Student Issues

Researchers have long recognized the importance of environments in shaping youth development. Neighborhoods shape the daily experiences of residents, and in turn, neighborhood environments are shaped by residents. Most often, researchers focus on how economically-disadvantaged neighborhoods expose children to risk factors that, when compared to their peers in more affluent neighborhoods, place them at a higher risk for poor outcomes. Despite the evidence that neighborhoods influence residents of all ages, youth perspectives are often not valued, and youth input is largely excluded from intervention planning and decision-making processes (Frank, 2006; Santo, Ferguson, & Trippel, 2010).

Youth likely have different experiences, needs, and preferences than adults, but even among methodologies that are founded on community inclusion, such as community-based participatory research (CBPR), youth are less likely than adults to be included throughout the research process (Jacquez, Vaughn, & Wagner, 2013). Researchers have identified diverse barriers to including youth, including structural barriers, competing interests of researchers, and the belief that youth are developmentally incapable of making research decisions (Frank, 2006). However, the benefits of including youth as partners in the process are also compelling. For instance, participating in research allows youth to have more of a voice in public affairs, feel more connected to their community, and to develop individual cognitive and social skills (Frank, 2006). The current study used Photovoice (Wang & Burris, 1997) to engage adolescent residents of an urban neighborhood in Toledo, Ohio in the research process, and to share their perspectives on their neighborhood’s assets and needs. The overarching goals were to teach youth about the research process and to empower youth to enact change in their community.

Methods

Nine teenagers who were enrolled in the Youth Opportunities Program (YOP) through the YMCA of Greater Toledo participated in the project. Participants were 16 to 20 years old, and all but one participant identified as a racial minority. Four participants were currently in high school, four had graduated high school, and one stopped attending school in the 11^th grade. The YOP aims to improve educational attainment, to prepare youth for employment, and to promote civic engagement. To enroll in the YOP, youth must meet income guidelines; therefore, the program comprises low-income youth. Participants were included in collecting data, analyzing data, and disseminating findings to the larger community and to key stakeholders. Participants attended a total of six sessions (one per week) and a public display of photos held at a local YMCA. SCRA Student Research Award funds were used for professional printing and purchasing supplies. To evaluate the impact of participating in the project, youth participated in individual interviews to assess their views of the program. Interviews covered topics such as perceived individual changes, communal changes, challenges, and suggestions.

Photovoice Outcomes

To analyze the photographic data, both the participants and researcher took part in a participatory visual analysis (Wang & Burris, 1997) during each of the Photovoice sessions. Additionally, content analysis was used to identify patterns and themes across group discussions. Ten total themes were generated from participants’ photos, descriptions, and group discussions. These themes largely reflect three primary aspects of participants’ experiences: adolescence, their environment, and their social roles. Youth described typical developmental processes, including an emerging sense of identity and self-expression, developing goals of autonomy and independence, a desire for positive adult mentors and role mentors, and a drive to create positive change through their lives. Youth also described aspects of their setting, including important places where they may feel an emotional connection, quality of and access to community resources, and safety. Lastly, youth also described the social aspects of their lives, including their relationships with children, their experiences with ageism, racism, and classism, and the different people who comprise their social communities.

Highlights from the photovoice sessions include:

• Nearly all participants emphasized the positive impact that community programs such as the YOP can have. One participant shared a photo of the logo and explained: I like coming here. I’ve only been here a few times, but I’ve been with a lot of people since summer time, and they help me with myself.... [They] opened my mind to a lot of things... I feel good when I’m here.

Youth described that they encountered structural barriers–such as racism, classism, and ageism–but that these experiences motivated them to create positive societal change. Youth were optimistic that their generation could enact such change. One young woman said, “We can feel sorry, but we don’t have to be that way. We’ve got to make a change.”

• Youth described how parenthood was an important turning point with both challenges and positive aspects, such as the chance to be positive role models for their children.

Program Evaluation

When discussing the project during individual interviews, youth shared how they made time to take photos and attend group discussions, and their willingness to engage in a new and unfamiliar experience. Youth also noted that they enjoyed sharing their own experiences and listening to their peers, and that as a result they felt more connected. Lastly, participants noted a sense of accomplishment, and increased self-efficacy, and an affinity for photography.

Highlights from individual interviews include:

• Participants felt that they were able to express themselves through photography. One participant stated, “I found my point of view about stuff and how I would express it.”
• Youth enjoyed seeing others’ photos and hearing others’ stories.
• Youth developed a stronger sense of self-efficacy over the course of the project. Discussing the public display, one young woman shared, “It made me proud because I’ve come so far and to have other people see all the work that I do. It just made me happy.”
• Youth used photographs to convey their experiences to peers and adults. See Figures 1 and 2 for sample photos and descriptions that youth chose for the public display.
• Participants reported an increased sense of neighborhood awareness. 
• Lastly, youth discussed challenges that they encountered and changes that they would suggest.
• Participants most often mentioned that obtaining consent forms to photograph others was a challenge that limited how they were able to represent their social communities.
• Some participants would have preferred the program run for longer than 6 weeks. 

Despite challenges, participants overall felt that the project helped both them and their neighborhood. As one participant summarized,

You’re giving your neighborhood a voice…. I’m 19 years old. Who’s going to listen to me? I’m still just a kid basically, So, things like this, and then having the Blade [newspaper] and everybody there taking pictures and taking statements, it was really nice. It was kind of like just giving ourselves a voice for our neighborhood.

Acknowledgements

This project was only successful thanks to the contributions of many generous people throughout the process. I am so grateful to the community partners, LaDonna Knabbs and Crystal Harris Darnell, who graciously donated their time, space, and expertise throughout this project. I am also grateful to the participants, all of whom were open, trusting, accommodating, and honest. I am similarly appreciative of my co-chairs, Dr. Carolyn Tompsett and Dr. Catherine Stein, who trusted and supported me in so many ways. Lastly, the support of the SCRA Dissertation Award allowed this project to include more youth, to offer youth compensation (gift cards) for their time and efforts, and to share their stories with their family, neighbors, and communities.

References

Frank, K. (2006). The Potential of Youth Participation in Planning. CPL Bibliography, 20, 351–371.

Jacquez, F., Vaughn, L., & Wagner, E. (2013). Youth as partners, participants or passive recipients: A review of children and adolescents in community-based participatory research (cbpr). American Journal of Community Psychology, 51, 176–189.

Leventhal, T., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2000). The neighborhoods they live in: The effects of neighborhood residence on child and adolescent outcomes. Psych Bulletin, 126, 309–337.

Santo, C., Ferguson, N., & Trippel, A. (2010). Engaging urban youth through technology: The Youth Neighborhood Mapping Initiative. Journal of Planning Education and Research, 30, 52–65.

Wang, C., & Burris, M. (1997). Photovoice: Concept, Methodology, and Use for Participatory Needs Assessment. Health Education & Behavior, 24, 369–387.