr
Co-dependent
“Noblesse
Oblige”
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M. & Van Bockern, S.
(December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
If Need is Unmet
Some youth retreat or give up on getting needs met...
Belonging
Unattached
Guarded
Rejecting
Lonely
Aloof
Isolated
Distrustful
Mastery
Nonachiever
Avoids Risk
Fears
Challenges
Unmotivated
Gives Up Easily
Power
Submissive
Lacks
Confidence
Irresponsible
Helplessness
Undisciplined
Easily
Influenced
Generosity
Selfish
Narcissistic
Hardened
Anti-social
Exploitative
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M. & Van Bockern, S.
(December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
The Circle of
Meeting Youth Needs
Behavior or
Characteristic
Impacts Type of
Response
Need
Met
or
Unmet
Response - Increases
Characteristic or
Behavior
• Youth characteristics
and behaviors
impact whether they
will get needs met in
new situations.
• Adult responses to
needs impact
development of
characteristics and
behaviors in youth.
Cathann A. Kress (Director, Youth Development. Families 4-H and Nutrition, CSREES, USDA), citing Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M. & Van Bockern, S.
(December 2001). Reclaiming Youth at Risk. National Education Service.
Characteristics of Court
Involved Population
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Physical and Mental Health
Poverty and poor schools
Lack of out of school time support
Problem relationships
Safety
Isolation/alienation
Paradigm Shift
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Valuing and supporting young people
Youth not defined by their problems
Youth are potential resources
Youth need to be at the table
Youth need assets to develop positively
Adults are responsible for positive youth
development
The New Paradigm
 The Youth Development Approach recognizes
that children who can do well, will do well.
 If they aren’t doing well, there is a reason -adults need to figure out why, so we can help
 Emphasis on understanding not blaming
 Emphasis on collaborative problem solving not
consequences
 Emphasis on healthy development not just
compliance
 Mutual satisfaction (fairness)
I did not make this up!
From Neurons to Neighborhoods
and
The Explosive Child
Healthy child development
is dependent on a
combination of individual
responsibility, informal
social supports, and
formalized structures that
evolve within a society
--Jack Schoncoff
The most important thing to
know about inflexibleexplosive children is that they
don’t want to be inflexible or
explosive. Their meltdowns
aren’t intentional..., not a way
to manipulate adults, get
attention, test limits or engage
in a power struggle... Watch a
child during a meltdown and
you’ll see how miserable (they
are). No child would want to
feel that way.
--Ross Greene
THE YDA MODEL
AND ZEALOUS
ADVOCACY
The New Yorker. July 28, 1997, p. 40
Transformational
Representation
 Life Success leads to Case Success
 The Dynamic Triangle of life outcomes
 Resources, Opportunities, and Services
 The Five Domains
 Relationships
 Education
 Experiential Learning
 The process of preparing a case.
Domains
 Search Institute 40 internal/external
assets are building blocks of healthy
youth development
 Massachusetts Statewide Policy on
Youth: “All Massachusetts youth grow
up to be healthy, caring, and
economically self-sufficient adults.”
Domains
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Resources for Physical & Mental Health
Nurturing/Positive Relationships
Safe Places to Live and Learn
Educational and Economic Opportunity
Structured Activities & Civic Participation
Attorney Client Relationship
 Caring and supportive relationship
 High/Clear/Fair expectations
 Maximizing opportunities for participation
 Transitional and transformative
Risk and Resilience
 Resilience  the ability to cope positively with
the stressors, challenges, adversity in one’s
environment
 Protective factors  factors that promote
resilience
 Risk factors make it harder to cope and to get
needs met and engage in the “circle” in a
healthy manner to develop positively
 To really understand an adolescent, we need to
know their strengths and competencies as well
as risks and symptoms  need to know their
TOTAL environment
STRESS & COPING
 All development needs stress and
challenges
 Two sides of a balance
 Coping well requires resources to help
you manage stress
 Some days are better than others
(consistency is not always consistent)
Current Adolescent Brain
Research
o Adolescents are capable of making great
decisions, but…
 - They are often less-skilled at making real-life
decisions than adults
 - Neural pathways do not flow as smoothly or
directly as with adults
 - Strong environmental & peer influence are normal
 - Risk-taking and lower capacity for self-management
are developmentally appropriate
Sentencing Advocacy
 Marketing?
 Packaging the client as is?
 External Changes
 Internal Changes
Ross Greene’s Beach
 Waves and Undertow
 Providing a Life Preserver
 Teaching Swimming
YDA in an Adversarial System
Litigation
Legal Team
- Zealous Legal Advocacy
- Youth Development Approach
- Nurturing Adult
Best Possible
Legal Outcome
Short Term
Long Term
- Care & Support
- Expectations
- Participation
Problem Free
Outcomes
YDA Domains
Health
Safety
Relationships
Education/Work
Community
Best Possible
Life Outcomes
Achievement
Outcomes
Developmental
Outcomes
Zealous Advocate
 Assists child & family in turning court
process into a healthy developmental
experience
 Helps court understand & meet the child’s
developmental needs, improving legal and
life outcomes
 Helps Court fairly and effectively meet
mission of caring for kids and protecting the
community