Abstract
The Developmental Assets Profile (DAP) measures young people’s reported experience of eight categories of developmental assets known to be linked to numerous indicators of well-being, including Support, Empowerment, Boundaries and Expectations, Constructive Use of Time, Commitment to Learning, Positive Values, Social Competencies, and Positive Identity. The DAP scales were found to have acceptable to good alpha reliabilities, stability reliabilities, and validity in U.S. sample field testing. DAP data have been or are currently being collected in more than a dozen countries. This paper reports on DAP data from five countries whose DAP samples were sufficiently large—Albania, Bangladesh, Japan, Lebanon, and the Philippines—to warrant an initial summary of how well the DAP appears to work in a range of diverse cultural settings, and how the youth asset profiles observed in those studies compare to U.S. levels found in the development of the DAP. Most of the DAP subscales had acceptable internal consistency reliabilities, and some had acceptable stability reliabilities, in these international samples. Where validity was examined, findings were similar to results found for U.S. samples. These results suggest that the DAP can be effectively adapted and used to study positive youth development in other cultural settings, including, with some qualifications, use in youth program monitoring, evaluation, and improvement. Across all countries, including the U.S., the least well-experienced asset scale was Constructive Use of Time, and the least asset-rich context was Community. These results help illuminate those aspects of youths’ developmental experience that appear to be important and similarly-experienced parts of adolescent development regardless of the adolescent's cultural context. The study thus has potentially important contributions to make in the realms of cross-cultural psychology, developmental psychology, community psychology, and applied developmental science.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
We also ran a Multi-Group Confirmatory Factor Analysis on the entire global dataset discussed in this paper, specifying the model as the 9-factor structure identified in the U.S. survey development. The results mostly suggested acceptable model fit, with an excellent TLI of .950 and an acceptable RMSEA of .079. An unacceptable CFI of .058 also was reported, but other researchers have also noted contradictory findings involving the CFI (Personal communication with Manfred van Dulmen, Kent State University, Feb. 3, 2011). In addition, the standardized parameter estimates of items with their factors in the MGCFA were almost uniformly large (all but two above .40) and the correlations of factors with each other mostly moderate rather than large, which further suggests the general validity of the original structure as applied to the global dataset. CFAs conducted with each country’s data suggested that the model had marginally less fit for Bangladesh (because just 5 of the 58 items did not load well on their specified factors) and did not converge for Albania (because of the large amount of missing data for Albania, that had to be managed with multiple imputation in the other analyses reported here).
Validity analyses were conducted in both Albania and Lebanon, but the Albania validity sub-sample was too small to be definitive (N < 100). In Lebanon, evidence pointed to the Arabic translation of the DAP having substantial discriminant and predictive validity. For example, females had significantly higher asset scores on all but one of the eight asset category subscales, and younger youth ages 11–14 had higher scores on all asset scales than did older students ages 15–19. Moreover, the higher the asset score, the more physically and mentally healthy youth reported themselves to be, the less likely they were to report having been bullied, or to be smokers, and the more likely they were to report doing well in school (Afifi et al. 2010). All these results replicate the demographic patterns and linkages between DAP scores and developmental outcomes in the original DAP findings with U.S. students (Search Institute 2005). However, the lack of validity data for the other countries suggests caution in drawing conclusions about discriminant and predictive validity in particular.
In one longitudinal study of 370 students followed for three years from middle school to high school (Scales et al. 2006), 41% of the sample declined in their total mean number of assets (decreased by at least .5 SDs), 34% were relatively stable (increased or decreased less than .5 SDs), and 24% increased in their mean asset score (rose by at least .5 SDs). However, although an asset-building initiative was in place at the high school, it targeted only 9th graders, and it was not clear how much actual exposure even the targeted students in the sample of 370 had to the asset-building program.
References
Afifi, R., Bteddini, D., Scales, P. C., & Nakkash, R. (2010). Reliability and validity of the developmental assets profile in Lebanon. Beirut: American University of Beirut, paper in progress.
