Developmental Asset List

External Assets 
 Support

  • Family Support - Family life provides high levels of love and support
  • Positive Family Communication - Young person and her or his parent(s) communicate positively, and young person is willing to seek advice and counsel from parent(s)
  • Other Adult Relationships - Young person receives support from three or more non-parent adults
  • Caring Neighborhood - Young person experiences caring neighbors
  • Caring School Climate - School provides a caring, encouraging environment
  • Parent Involvement in Schooling - Parent(s) are actively involved in helping young person succeed in school

 Empowerment

  • Community Values Youth - Young person perceives that adults in the community value youth
  • Youth as Resources - Young people are given useful roles in the community
  • Services to Others - Young person serves in the community 1 hour or more per week
  • Safety - Young person feels safe at home, school, and in the neighborhood

Boundaries & Expectations

  • Family Boundaries - Family has clear rules and consequences and monitors the young person's whereabouts
  • School Boundaries - School provides clear rules and consequences
  • Neighborhood Boundaries - Neighbors take responsibility for monitoring young people's behavior
  • Adult Role Models - Parent(s) and other adults model positive, responsible behavior
  • Positive Peer Influence - Young person's best friends model responsible behavior
  • High Expectations - Both parent(s) and teachers encourage the young person to do well

 Constructive Use of Time

  • Creative Activities - Young person spends 3 or more hours per week in lessons or practice in music, theater, or other arts
  • Youth Programs - Young person spends 3 or more hours per week in sports, clubs, or organizations at school and/or in the community
  • Religious Community - Young person spends 1 or more hours per week in activities in a religious institution
  • Time at Home - Young person is out with friends "with nothing special to do" 2 or fewer nights per week

Internal Assets
Commitment to Learning

  • Achievement Motivation - Young person is motivated to do well in school
  • School Engagement - Young person is actively engaged in learning
  • Homework - Young person reports doing at least 1 hour of homework every school day
  • Bonding to School - Young person cares about her or his school
  • Reading for Pleasure - Young person reads for pleasure 3 or more hours per week

 Positive Values

  • Caring - Young person places high value on helping other people
  • Equality and Social Justice - Young person places high value on promoting equality and reducing hunger and poverty
  • Integrity - Young person acts on convictions and stands up for her or his beliefs
  • Honesty - Young person "tells the truth even when it is not easy"
  • Responsibility - Young person believes it is important not to be sexually active or to use alcohol or other drugs
  • Restraint - Young person believes it is important not to be sexually active or to use alcohol or other drugs

Social Competencies

  • Planning and Decision Making - Young person knows how to plan ahead and make choices
  • Interpersonal Competence - Young person has empathy, sensitivity, and friendship skills
  • Cultural Competence - Young person has knowledge of and comfort with people of different cultural / racial / ethnic backgrounds
  • Resistance Skills - Young person can resist negative peer pressure and dangerous situations
  • Peaceful Conflict Resolution - Young person seeks to resolve conflict nonviolently

 Positive Identity

  • Personal Power - Young person feels he or she has control over "things that happen to me"
  • Self - Esteem - Young person reports having a high self-esteem
  • Sense of Purpose - Young person reports that "my life has a purpose"
  • Positive View of Personal Future - Young person is optimistic about her/his personal future
  • Positive Cultural Identity - Young person feels proud of her/his cultural background