Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review
In recent years, youth social action has emerged as a novel concept which strives to empower young people, creating an engaged and socially aware youth population. The aim of this narrative review was to summarise, explain, and interpret international research evidence to understand the effectivenes...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Youth |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-995X/5/1/8 |
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| author | Cara Shearer Kathryn M. Curran Paula Carroll Lawrence Foweather |
| author_facet | Cara Shearer Kathryn M. Curran Paula Carroll Lawrence Foweather |
| author_sort | Cara Shearer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In recent years, youth social action has emerged as a novel concept which strives to empower young people, creating an engaged and socially aware youth population. The aim of this narrative review was to summarise, explain, and interpret international research evidence to understand the effectiveness of youth social action interventions implemented with young people between the ages of 8 and 16 years. This study followed the General Framework of Narrative Reviews. Peer-reviewed studies published in the English language that explicitly addressed ‘youth social action’ or ‘social action’ within the title or abstract were identified by means of electronic searches on EBSCOhost (Education Research Complete, MEDLINE and Child Development and Adolescent Studies databases). Search terms included “Social Action” OR “Youth Social Action” AND population (Child* OR Youth OR Adolesc* OR “School Child” OR Juvenile OR Teenag*) AND study design (intervention OR project OR evaluation OR initiative OR program*). Sixteen studies were included after full-text screening, detailing eight individual youth social action interventions. The findings revealed a range of psychosocial, health, and personal development benefits for youth who participated in social action interventions. However, the evidence base was limited by poor methodological reporting and a lack of process evaluations to confirm implementation fidelity. Future research should utilitise stronger research designs, assess both individual and community outcomes, and include follow-up measures to determine the long-term impacts of youth social action projects. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-33494cd6ec9e44c18df5f4983d147dc1 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2673-995X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Youth |
| spelling | doaj-art-33494cd6ec9e44c18df5f4983d147dc12025-08-20T01:49:53ZengMDPI AGYouth2673-995X2025-01-0151810.3390/youth5010008Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative ReviewCara Shearer0Kathryn M. Curran1Paula Carroll2Lawrence Foweather3Physical Activity Exchange, Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, 5 Primrose Hill, Liverpool L3 2EX, UKPhysical Activity Exchange, Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, 5 Primrose Hill, Liverpool L3 2EX, UKLiverpool Football Club Foundation, Anfield Road, Liverpool L4 0TH, UKPhysical Activity Exchange, Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, 5 Primrose Hill, Liverpool L3 2EX, UKIn recent years, youth social action has emerged as a novel concept which strives to empower young people, creating an engaged and socially aware youth population. The aim of this narrative review was to summarise, explain, and interpret international research evidence to understand the effectiveness of youth social action interventions implemented with young people between the ages of 8 and 16 years. This study followed the General Framework of Narrative Reviews. Peer-reviewed studies published in the English language that explicitly addressed ‘youth social action’ or ‘social action’ within the title or abstract were identified by means of electronic searches on EBSCOhost (Education Research Complete, MEDLINE and Child Development and Adolescent Studies databases). Search terms included “Social Action” OR “Youth Social Action” AND population (Child* OR Youth OR Adolesc* OR “School Child” OR Juvenile OR Teenag*) AND study design (intervention OR project OR evaluation OR initiative OR program*). Sixteen studies were included after full-text screening, detailing eight individual youth social action interventions. The findings revealed a range of psychosocial, health, and personal development benefits for youth who participated in social action interventions. However, the evidence base was limited by poor methodological reporting and a lack of process evaluations to confirm implementation fidelity. Future research should utilitise stronger research designs, assess both individual and community outcomes, and include follow-up measures to determine the long-term impacts of youth social action projects.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-995X/5/1/8social actionyouthinterventioncommunity engagementactive citizenship |
| spellingShingle | Cara Shearer Kathryn M. Curran Paula Carroll Lawrence Foweather Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review Youth social action youth intervention community engagement active citizenship |
| title | Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review |
| title_full | Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review |
| title_fullStr | Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review |
| title_short | Youth Social Action Interventions in Young People Aged Between 8 and 16 Years: A Narrative Review |
| title_sort | youth social action interventions in young people aged between 8 and 16 years a narrative review |
| topic | social action youth intervention community engagement active citizenship |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-995X/5/1/8 |
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