Baltes, P. B., & Baltes, M. M. (1990). Psychological perspectives on successful aging: The model of selective optimization with compensation. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 1–34). New York: Cambridge University Press
Benson, P.L. (2006). All kids are our kids: What communities must do to raise caring and responsible children and adolescents (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Benson, P. L., & Scales, P. C. (2009a). The definition and preliminary measurement of thriving in adolescence. Journal of Positive Psychology, 4, 85–104.
Benson, P. L., & Scales, P. C. (2009b). Positive youth development and the prevention of youth aggression and violence. European Journal of Developmental Science, 3, 218–234.
Benson, P. L., & Scales, P. C. (2010). Developmental assets. In R. J. R. Levesque (Ed.), Encyclopedia of adolescence. New York: Springer (forthcoming).
Benson, P. L., Leffert, N., Scales, P. C., & Blyth, D. A. (1998). Beyond the ‘village’ rhetoric: creating healthy communities for children and adolescents. Applied Developmental Science, 2, 138–159.
Benson, P. L., Scales, P. C., Hamilton, S. F., & Sesma, A. (2006). Positive youth development: Theory, research, and application. In W. Damon & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), The handbook of child psychology (6th ed., Vol. I, pp. 894–941). New York: Wiley.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Catalano, R. F., Bergland, M. L., Ryan, J. A., Lonczak, H. S., & Hawkins, J. D. (2004). Positive youth development in the United States: research findings on evaluations of positive youth development programs. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 591, 98–124.
Eccles, J., & Gootman, J. (2002). Community programs for youth development. Washington: National Academy Press, National Research Council.
Heine, S. J., Lehman, D. R., Peng, K., & Greenholtz, J. (2002). What’s wrong with cross-cultural comparisons of subjective Likert scales?: the reference-group effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82, 903–918.
James-Wilson, D. (2010). Tracking the impact of returning to education: How re-connecting young people with educational opportunities contributes to peace building in Mindanao. Newton: Education Development Center, and Makati City, Philippines: Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills Project 2.
Kitayama, S., Conway, L. G., III, Pietromonaco, P. R., Park, H., & Plaut, V. C. (2010). Ethos of independence across regions in the United States: the production-adoption model of cultural change. American Psychologist, 65, 559–574.
Kitayama, S., Markus, H. R., Matsumoto, H., & Norasakkunkit, V. (1997). Individual and collective processes in the construction of the self: self-enhancement in the United States and self-criticism in Japan. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 72, 1245–1267.
Leffert, N., Benson, P. L., Scales, P. C., Sharma, A., Drake, D., & Blyth, D. A. (1998). Developmental assets: measurement and prediction of risk behaviors among adolescents. Applied Developmental Science, 2, 209–230.
Lerner, R. M., Brentano, C., Dowling, E. M., & Anderson, P. M. (2002). Positive youth development: thriving as the basis of personhood and civil society. New Directions for Youth Development: Pathways to Positive Development among Diverse Youth, 95, 11–33.
Lerner, R. M., Freund, A. M., De Stefanis, I., & Habermas, T. (2001). Understanding developmental regulation in adolescence: the use of the selection, optimization, and compensation model. Human Development, 44, 29–50.
MGS Consulting. (2008). Community access to technology program evaluation report—year 3. Seattle: Author.
Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2010). Does it matter where we live? The urban psychology of character strengths. American Psychologist, 65, 535–547.
Rentfrow, P. J. (2010). Statewide differences in personality: toward a psychological geography of the United States. American Psychologist, 65, 548–558.
Scales, P. C. (2009). Developmental assets among Albanian youth: Field test results from the Search Institute Developmental Assets Profile—Report to the Albania LIFE Project and World Vision International. Minneapolis: Search Institute.
Scales, P. C., & Fraher, K. (2010). Kishoree Kontha Project DAP data analysis report to Save the Children. Minneapolis: Search Institute.
Scales, P. C., & Leffert, N. (2004). Developmental assets: A synthesis of the scientific research on adolescent development (2nd ed.). Minneapolis: Search Institute.
Scales, P.C., Benson, P. L., Leffert, N., & Blyth, D. A. (2000). Contribution of developmental assets to the prediction of thriving among adolescents. Applied Developmental Science, 4, 27–46.
