The decision to enroll in organized after-school activities involves a gradual negotiation of adolescents' independence between family members who can hold contrasting views on adolescents' autonomy. Furthermore, less is known about the culturally grounded nature of this decision-making process generally observed among the Latinx community,…

Grounded in bioecological theories, this mixed-method article examines aspects of culturally responsive organized activities. Study 1 used path analysis to quantitatively test relations between ethnic cultural features of activities (ways of integrating ethnic culture) and concurrent experiences (N = 150 Latino adolescents). Findings were mixed,…

Organized after-school activities promote positive youth development across a range of outcomes. To be most effective, organized activities need to meet high-quality standards. The eight features of quality developed by the National Research Council's Committee on Community-Level Programs for Youth have helped guide the field in this regard.…

Families are theorized to influence adolescents' participation in skill-based after-school activities, but research has focused on the role of parents while neglecting the role of siblings. Siblings might be especially critical for Mexican-origin youth, the fastest growing youth population in the United States, due to a high value of family as…

Organized activities have been found to provide positive experiences for Latino adolescents to develop confidence and learn critical life skills; however, these programs are sometimes a context where youth encounter negative experiences related to ethnic/racial microaggressions (ERMs). This qualitative study explores the types of ERMs that…