The Power of Connection

What can assist youth in overcoming the drive to avoid reaching out to others and feel fully connected in a relational way? Who are the youth who are more likely to reach out? The present study provided a unique window into the relation of attachment avoidance and attachment anxiety to dimensions of resiliency among 94 adolescents living in a large Canadian urban centre. Although these youth came from backgrounds that emcompassed a great deal of life stress, findings revealed significant differences among these youth. Specifically, adolescents who can be characterised as stress- resilient scored significantly higher on dimensions of relationships with adults, optimism and number of adults identified as being important in comparison to those who are more stress-affected. Additionally, stress-resilient adolescents scored significantly lower on the attachment avoidance. Together, these findings have important implications for the way in which we can engage youth in growth promoting relationships.

Autorentext

Denise Buote has spent 20 years working with youth in schools,therapeutic settings and in the community. She is a trained teacher and counselor. Currently, she is engaged in community-based research and evaluation in the area of health and education. Denise has also founded a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting youth at-risk.