40 Developmental Assets

developed by the Search Institute www.search-institute.org

 

What are Developmental Assets?

The Developmental Assets are 40 common sense, positive experiences and qualities that help influence choices young people make and help them become caring, responsible adults.

Because of its basis in youth development, resiliency, and prevention research and its proven effectiveness, the Developmental Assets framework has become one of the most widely used approach to positive youth development in the United States.

 

The Power of Assets

Studies of more than 2.2 million young people consistently show that the more assets young people have, the less likely they are to engage in a wide range of high-risk behaviors and the more likely they are to thrive. Assets have power for all young people, regardless of their gender, economic status, family, or race/ethnicity, and are better predictors of high-risk involvement and thriving than poverty or being from a single-parent family. What do we do with the Assets? The 40 Developmental Assets are not a program and do not require any added expense. There is no how-to guide to tell you how to develop assets in children. These 40 Assets are developed through daily healthy interaction between adults and children, and are a foundation able to support and enhance existing social programs and services. For ideas on how to get started building assets in the ones you love, visit http://www.search-institute.org/developmental-assets.