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The Five Cs Model of Positive Youth Development

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Promoting Positive Youth Development

Part of the book series: Advancing Responsible Adolescent Development ((ARAD))

Abstract

The growing consensus among developmental scientists argues that optimizing young people’s development requires much more than simply ensuring that they avoid negative outcomes (e.g., drug use, delinquency). We must also foster strengths that help youth thrive in their diverse ecologies. In this chapter we draw on data and research from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development to discuss the benefits of promoting such strength-based perspectives in youth development programs. Our discussion focuses primarily on the Five Cs of positive youth development and on how our understanding of this model can inform social policies and enhance the experience of both practitioners and the youth they serve.

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Acknowledgments

The writing of this chapter was supported in part by grants from the National 4-H Council, the Altria Corporation, the Thrive Foundation for Youth, and the John Templeton Foundation.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA

    G. John Geldhof & Katie J. Walsh

  2. Youth Development Leadership, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, 29634, USA

    Edmond P. Bowers

  3. Tufts University, Medford, MA, 02155, USA

    Megan K. Mueller & Richard M. Lerner

  4. University of Zurich, 8006, Zürich, Switzerland

    Christopher M. Napolitano

  5. Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development, Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development, Tuffs University, Medford, MA, 02155, USA

    Kristina Schmid Callina

  6. Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467, USA

    Jacqueline V. Lerner

Authors
  1. G. John Geldhof
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  2. Edmond P. Bowers
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  3. Megan K. Mueller
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  4. Christopher M. Napolitano
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  5. Kristina Schmid Callina
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  6. Katie J. Walsh
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  7. Jacqueline V. Lerner
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  8. Richard M. Lerner
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to G. John Geldhof .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Youth Development Leadership, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA

    Edmond P. Bowers

  2. Human Development and Family Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA

    G. John Geldhof

  3. Tufts University Inst. for Applied Research in Youth Dev., Medford, Massachusetts, USA

    Sara K. Johnson

  4. Tufts University Inst. for Applied Research in Youth Dev., Medford, Massachusetts, USA

    Lacey J. Hilliard

  5. Tufts University Inst. for Applied Research in Youth Dev., Medford, Massachusetts, USA

    Rachel M. Hershberg

  6. Dept. Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA

    Jacqueline V. Lerner

  7. Tufts University Inst. for Applied Research in Youth Dev., Medford, Massachusetts, USA

    Richard M. Lerner

Appendices

Recommended Additional Resources

Lerner, R. M., Lerner, J. V., Almerigi, J., Theokas, C., Phelps, E., Gestsdóttir, S., et al. (2005). Positive youth development, participation in community youth development programs, and community contributions of fifth-grade adolescents: Findings from the first wave of the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development. Journal of Early Adolescence, 25(1), 17–71.

  • This article provides a foundational overview of the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development and an analysis of data from the initial wave of this study. The empirical analyses support the existence of the Five Cs of positive youth development and their relation to youth contributions. This study therefore provides an empirical basis to support future investigations to assess and refine the Five Cs of PYD as a useful theoretical model of adolescent development.

Lerner, J. V., Bowers, E. P., Minor, K., Lewin-Bizan, S., Boyd, M. J., Mueller, M. K., et al. (2013). Positive youth development: Processes, philosophies, and programs. In R. M. Lerner, M. A., Easterbrooks, & J. Mistry (Eds.), Developmental psychology (Handbook of psychology 2nd ed., Vol. 6, pp. 365–392). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Editor-in-chief: I. B. Weiner.

  • This chapter describes prominent theories of PYD and key features of the PYD perspective. The authors review key scholars, explore notable research contributions, and explain the importance of context and unique experience on positive youth development within a theoretical framework that places adolescent development within a system of mutually influential relations between individuals and their contexts (this approach to theory is therefore termed “relational developmental systems”).

Lerner, R. M., Lerner, J. V., Bowers, E., & Geldhof, G. J. (2015). Positive youth development: A relational developmental systems model. In W. F. Overton & P. C. Molenaar (Eds.), Theory and method (Handbook of child psychology and developmental science, 7th ed., Vol. 1). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Editor-in-chief: R. M. Lerner.

  • This chapter builds on J. Lerner and colleagues’ (2013) chapter in the Handbook of Psychology, paying particular attention to the ways the positive youth development perspective aligns with theories involving the relational developmental system. The authors encourage the refinement and expansion of PYD as a developmental process, as well as utilizing both PYD and prevention science approaches in research and application of developmental science in order to maximize positive development across the life span.

Lerner, R. M., Napolitano, C. M., Boyd, M. J., Mueller, M. K., & Callina, K. S. (2014). Mentoring and positive youth development. In D. L. Dubois & M. J. Karcher (Eds.) Handbook of youth mentoring (2nd ed., pp. 17–28). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

  • This chapter presents theoretical and empirical foundations of PYD and examines how mentoring programs may actively foster PYD through a positive and sustainable relationship with a mentor, life-skill-building activities, and opportunities for youth to engage with their communities. The chapter provides an example checklist for mentoring practitioners to enhance mentees’ development of Five Cs of PYD and encourages the use of a PYD perspective in mentoring programs in order to promote the healthy development of adolescents.

Benson, P. L., Mannes, M., Pittman, K., & Ferber, T. (2004). Youth development, developmental assets, and public policy. In R. M. Lerner & L. Steinberg (Eds.), Handbook of adolescent psychology (2nd ed., pp. 781–814). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

  • Benson and colleagues compare strength-based and deficit approaches to youth development and discuss the theoretical and empirical foundation of the Search Institute’s developmental asset framework. The authors identify and consider the implications of social and cultural dynamics on youth development policy. They highlight the potential for developmental science to inform and shape public policy affecting youth.

Appendix: Adapted PYD-SF and PYD-VSF Scales for Practitioners

Competence

figure a

Confidence

figure b

Character

figure c

Caring

figure d

Connection

figure e

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Geldhof, G.J. et al. (2015). The Five Cs Model of Positive Youth Development. In: Bowers, E., et al. Promoting Positive Youth Development. Advancing Responsible Adolescent Development. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17166-1_9

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