Scales, P. C., Benson, P. L., Roehlkepartain, E. C., Sesma, A., & van Dulmen, M. (2006). The role of developmental assets in predicting academic achievement: a longitudinal study. Journal of adolescence, 29, 691–708.
Scales, P .C., Sesma, A., & Bolstrom, B (2004). Coming into their own: How developmental assets promote growth in middle childhood. Minneapolis: Search Institute.
Schneirla, T. C. (1957). The concept of development in comparative psychology. In D. B. Harris (Ed.), The concept of development: An issue in the study of human behavior (pp. 78–108). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Search Institute (2005). Developmental assets profile technical manual. Minneapolis: Author.
Small, S., & Memmo, M. (2004). Contemporary models of youth development and problem prevention: toward an integration of terms, concepts, and models. Family Relations, 53, 3–11.
Titus, S. (2010). Kishoree Kontha project qualitative assessment. Washington: Save the Children.
Wilson, A. (2010). Adaptation of surveys across cultures: The DAP in Japan. Archives of Yamaguchi Prefectural University, 3, 39–49 (Retrieved May 13, 2010 from http://ci.nii.ac.jp/naid/110007522717 NII Article ID (NAID): 110007522717).
Wilson, D. S., O’Brien, D. T., & Sesma, A. (2009). Human prosociality from an evolutionary perspective: variations and correlations at a city-wide scale. Evolution and Human Behavior, 30, 190–200.
Acknowledgments
This paper would not have been possible without the multi-national data collection led by colleagues in five countries, or without their feedback on an earlier draft. Their contributions are gratefully acknowledged: Livia Nano, World Vision International LIFE Project (Albania); Paul Stephenson, World Vision International (Albania); Larry Dersham, Save the Children, Eurasia Region (Bangladesh); Marilyn Higgins and Amy Wilson, Yamaguchi Prefectural University (Japan); Rima Afifi, Dima Bteddini, and Rima Nakkash, American University of Beirut (Lebanon); and David James-Wilson, Education Development Center (the Philippines). The contributions of Search Institute Vice-President Eugene C. Roehlkepartain throughout this study, Search Institute senior data analyst Kathleen Fraher, Vision Training Associates senior trainer Flora Sanchez for preparation of the Albanian team for using the developmental assets framework and the DAP, and of former Search Institute research scientist Arturo Sesma, Jr. for early technical assistance in translation and DAP data collection with international colleagues, are all gratefully acknowledged. The opinions expressed, however, are solely those of the author.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Appendix
Appendix
1.1 Sampling and Procedure Details
Albania
In Albania, the DAP was translated for monitoring and evaluation use in World Vision’s LIFE Project for young people ages 11–18 (Scales, 2009). It should be noted that the English version of the DAP was designed for grades 6–12, and so some of the items may have been more difficult for the younger children in grades 4–5 to comprehend. In both an earlier, small pilot sample (not discussed here), and in the field test, it was desired to include a number of youth not currently attending school, and so the sample did include 12% of youth who were of school age but not attending school. Those youth, and a handful more (34 in all, or 13%) received the survey in oral administration, rather than the usual self-administered method, due to the greater difficulty they tended to have with reading the survey. The majority of youth, 87%, took the survey as intended, through self-administration.
Bangladesh
Kishoree Kontha was a four-year research project (May 31, 2006–Aug. 31, 2010) implemented by Save the Children and funded by the Nike Foundation. The project operated in five sub-districts (Babuganj, Muladi, Patuakhali Sadar, Bauphal and Bhola Sadar) in three coastal districts (Barisal, Patuakhali and Bhola) of the south central region of Bangladesh. The project focus was to develop the social and financial competencies of adolescent girls, empowering them to develop strong voices and shape a bright and healthy future for themselves. This development approach aimed to empower adolescent girls through three key strategies: (a) community mobilization, (b) peer education and (c) parental education. The project timeline was organized around four learning cycles of 6 months each. During each cycle, a distinct cohort of adolescent girls was selected to receive the different project interventions.
