Risk and Protective Factors Flashcards
protective factors
Internal and external forces that help children resist or ameliorate risk. Decreases the likelihood that a risk factor become apparent. It can also prevent a risk factor from taking place or buffer a risk factor from occurring or evolving.
Risk factors
Any factor that increases the likelihood for a negative developmental or academic outcome (May include genetics, biological, behavioral, sociocultural, demographic characteristics or attributes)
resilency
the ability to adapt and withstand, overcome the odd to recover.
what it takes to be resilient
Children don’t exist in a vacuum so resilient children must have some protective factors.
Children who are resilient achieve positive outcomes in the face of risk. Resilient kids tend to be socially competence, attract and use adults for support, be autonomous, to advocate for themselves and have a sense of coherence or connection (Pines)
Research supports the idea that some children who faced stressful, high-risk situations fare well in life (Kirby & Fraser)
3 types of resilience
1) Overcoming the odds,
2) Sustained competence under stress,
3) Recovery from trauma
3 main categories of protective variables that promote resilience
1) Dispositional attribute- temperament, cog abilities, coping skills
2) Family milieu- close relationship with at least one parent, family cohesion, warmth, harmony, absence of neglect
3) extrafamilial social environment- availability of external resources, extended social supports, individuals’ use of those resources
Interactive Model (Rutter, as cited in Kirby & Fraser)
Protective factors have effect only in combination with risk factors. Protective factors exert little effect when stress is low, but their effect emerges when stress is high
- Protective factors may buffer risk factors
- Protective factors may interrupt the risk chain through which risk factors operate
- Protective factors may operate to prevent the initial occurrence of a risk factor
Risk (or protective) facotrs
Divorce
poverty
immigration/refugee status.
second language learning
quality of schooling
disability/special needs
divorce-risk
- Relocation of at least one or all family members → exacerbate stress and increase risk of social isolation
- Isolation or separation of family members as a result of the divorce
- Fighting between parents
- parent abandonment
- change in economic status
- decline in social status
- lack of trust with one or both parents
- increased stress
- child becomes substitute parent for younger siblings
- both parents’ need to work increases likelihood that children will be left unsupervised
- higher rate of delinquency in adolescent children
immigration/refugee statue- risk
- Racism and discrimination
- Different norms at home than at school
- Academic difficulty due to gaps in language, differences in curriculum, etc.
- minimal education programming to address needs of ELLs
- lack of social support
- economic hardship Difficulty getting employment.
- possible loss/trauma as a result of removal from home country (refugees)
- Lack of interest from children in speaking native language and following traditional family cultural practices
- High stress
- Depression
- PTSD
- Bullying
- low intelligence
- few opportunities for employment
- lack of healthcare
poverty-risk
-Decreased access to quality healthcare (long wait times to get into doctors and/or poor medical care in general)
-Poor quality of education
High environmental stress caused
-Few opportunities for education and employment
-racial discrimination and injustice
-parent psychopathology, including parental depression
-poor parenting
-inadequate social support
poverty-protective
-High cognitive functioning
-Multiple sources of support
-Close-family relationships
-Close ties to community- (faith and church for example)
-A child could be an exemplary student because the school is so small
-The school could have extra-curricular activities or different opportunities for engagement as well as supportive teachers
-Close peer relationships
-self-esteem and self-advocacy
effective parenting
immigration/refugee status-protective
- High expectations to achieve academically
- high work ethic
- involvement and commitment to school and community
- positive interpersonal relationships
- Close ties to community- (faith and church for example)
- social support services within the community
- Self-efficacy → promotes adaptation, coping, and achievement
- success in school (sense of success at a meaningful task)
- Increase in community relationships due to the felt need for families to bond and support one another
- high intelligence
- Bilingual abilities allow children more opportunities for children to help parents, succeed in school and in future endeavors- may increase self efficacy, job skills, indepence
- friendships (may buffer children from advserse effects of negative events, such as as family conflict and parents’ unemployment)
divorce-protective
- Relief following resolution of problems that led to divorce
- Non-resident parents continue to support financially
- Custodial parents psychologically healthy
- easy temperament of child
- role models
- school success
- siblings, extended family, and friends as a support
- child high intelligence
- self-esteem and self-advocacy
