Chapter 3: Shifting the Paradigm: Simple and Radical Ways to Create Safe, Supportive, and Engaging Settings With Youth

This is a story about acceptance, interactions, and, most of all, relationships. Li and Julian (2012) posit that developmental relationships are likely the “active ingredient” for youth program success. Borrowing from Bronfenbrenner (1979), they define developmental relationships as “reciprocal human interactions that embody an enduring emotional attachment, progressively more complex patterns of joint activity, and a balance of power that gradually shifts from the developed person in favor of the developing person” (Li & Julian, 2012, p. 157). Scholarship on youth-adult partnerships also emphasizes reciprocal activity and mentorship driven by youth interests, alongside authentic decision-making for young people (Zeldin et al., 2013). Developmental relationships rooted in youth-adult partnership are the foundation on which to build programs where youth can engage and thrive.