Participants' experiences of long-term change following a positive youth development program for low-income youth

Abstract

The Purdue Athletes Life Success (PALS) camp is a positive youth development program for low-income youth. PALS focuses on physical activities with an integrated character development and social skills curriculum. Previous research with PALS demonstrated that changes in social relationships with peers and staff are associated with changes in self-perceptions, motivation for activity, and hope (Ullrich-French et al., 2008). Qualitative work suggests participants see those relationships as facilitating positive outcomes including self-perceptions, social skills, and motivation for physical activity (McDonough et al., 2009; Ullrich-French et al., 2010). Quantitative work suggests that at least some of these perceptions persist after camp ends (Ullrich-French et al., 2010), but little is known about kids' understanding of how camp experiences continue to impact them after the 4-week program is over. We conducted 8-month follow-up interviews with 10 PALS campers who had participated in the previous qualitative study. Campers were purposively sampled to include a cross-section of ages, gender, ethnicity, and prior experience at PALS. Interviews were content analyzed and compared across the two time points. Four categories of persistent change emerged: increased activity, improved self-perceptions and personal skills (e.g., increased competence), social skill development (e.g., learning how to choose and make friends), and improved relationships at home and school. An improved understanding of kids' perceptions of the impact of positive youth development programs on their lives has important implications for program development and targeted interventions.

Acknowledgments: Funding was provided by a Kinley Trust Grant.