Youth Empowerment and High School GayStraight All

Authors: Stephen T Russell Anna Muraco Aarti Subramaniam Carolyn Laub

Publish Date: 2009/01/10

Volume: 38, Issue: 7, Pages: 891-903

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Abstract

In the field of positive youth development programs “empowerment” is used interchangeably with youth activism leadership civic participation and selfefficacy However few studies have captured what empowerment means to young people in diverse contexts This article explores how youth define and experience empowerment in youthled organizations characterized by social justice goals high school GayStraight Alliances GSAs Through focus group interviews fifteen youth leaders of GSAs from different regions of California explain what they think empowerment means and how they became empowered through their involvement with the GSA Youth describe three interrelated dimensions of empowerment personal empowerment relational empowerment and strategic empowerment through having and using knowledge When these three dimensions are experienced in combination GSA leaders have the potential for individual and collective empowerment as agents of social change at school By understanding these youth’s perspectives on the meanings of empowerment this article clarifies the conceptual arena for future studies of socially marginalized youth and of positive youth developmentThis study was supported by a William T Grant Foundation Scholar Award to the first author the second author was supported by NIA grant AG000117 and the third author by a fellowship from the 4H Center for Youth Development during the writing of the manuscript We thank Gil Herdt Jeffery Sweat and Michelle Marzullo for their participation in the study design and data collection Monica Garcia for her help with manuscript preparation and the participants in the William T Grant Foundation 2006 Scholar Retreat especially Mary Jane RotheramBorus for thoughtful comments during a presentation of this paper

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