The project was implemented in partnership with the Bangladesh Development Society. The U.S.-based Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab at MIT served as a research partner, providing support for project monitoring and evaluation activities. Save the Children received Search Institute permission to use the DAP as part of the larger evaluation efforts, and subsequently contracted with Search Institute to conduct the analyses reported here (a more extensive analysis of these data is reported in Scales and Fraher 2010).
Time 1
The girls were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Data collection occurred in 1 day in early March 2009 for 60% of the sample (the control group), and during 2 weeks in mid-May 2009 for the remainder.
Time 2
Time 2 data collection occurred on 1 day in late December 2009 for the control group (60% of the sample), and during 2 days in October, and the first week of November for the intervention sample. T2 data collection thus was at least 6 months after T1, complying with the DAP technical instructions requiring at least a 3-month interval between administrations.
Japan
More than 14,400 students in Japan took the DAP between November 2008 and March 2009. Yamaguchi Prefectural University researchers solicited 83 schools in their regions, and 81 of the schools agreed to participate. After excluding surveys with ambiguous or clearly random or suspicious responses, a total of 13,946 remained for analysis. A number of items posed special challenges in translation. For example, because “drug” use is very uncommon among Japanese youth, that reference was deleted. Idiomatic American-English phrases such as “stand up for [what I believe in]”, “build friendships,” and “serving others in my community” all were difficult to translate because they do not have simple equivalents in Japanese (Wilson 2010). Translators attempted to achieve as comparable an idiomatic translation as possible, but as discussed in the main text, differences in cultural context between Japan and the United States may still have affected the meaning of some items such that they were not truly “comparable.”
Lebanon
In Lebanon, DAP data were collected as part of a project intended to investigate how well protective factors among adolescents could be measured in Lebanon (a more extensive discussion of these data is found in Afifi et al. 2010). Youth from both rural and urban locations completed the survey. The urban locations were Beirut, the capital city; Sidon, the largest city in the South of Lebanon, and Tripoli – the largest city in the North. The rural locations were Koura and Shouf in Mount Lebanon.
Private and public general school and vocational schools were selected for inclusion in the research, with guidance from the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Office of Guidance and Counseling. Of the 20 schools contacted, 18 (90%) agreed to participate, and 1,226 of 1,368 eligible students (93%) completed the questionnaire. Data were collected from youth over an 8-month period between May and December 2009, with a summer lull in data collection between July and September 2009. Data cleaning deleted 6% of the completed surveys, leaving a total of 1,138 surveys for analysis.
The Philippines
In November 2006, a broad range of education stakeholders from Mindanao and the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao met to discuss priorities for an upcoming 5-year USAID-funded basic education and workforce development project (a detailed description of the project is provided by James-Wilson 2010). This initiative, EQuALLS 2 (Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills), was designed to focus on improving the accessibility, quality, and relevance of basic education and livelihood development opportunities for young people 10–18 in conflict-affected areas of Muslim Mindanao. EQuALLS 2 was intended to address key gaps in service identified by external assessment teams from USAID Washington and the Education Development Center (EDC). A consensus emerged around the lack of extant measures that track the broader impact on young people of their participation in the project’s education and livelihood development initiatives; the DAP was seen as a means of filling this gap by tracking the impact of the education and livelihood programs on youths’ positive engagement and connectedness.
The entire sample was out-of-school youth in largely rural and semi-rural areas. The DAP was administered once within the first 2 weeks of programming, and once within the last 2 weeks. Youth who participated came from numerous education and workforce development programs, so that the range of T1-T2 program exposures went from 3 months to 9 months. The intentional focus of the USAID-sponsored programs, and the DAP surveying, was to target youth in areas that have historically been conflict-ridden, in order to provide re-entry to education and livelihood development as a means of socially integrating vulnerable youth and lessening the likelihood of their being pulled onto a trajectory of political and religious extremism. Most programs included 5–10 months of non-formal education courses involving several weekly contacts with an instructional manager and fellow learners, as well as 3–4 months of technical training leading to skill development certificates in fields relevant to local economic opportunities.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Scales, P.C. Youth Developmental Assets in Global Perspective: Results from International Adaptations of the Developmental Assets Profile. Child Ind Res 4, 619–645 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-011-9112-8
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-011-9112-8