Search Institute has identified 40 Developmental Assets[TM] that are building blocks of healthy development and success for children and adolescents. Young people's experience of most of these developmental assets declines over the middle school years. In this article, research is described showing the prevalence and impact of developmental assets…

This report presents both a framework for understanding positive factors that contribute to the healthy development of young people, termed "developmental assets," and a portrait of 6th-to-12th-grade youth based on that framework. The report analyzes and interprets data from 99,462 youth in 213 communities collected during the 1996-97 school year.…

Investigated the relationship of student exposure to selected developmental assets with indicators of thriving, using more reliable measures than previously reported. Data collected using the Youth Supplement Survey among diverse 6th-12th graders indicated that most students experienced only 3 of 12 assets. The more assets students reported, the…

The contribution of nonfamily adults to young people's well-being was explored using both a cross-sectional national sample of 614 12- to 17-year-olds and a longitudinal sample of 370 students followed from 6th-8th grades through 10th-12th grades. Both variable- and person-centered analyses were employed. Young people's involvement in…