Youth Workers’ Role in Engaging Youth in Health Advocacy for Community-Level Change

Authors

  • Maureen Toomey University of Idaho Extension
  • Carol Smathers Ohio State University Extension
  • Anne M. Iaccopucci University of California
  • Karen Johnston University of Delaware
  • Elaine Johannes Kansas State University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/jyd.2018.668

Keywords:

positive youth development, policy, system, and environment change, youth advocate, health, advocacy

Abstract

Youth development professionals and volunteers, here referred to collectively as “youth workers,” need to be prepared to engage young people as health advocates. Youth workers need an understanding of public health principles; policy, systems, environment change approaches; and effective youth–adult strategies to move from viewing youth as participants to engaged leaders in community health issues. Embracing youth as partners will create effective partnerships and yield substantial positive health impacts for the youth, adults, and their communities.

Author Biography

Maureen Toomey, University of Idaho Extension

Maureen Toomey, M.Ed. is an Area Extension Educator, Assistant Professor of Healthy Living with the University of Idaho, Extension, 4-H Youth Development.  Toomey is an experienced youth development educator, directing the statewide 4-H healthy living program focused on nutrition, social well-being and physical health through building strong partnerships within and outside the university system.

References

Active Living Research. (2014). Youth Advocacy for policy, systems, and environment changes for healthy eating/active living: Pilot evaluation of the healthy young people empowerment project. Retrieved from https://activelivingresearch.org/youth-advocacy-policy-systems-and-environmental-changes-healthy-eatingactive-living-pilot-evaluation

Andrade, E., Cubilla, I. C., Sojo-Lara, G., Cleary, S. D., Edberg, M. C., & Simmons, L. K. (2015). Where PYD meets CBPR: A photovoice program for Latino immigrant youth. Journal of Youth Development, 10(2), 55-71. doi: 10.5195/jyd.2016.450

Arnold, M. E., Flesch, J. M., Ashton, C., Black, L., Brody, B., Hosty, M., & Northway, S. (2016). YA4-H! Youth advocates for health: Impact of a 4-H teens-as-teachers program. Journal of Extension, 54(6), 6RIB5. Retrieved from https://joe.org/joe/2016december/rb5.php

Arnold, M. E., & Gifford, L. N. (Eds.). (2014). YA4-H! Youth advocates for health: Building successful youth-adult partnerships. Corvallis: Oregon State University Public Health Extension.

Arnold, M. E., & Gifford, L. (Eds.). (2015). YA4-H! Youth advocates for health: Youth participatory action research. Corvallis: Oregon State University Public Health Extension.

Besenyi, G. M., Carter, T. K., Pope, A. W., Gordon, K. L., Hebda, S., & Kaczynski, A. T. (2014, March). Youth advocacy for policy, systems, and environmental changes for healthy eating/active living: Pilot evaluation of the Healthy Young People Empowerment (HYPE) project [PowerPoint slides]. Presented at the meeting of Active Living Research, San Diego, CA. Retrieved from http://activelivingresearch.org/youth-advocacy-policy-systems-and-environmental-changes-healthy-eatingactive-living-pilot-evaluation

Bleck, J., & DeBate, R. (2016). Long-term association between developmental assets and health behaviors: An exploratory study. Health Education & Behavior, 43(5), 544-551. doi: 10.1177/1090198115606915

Borden, L. M., Schlomer, G. L., & Wiggs, C. B. (2011). The evolving role of youth workers. Journal of Youth Development, 6(3), 124-136. doi: 10.5195/jyd.2011.179

Braun, B., Bruns K., Cronk, L., Kirk Fox, L., Koukel, S., Le Menestrel, S., . . . Warren, T. (2014). Cooperative Extension's national framework for health and wellness. Retrieved from http://www.aplu.org/members/commissions/food-environment-and-renewable-resources/CFERR_Library/national-framework-for-health-and-wellness/file

Brownell, K. D., Schwartz, M. B., Puhl, R. M., Henderson, K. E., & Harris, J. L. (2009). The need for bold action to prevent adolescent obesity. Journal of Adolescent Health, 45(3, Suppl.), S8-S17. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2009.03.004

Carlisle, S. (2000). Health promotion, advocacy and health inequities: A conceptual framework. Health Promotion International, 15(4), 369-376. doi: 10.1093/heapro/15.4.369

ChangeLab. (n.d.). PSE 101: Building healthier communities. Retrieved from http://changelabsolutions.org/publications/pse-101

Clarke, T. C., Norris, T., & Schiller, J. S. (2017). Early release of selected estimates based on data from 2016 National Health Interview Survey. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhis/earlyrelease/earlyrelease201705.pdf

DeLisio, D. (2016). UC CalFresh youth engagement recommendations report. Sacramento, CA: Public Health Institute, Center for Wellness and Nutrition. Retrieved from http://uccalfresh.org/resources/youth-engagement/uc-calfresh-youth-engagement-initiative-1/2016UCCalFreshYEReport.pdf

