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ERIC Number: EJ965820
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2006
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1088-8691
EISSN: N/A
The Role of New Technologies to Foster Positive Youth Development
Bers, Marina Umaschi
Applied Developmental Science, v10 n4 p200-219 2006
This article describes a developmental systems approach to applied developmental science (ADS), which provides a framework to design and evaluate technology-rich programs that promote positive development by emphasizing the strengths and assets of young people instead of focusing on diminishing or preventing risk-taking behaviors. Until now, most of the psychoeducational programs conceived within the ADS model have not focused on the role of new technologies in young people's lives. This absence is particularly striking given that, in today's world, new technologies play an important role in different areas of the lives of young people, such as education, entertainment, socialization, and communication. This article presents the concept of identity construction environments (ICE), an interdisciplinary model that proposes guidelines to design and study new technologies purposefully created to promote positive youth development (PYD). Two types of ICE have been developed: one focusing on stand-alone technologies for learning, such as the Zora virtual city; and the other focusing on an approach for developing technologically rich learning contexts, such as the Project Inter-Actions robotics workshops. This article presents both examples of ICE and describes how their design fosters the 6 components of PYD. Initial findings from pilot studies conducted with very different populations of youth engaged in both types of ICE--such as young children, adolescents, and chronically ill children--are presented. (Contains 4 footnotes, 2 tables, and 6 figures.)
Psychology Press. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A