Study Process
This study has four stages. Currently, we are in Stage 3:
- Stage 1: Literature Review (Complete). In stage 1, we conducted a comprehensive literature review to identify the topics that would be covered by our survey.
- Stage 2: Expert Panel (Complete). In stage 2, we asked researchers and practitioners to review the survey. We made many changes based on their feedback.
- Stage 3: Youth interviews (Current). In this step, we are asking teens in Philadelphia to participate in an interview where they will give us feedback on the survey. As they complete the survey, we will ask them questions to make sure the survey questions are clear. We will ask the teens to identify items that are more or less important to them, and anything else they think should be added to the survey. We will interview about 18 (between 12-30) teenagers throughout Philadelphia in this stage. The youths responses will help us to make improvements to the survey.
- Stage 4: Youth Surveys (Upcoming). After we revise the measure based on the youth feedback in stage 3, we will ask four hundred youths (400) to complete the measure to further test its accuracy.
Future Directions
After the survey is developed, we can use it to assess the extent to which essential teen needs are, and are not, being met. The survey can help us understand what contributes to unmet needs and what unmet needs mean for teens wellbeing and healthy development. Information gained from the survey will help guide prevention and intervention to help teens stay safe and healthy, and thrive.
Background
This project is inspired by scientific research about child and adolescent neglect, which is a common and harmful problem. Usually, neglect is defined as critical unmet needs that are caused by lack of caregiving. However, there are many factors other than caregiving that lead to children’s needs not being met. This is especially true for teens as they become more mature and independent. In developing the Essential Teen Needs measure, we want to improve how “neglect” is understood and defined by focusing on teens’ needs (rather than caregiving). We envision a world where it is everyone’s shared responsibility to make sure that teens are getting what they need to thrive. We believe that this focus will improve social justice and the effectiveness of our systems.