chapter 11

1. chapter11 Youth Development and Therapeutic Recreation Sydney L. Sklar, PhD, CTRS and Cari E. Autry, PhD, CTRS

2. Learning Outcomes • Identify and describe the stages of the continuum of risk in youth development • Understand and describe influences of the environment and ecological systems on youth development • Describe and apply the concept of positive youth development • Identify and describe the purpose of therapeutic recreation in positive youth development • Identify and describe theories related to youth development and therapeutic recreation practice with at-risk youth • Describe the scope of therapeutic recreation youth development services, including prevention, intervention, and community development • Identify and describe various settings and opportunities for therapeutic recreation youth development programming • Identify and describe specific needs of youth clientele, including those with a background of maltreatment, learning disorders, and behavioral disorders • Describe current issues and trends in youth development services

3. Introduction • Increasing problem of youth at risk • Obstacles to healthy physical and psychosocial development • Influence of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) • Transition services • Recreation

4. To Be At-Risk • Denotes a set of presumed cause-effect dynamics that place an individual child or adolescent in danger of future negative outcomes • Prevalence • National youth population in 2000 was 71.7 million • Up to 50% of them were considered at-risk • At-risk continuum (McWhirter et al., 2004) • Minimal • Remote • High • Imminent • At-risk category activity • Youth in high and imminent categories often exhibit maladaptive behaviors

5. Maladaptive Behaviors • Internalized • Avoidance • Social withdrawal • Depression • Anxiety • Externalized • Acting out • Aggression • Anger

6. At-Risk Youth and the Environment • Ecological system • Importance of person–environmental interaction • Definition • Positive youth development • Development of this perspective • Underlying philosophy • Characteristics • Purpose of therapeutic recreation

7. Theories That Guide Therapeutic Recreation Practice • Ecological perspective • Emphasizes evaluating circumstances and environments surrounding individual behaviors • Interventions work toward positive person-environmental interactions by enhancing: • Human relatedness • Competence • Self-direction • Self-esteem (continued)

8. Theories That Guide Therapeutic Recreation Practice (continued) • Social capital theory • Suggests that human beings fare better when bonded together • Youth with more social bonds have social networks that support their success. • Key factors • Reciprocity • Trust • Mechanisms for connecting youth, parents, teachers, police, recreation personnel, church members to one another (continued)

9. Theories That Guide Therapeutic Recreation Practice (continued) • Anomie theory and hopelessness • See figure 11.2 • Anomie is a lack of purpose or identity that leads to a sense of detachment from society • Anomie also leads to hopelessness and alienation • This detachment and hopelessness can lead to delinquency in youth. (continued)

10. Theories That Guide Therapeutic Recreation Practice (continued) • Hope and optimism • Serve as protective factors • Can be fostered through recreational activities that: • Build competence • Provide appropriate challenge • Provide active roles in decision making • Create opportunities for “flow” (continued)

11. Theories That Guide Therapeutic Recreation Practice (continued) • Flow • Intensely absorbing, self-rewarding, enjoyment experiences • Characteristics of a flow experience • Absorption and lessened self-awareness • Deep involvement and concentration • Track of time is lost and time “speeds up” • Joy and accomplishment

12. Continuum of Services • Prevention • Primary prevention • Secondary prevention • Tertiary prevention • Intervention • Prevention or intervention? (figure 11.3) • Universal approaches • Selected approaches • Booster sessions • Indicated approaches • Second-chance interventions

13. Attaining Outcomes • Efficacy of goal-oriented after-school programs • Study: recreation prevention supports development of self-esteem • Community development • Societal environmental change through recreation • After-school programs • Need for empowerment

14. Settings and Opportunities for Therapeutic Recreation • Interdisciplinary collaborative approaches • Public parks and recreation department programs • Project BRAVE • Young First Offender Program • Phoenix Activity City (PAC) • Community-based special recreation collaboration • Northern Illinois Special Recreation Association • McHenry County Mental Health Board • Adventure therapy • Juvenile justice system

15. Special Concerns • Child maltreatment • Children with a history of abuse • Scope of service • Learning and behavioral disorders • Definition • Intervention approaches • Prevent and remediate maladaptive behaviors • Assess and promote acquisition of skills • Facilitate confidence and enhance self-esteem

16. Increasing Interest in Youth Development • Clearly defining the meaning of youth development in recreation services • Creating specialized educational degrees focused on youth services

17. Discussion Questions • Review the characteristics of the five levels of risk on the at-risk continuum. Create mock clients for each risk level and describe the risk factors and behaviors of each client. • How can therapeutic recreation address the needs of troubled youth? How does the therapeutic recreation profession fit within the framework of positive youth development? • Describe the importance of taking an ecological perspective when working in therapeutic recreation with at-risk youth. What are some factors within the youth’s environment that a therapeutic recreation specialist would need to consider when providing intervention services? When providing prevention services? (continued)

18. Discussion Questions (continued) • Briefly describe the theories that guide the therapeutic recreation profession when working with at-risk youth. Provide examples of therapeutic recreation programs that would put each theory into practice for a youth such as Eduardo (see page 169 of the textbook). • Compare and contrast the concepts of prevention and intervention in youth development services. • Briefly describe community development and its importance in therapeutic recreation services for at-risk youth.