Measuring youth resilience to transform perceptions and opportunities.

• In Event: Digital innovation and youth resilience: opportunities to overcome barriers and gaps in mental health and entrepreneurship

Proposal

ACDI/VOCA, in partnership with AIR, has developed an innovative tool to measure the level of youth resilience in Colombia, which not only identifies the protective and risk factors that influence the lives of youth, but also generates clear evidence of the impact of interventions aimed at strengthening their resilience. Through the assessment of various dimensions that include individual, family, friends, educational environment and community, the tool provides a comprehensive approach to understanding the progress and challenges faced by youth in terms of their resilience.
As of July 2023, a first cohort of approximately 5,000 participants completed the program. YRA and its partner AIR analyzed entry and exit data of youth participant to determine which protective factors have the greatest influence on youth resilience and compared between different sociodemographic groups of youth participants (e.g., indigenous vs. non-indigenous, migrant vs. non-migrant, school attendance vs. dropout, type of intervention) by calculating Cohen's D to determine the practical relevance of the intervention.
The data collected has revealed key factors that contribute significantly to youth resilience, such as self-esteem, educational trajectory and achievement orientation. These elements not only improve the youth perception of themselves, but also strengthen their permanence in the educational system and their ability to successfully integrate themselves into the labor market.
A main feature of this tool is its ability to differentiate the level of resilience of each participant, allowing customized interventions. This is especially crucial in hard-to-reach territories, where opportunities are limited. In these contexts, the incorporation of technology has been a strategic bet to provide tools to youth, expanding their development options and facilitating their linkage with educational and labor processes within and outside their communities. This has been fundamental to ensure that each intervention responds to the reality of youth in hard-to-reach territories, where opportunities are limited, and technology is the key to opening new doors.
The experience shows that technological inclusion in these territories has significantly mobilized the self-esteem of the youth, their curiosity to learn and their permanence in educational processes, in addition to projecting them towards participation in the labor market.
The panel will present the resilience results of youth who have participated in initiatives where digital technology has been an essential component, especially in the objectives of entrepreneurship and employment. Differences in resilience scores will be analyzed and how access to technology has influenced their personal and professional development will be discussed. This data not only helps to understand the impact of the Activity, but also sheds light on how to optimize interventions in territories with great challenges.

Author

• Ana karla Gonzalez