Positive Youth Development Among Diverse Racial–Ethnic Children: Quality Afterschool Contexts as Developmental Assets

Positive youth development (PYD) deserves more empirical attention, particularly among children of diverse racial–ethnic backgrounds. Given the need among families for monitoring and supervision during out-of-school time, community-based afterschool is a potentially promotive ecological setting. This study explores the quality of afterschool experiences upon PYD. This multimethod study includes over 500 elementary school children in Grades 2–5 (Mage = 8.80, SD = 1.12). The sample comprises of 49% White, 27% African American,
7% Latino, and 17% mixed race/others with 45% free/reduced lunch eligible children. In multilevel models, independently observed quality across time positively impacted competence, connection, caring for all youth, and cultural values for racial–ethnic minority youth. Afterschool fosters PYD, including sociocultural dimensions, when comprised of appropriately structured, supportive, and engaging interactions.