Can a school-based civic empowerment intervention support adolescent health?

• Published in: Preventive medicine reports Vol. 16; p. 100968
• Main Authors: Ballard, Parissa J, Cohen, Alison K, Duarte, Catherine
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.12.2019
• Subjects: Adolescent health; Empowerment; Internal Medicine; Psychosocial factors; Public health; Regular; Self-rated health; Social capital; Adolescent health; Self-rated health; Public health; Social capital; Psychosocial factors; Empowerment
• ISSN: 2211-3355; 2211-3355
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2019.100968

AbstractMeaningfully engaging and supporting youth in their communities can promote their sense of efficacy and potentially their health and wellbeing. The objective of this study was to test whether a school-based youth civic empowerment program, Generation Citizen ( GC), was associated with self-reported mental and physical health among participants, and whether these associations differed by two potential modifiers: civic self-efficacy and a sense of meaningful contributions to one's community. Participants were middle and high school students ( N = 364) who participated in GC in the fall semester of 2014 and completed surveys at the beginning and end of the semester. Analyses revealed a small but statistically significant increase in self-reported physical health after GC and no statistically significant change in self-reported mental health. There was evidence of effect measure modification by civic self-efficacy such that the difference in physical health as civic self-efficacy increased was smaller post-intervention compared to pre-intervention. This could suggest that GC participation is particularly beneficial for those with lower civic self-efficacy. While our findings suggest that public health interventions may benefit from centering empowerment opportunities for youth, future research is warranted to better understand the particular role of civic self-efficacy in that process.