Regular Research Article Development and Validation of a Positive Youth Development Measure: The Bridge-Positive Youth Development

Objective: Positive Youth Development (PYD) is a resilience-based framework that accentuates positive traits in youth. PYD constructs are characteristics that are hypothesized to promote healthy development. However, measures to assess PYD con-structs are lacking. Methods: An instrument was created to assess PYD. One hundred and forty youth between the age of 7 and 18 (M 11.6) completed the measure over five time points. Data were then analyzed using psychometric analysis techniques. Results: Findings suggest that the instrument is a reliable measure of PYD. The scale shows good reliability, with an overall Cronbach’s a of 92. Conclusions: The Bridge-PYD may be a useful tool for program evaluation and the assessment of theoretical constructs in the PYD models. Keywords children and youth, positive youth development, risk and resilience, assessment tools Antisocial and delinquent behaviors are serious social concerns in the United States. In 2009, approximately 1.5 million delin-quency cases were handled in juvenile court, a 30 % increase since 1985 (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Preven-tion [OJJDP], 2012). Of all the delinquency cases in 2009, 52% were held for youth under the age of 16; minority youth repre-sent 36 % of these cases. There have also been increases in the juvenile court in the period between 1985 and 2009, with drug offense cases rising by 117%, public order cases by 108%, and person offense cases by 99 % (OJJDP, 2012). Unfortunately, young people living in low-income commu-nities are at increased risk for delinquency and other proble