Durlak, J. (2013). The importance of quality implementation for research, practice, and policy (ASPE Research Brief). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED541356.pdf

Eat Smart Move More South Carolina. (2017). 2017 annual report celebrating a decade of change. Retrieved from https://eatsmartmovemoresc.org/pdf/Documents_Reports/annual-reports/2017-Annual-Report.pdf

Edwards, O.W., & Cheeley, T. (2016). Positive youth development and nutrition: Interdisciplinary strategies to enhance student outcomes. Children & Schools, 38(3), 170-177. doi: 10.1093/cs/cdw019

Ferrari, T. M. (in press). 4-H health ambassadors programs: A survey of organizational and programmatic aspects. Journal of Extension.

Fitzgerald, N., & Spaccarotella, K. (2009). Barriers to a healthy lifestyle: From individuals to public policy—An ecological perspective. Journal of Extension, 47(1), 1FEA3. Retrieved from https://www.joe.org/joe/2009february/a3.php

Franck, K. L., Donaldson, J. L., Toman, J., & Moody, T. (2014). Moving beyond the program: Incorporating healthy living behaviors throughout 4-H. Journal of Extension, 52(4), 4COM2. Retrieved from https://www.joe.org/joe/2014august/comm2.php

Gauley, J., Calvert, M., Andresen, W., Carattini, J., Hankey, J., Haynes, B., . . . Stoecker, R. (2016). Engaging young people to sustain communities, families and farms: A framework for promoting engagement. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Extension. Retrieved from https://fyi.uwex.edu/youthadultpartnership/2016/07/21/engaging-young-people-to-sustain-communities-families-and-farms-a-framework-for-promoting-engagement/

GENYOUth. (2016). Empowering youth report, students as change-agents for wellness in schools and communities. Retrieved from https://www.genyouthnow.org/reports/2015-empowering-youth-report

Hales, C. M., Carroll, M. D., Fryar, C. D., & Ogden, C. L. (2017). Prevalence of obesity among adults and youth: United States, 2015–2016 (NCHS Data Brief No. 288). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db288.htm

Hedegaard, H., Curtin S. C., & Warner, M. (2018). Suicide rates in the United States continue to increase (NCHS Data Brief No. 309). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db309.htm

Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs. (n.d.). Positive youth development. Retrieved from https://youth.gov/

Jayaratne, K. S. U., Bradley, L. K., & Driscoll, E. A. (2009). Impact evaluation of integrated Extension programs: Lessons learned from the community gardening program. Journal of Extension, 47(3), 3TOT3. Retrieved from https://joe.org/joe/2009june/tt3.php

Katz, D., O’Connell, M., Yeh, M-C., Nawaz, H., Njike, V., Anderson, L. M., . . . Dietz, W. (2005). Public health strategies for preventing and controlling overweight and obesity in school and worksite settings, A report on recommendations of the task force on community preventive services. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports, 54(10), 1-12. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/24842301

Koroloff, N., Friesen, B., & Buekea, N. (2017). Changing the rules: A guide for youth and young adults with mental health conditions who want to change policy. Portland, OR: Research and Training Center for Pathways to Positive Futures, Portland State University. Retrieved from Portland State University PDX Scholar https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1059&context=rri_facpubs

Louie, B., Erbstein, N., Capriotti, M., Ceron, M., Chen, W., Drazba, M., . . . Welch-Bezemek, M. (2017). Moving from serving youth to engaging youth: Youth-led policy, systems and environmental change interventions in UC CalFresh Nutrition Education. Retrieved from https://regionalchange.ucdavis.edu/sites/g/files/dgvnsk986/files/inline-files/UC_CalFresh_web%20FINAL%20031618.pdf

Millstein, R. A., & Sallis, J. F. (2011). Youth advocacy for obesity prevention: The next wave of social change for health. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 1(3), 497-505. doi: 10.1007/s13142-011-0060-0

Millstein, R. A., Woodruff, S. I., Linton, L. S., Edwards, C. C., & Sallis, J. F. (2016). A pilot study evaluating the effects of a youth advocacy program on youth readiness to advocate for environment and policy changes for obesity prevention. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 6(4), 648-658. doi: 10.1007/s13142-016-0408-6

Murdock, S., & Paterson, C. (2002). Youth and adults learning together: Setting up for success. Journal of Extension, 40(3), 3IAW4. Retrieved from https://www.joe.org/joe/2002june/iw4.php

National 4-H Council. (2014). Teens take on health. Retrieved from https://4-h.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Comprehensive-Report-Teens-Take-on-Health.pdf

National AfterSchool Association. (2011). NAA core knowledge and competencies for afterschool and youth development professionals. Retrieved from: https://naaweb.org/images/pdf/NAA_Final_Print.pdf

