40 Developmental Assets

The 40 developmental assets are positive experiences and qualities that young people need to help them to make healthy decisions. Grounded in scientific research these assets aim to protect youths from high risk behaviors and help become healthy, productive, and responsible adults.^[1] Parents and others who have contact with children on a regular basis contribute and help build these assets. The 40 developmental assets are broken down into external and internal assets which include support, empowerment, boundaries and expectations, constructive use of time.

External Assets^[2]

• Support (family support, positive family communication, other adult relationships, caring neighborhood, caring school climate)
• Empowerment (community values youth, youth as resources, service to others, safety)
• Boundaries and Expectations (family boundaries, school boundaries, neighborhood boundaries, adult role models, positive peer influence, high expectations)
• Constructive Use of Time (creative activities, youth programs, religious community, time at home)

Internal Assets^[3]

• Commitment to Learning (achievement motivation, school engagement, homework, bonding to school, and reading for pleasure)
• Positive Values (caring, equality and social justice, integrity, honesty, responsibility, restraint)
• Social Competencies (planning and decision making, interpersonal competence, cultural competence, resistance skills, peaceful conflict resolution)
• Positive Identity (personal power, self-esteem, sense of purpose, positive view of personal future)

There are many things influencing the way children grow up and the choices they make. Some things will lead them down a path to success and some will take them to a destruction and disappointment. With things being so busy these days, it is easy to forget the important foundations that help kids stay on the right path to positive choices. One organization that has never stopped fighting the children of our nation for the past 50 years is the Search Institute. Through much research, they have created a framework of Developmental Assets that offers a positive and practical strategy for making a difference in the lives of our kids.

Why do Developmental Assets matter?

Research shows that the more Developmental Assets young people experience, the less likely they are to engage in a wide range of high-risk behaviors including underage drinking, violence, illicit drug use, sexual activity, gambling, eating disorders and school truancy. To illustrate this power, these charts show that youth with the most assets are least likely to engage in four different patterns of high-risk behavior, based on surveys of almost 150,000 6th- to 12th-grade youth in 202 communities across the United States in calendar year 2003.

^[4]

The same kind of impact is evident with many other problem behaviors, including tobacco use, depression and attempted suicide, antisocial behavior, school problems, driving and alcohol, and gambling.

Just as important, the more assets they experience, the more likely they are to engage in positive or thriving behaviors, such as succeeding in school, helping others, maintaining good health and overcoming adversity, as these charts show.

^[5]

Helping a child develop more assets is by not means a “miracle cure”. There is no guarantee that nothing will go wrong or that the child is going make all the right decisions. All of the struggles and frustrations of caring for children are still going to be apart of life. But building assets does increase the odds for a better life for that child. It a goal to work for, an encouragement when things aren’t going your way, and it reminds you that the little stuff does, in the end, add up to make a big difference.

Interested in learning more? Want to GET INVOLVED and MAKE A DIFFERENCE in the life of a child you know?

For more information about the 40 Developmental Assets and ways to help you get started, visit the Search Institute’s website at www.search-institute.org

Help a child you know get on the path to a brighter future!

1. ↑ Search Institute, (2008). What are developmental assets. Retrieved February 9, 2009, from Search Institute: 50 Years of Discovering What Kids Need To Succeed! Web site: http://www.search-institute.org/content/what-are-developmental-assets
2. ↑ Search Institute, (2008). 40 developmental assets for adolescents (ages12-18). Retrieved February 9, 2009, from Search Institute: 50 Years of Discovering What Kids Need To Succeed! Web site: http://www.search-institute.org/conent/40-developmental-assets-adolescents-ages-12-18
3. ↑ Search Institute, (2008). 40 developmental assets for adolescents (ages12-18). Retrieved February 9, 2009, from Search Institute: 50 Years of Discovering What Kids Need To Succeed! Web site: http://www.search-institute.org/conent/40-developmental-assets-adolescents-ages-12-18
4. ↑ Search Institute, (2008). The power of assets. Retrieved February 9, 2009, from Search Institute: 50 Years of Discovering What Kids Need To Succeed! Web site: http://www.search-institute.org/research/assets/assetpower
5. ↑ Search Institute, (2008). The power of assets. Retrieved February 9, 2009, from Search Institute: 50 Years of Discovering What Kids Need To Succeed! Web site: http://www.search-institute.org/research/assets/assetpower