Office of Adolescent Health. (n. d.) Think, act, grow. Retrieved from: http://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/tag/

Sallis, J. F., & Owen, N. (2015). Ecological models of health behavior. In K. Glanz, B. K. Rimer, & K. Viswanath (Eds.), Health behavior: Theory, research, and practice (5th ed., pp. 43-64). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Scheve, J. A., Perkins, D. F., & Mincemoyer, C. (2006). Fostering youth engagement on community teams. Journal of Youth Development, 1(1), 67-77. doi: 10.5195/jyd.2006.400

Smathers, C., & Ferrari, T. (2018). Levels of Community Change: A game to teach about policy, system, and environmental change. Journal of Nutrition Education Behavior, 50(3), 311-314. doi: 10.1016/j.jneb.2017.10.004

Smathers, C. A., & Lobb, J. (2018). Practicing what we teach: Adherence to healthy meeting guidelines at Extension meetings and events. Journal of Human Sciences and Extension, 6(1), 98-112. Retrieved from docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/c8fe6e_63a78961460d4395bb3265f9c43f3490.pdf

Smathers, C., Washburn, L., Toomey, M., Johannes, E., Iaccopucci, A. M., & Johnston, K. (2018). Organizational readiness to engage in policy, system, and environment changes supporting positive youth development for health: Case studies from the Cooperative Extension System framed by the transtheoretical model. Journal of Human Sciences and Extension, 6(2), 81-101. Retrieved from docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/c8fe6e_4952100d71eb47f0ad4ea97fb3f380d7.pdf

U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2017) Growing together 4-H professional, research, knowledge, and competencies 2017. Retrieved from https://nifa.usda.gov/sites/default/files/resources/4-H%20PRKC%202017%20Guide.pdf

White, D. J., Shoffner, A., Johnson, K., Knowles, N., & Mills, M. (2012). Advancing positive youth development: Perspectives of youth as researchers and evaluators. Journal of Extension, 50(4), 4FEA4. Retrieved from https://www.joe.org/joe/2012august/a4.php

World Health Organization. (2017). Annual report 2016: Partnership and policy engagement. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/alliance-hpsr/resources/annual-report-2016/en/

Zeldin, S., Bestul, L., & Powers, J. (2012). Youth-adult partnerships in evaluation (Y-AP/E): A resource guide for translating research into practice. Ithaca, NY: ACT for Youth Center of Excellence, Cornell University. Retrieved from https://fyi.uwex.edu/youthadultpartnership/files/2012/10/YAP-Resource-Guide.pdf

Downloads

Published

2018-09-18

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 3 (2018): Special Issue on Youth Health and Well-Being

Section

Thought Leader Commentary

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. The Author retains copyright in the Work, where the term “Work” shall include all digital objects that may result in subsequent electronic publication or distribution.
  2. Upon acceptance of the Work, the author shall grant to the Publisher the right of first publication of the Work.
  3. The Author shall grant to the Publisher and its agents the nonexclusive perpetual right and license to publish, archive, and make accessible the Work in whole or in part in all forms of media now or hereafter known under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License or its equivalent, which, for the avoidance of doubt, allows others to copy, distribute, and transmit the Work under the following conditions:
    1. Attribution—other users must attribute the Work in the manner specified by the author as indicated on the journal Web site;
    with the understanding that the above condition can be waived with permission from the Author and that where the Work or any of its elements is in the public domain under applicable law, that status is in no way affected by the license.
  4. The Author is able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the nonexclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the Work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), as long as there is provided in the document an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  5. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post online a prepublication manuscript (but not the Publisher’s final formatted PDF version of the Work) in institutional repositories or on their Websites prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work. Any such posting made before acceptance and publication of the Work shall be updated upon publication to include a reference to the Publisher-assigned DOI (Digital Object Identifier) and a link to the online abstract for the final published Work in the Journal.
  6. Upon Publisher’s request, the Author agrees to furnish promptly to Publisher, at the Author’s own expense, written evidence of the permissions, licenses, and consents for use of third-party material included within the Work, except as determined by Publisher to be covered by the principles of Fair Use.
  7. The Author represents and warrants that:
    1. the Work is the Author’s original work;
    2. the Author has not transferred, and will not transfer, exclusive rights in the Work to any third party;
    3. the Work is not pending review or under consideration by another publisher;
    4. the Work has not previously been published;
    5. the Work contains no misrepresentation or infringement of the Work or property of other authors or third parties; and
    6. the Work contains no libel, invasion of privacy, or other unlawful matter.
  8. The Author agrees to indemnify and hold Publisher harmless from Author’s breach of the representations and warranties contained in Paragraph 6 above, as well as any claim or proceeding relating to Publisher’s use and publication of any content contained in the Work, including third-party content.

Revised 7/16/2018. Revision Description: Removed outdated link.