The peer educators in this study are drawn from communities similar to those in which they work and they share a common background with many of the youth in their PEP. This part of the review considers the psycho-social environmental influences impacting on the lives of youth peer education programme participants.
2.3.1. Defining youth.
Definitions of youths and adolescents are currently debated as changes in the workforce environment, the urban landscape and taking on of “adult” roles has shifted substantially during the last half century. A broad development period loosely termed “adolescence” is tentatively acknowledged as encasing the ages 10-24. This has been supported by earlier puberty onset (Roberts, 2013) and developments in technology that allow scientists to examine the adolescent brain. This has led to radical rethinking regarding the age of adolescence to encompass this period (Jaworska & MacQueen, 2015; Siegel, 2014; Viner et al., 2012). Many developmental researchers now concede this reframing, using age related descriptors to identify key
developmental stages in youth (Simpson, 2001): Early adolescence (10 -14) Late adolescence (15-19)
Emerging adulthood (young adults) (20-24)
Adding confusion to this discourse is the recognition of the term “youth”, used in literature and popular dialogue to refer to young people. “Youth” is ambiguous in itself; and the term may reference those in their late teens or twenties, perhaps even thirties. In South Africa youth is accepted in the political and public conversation arena, with the National Youth Policy embracing young people between the ages of 15 to 35. The term emerging adult is another newer distinction within a broader adolescence frame (Arnett, 2000). It is characterised particularly by older adolescents in the age group of 18 to 24 who do not yet fulfil the traditional roles of young adulthood (i.e., marriage, work, establishing a financially independent identity), but who through social transitions linked predominantly to urbanisation, find themselves in a period of extended adolescence usually as students. These emerging adults are not economically independent and are possibly still living with their family of origin (Arnett, 2000). It is this categorisation of youth, 18-24, who are central in peer education initiatives and whose well-being and motivation for becoming peer educators are the focus of this study.
Adolescence has long been recognised as an important time of developmental processes that youth need to negotiate for successful transition to adulthood. As adolescence spans a time
of extensive change, there are different central foci for different ages within adolescence. Key focus for young and middle adolescence (12-18) relates to vastly changing bodies, self-awareness and identity formation – through trying periods of crisis or commitment (Kroger & Marcia, 2011), whilst later adolescence (18-24) is seen as a key time of autonomy development, as youth move toward self-sufficiency (Newman & Newman, 2006). This includes evaluating “the unique strengths and vulnerabilities of young adulthood” (Young Adult Development Project, n.d., p.2), pertinent to education, civic engagement, employment and relationships (Simpson, 2011). Identity is intricately woven with goal satisfaction, in that intrinsically held goals that are evidenced in the adolescent’s identity will ultimately result in well-being (Soenens & Vansteenkiste, 2011).
The relevance of this for the study is that psychological well-being should be considered in relation to the developmental processes and stages of the young person. Wellness is particularly important in adolescence as the actions and thought patterns of this developmental time are often foundational for lifestyle choices and behaviours stretching far into adulthood (Norrish & Vella- Brodrick, 2009).
2.3.2. Exploring the environment of South African young people.
In South Africa, where under 35 year olds account for almost 66% of the population (“Young People Fact Sheet,” 2013), examination of youth data reveals background cultures of complexity (Bray et al., 2010). Youth are exposed to risk factors including unprotected sex, unhealthy eating habits, and environments conducive to substance abuse. In the majority of instances these risk factors play out against circumstances of poverty and violence (Reddy et al., 2010), from which arise many national problems including incomplete education, unemployment, crime (Reddy et al., 2010), and teenage parenthood (Morrell, Bhana, & Shefer, 2012). Ultimately, these factors can contribute to a social culture of questionable morality (Swartz, 2009).
2.3.2.1. Schooling.
School is recognised as a suitable site in providing education interventions, evaluations and monitoring environments for youth, however, quality of education is linked to social class, with youth in poorer communities facing constraints such as overcrowded classrooms and lack of resources (Jansen, 2012). This equates to youth often presenting a profile of incomplete education, and intermittent attendance ( Bray et al., 2010; Swartz, 2009). Varying levels in education mean that for many families the current youth may be the first in their family to
the lives of South African youth as schooling is compulsory until the age of 15, or attainment of the 9th grade (South Africa,1996).
2.3.2.2. Unemployment.
A recent NUMSA report (“South Africa’s youth unemployment crisis,” 2014) asserts that upward of 34% of youth between the ages of 18 and 35 have never worked. In many
communities unemployment impacts heavily on household economics with extended families sharing meagre resources, or even in cases existing only on government grants for the children and aged in the household (Bray et al., 2010). Unemployment often arises from a lack of educational qualifications, career guidance or marketable skills and career guidance has been cited as much needed strategy for youth scholars (Albien, 2013). In addition to this the changing world of work, where manual labour work is on the decrease, requires adolescents to bring forth a new set of skills to maintain well-being. Problem solving, creativity and the ability to set goals are just some of the competencies needed for the next generation of workers (Larson, 2011).
2.3.2.3. The family.
Although many youth report loving and close family relationships, for the majority of youth in South Africa family systems and structures show splintered familial connections. This is linked to a variety of factors: the prevalence of ravishing diseases such as HIV/Aids (Smit, 2007); high unemployment rates (Index Mundi, 2013); the legacy of apartheid forced removals
(Budlender & Lund, 2011); alarming rates of alcohol and drug abuse (Parry & Bennetts, 1999) and high levels of spousal/partner abuse (Pretorius, Naidoo, & Reddy, 2009). Bray et al. (2010) found that emotional strength and support when available is often provided by mothers to daughters; and occasionally through older siblings. But for male adolescents the absence of a father figure will often leave the youth without a positive adult role model (Larson, 2000). The need for parental support has been found to be a significant predictor of adolescent autonomous self-regulation and well-being (Niemiec et al., 2006). Further, Campbell and MacPhail (2002) found that the absence of positive adult role models in a youth’s life can derail successful
outcomes of a peer education programme. Parental influence lessens in adolescence as the youth moves toward individuation (Petersen et al., 2010) and the young person may be more
susceptible to peer influence.
2.3.2.4. Peer pressure.
Peer pressure has dominant focus in the discourse of youth and is implicit in the presence of negative behaviours and norms in youth (Selikow et al., 2009). Peer pressure is attributed as the primary reason for risky sexual behaviour and is also present in discourse of why youth succumb to influences of alcohol and drug abuse. It is theorized that inadequate knowledge base
and a lack of decision making skills makes it easier for youth to submit to social pressure and engage in unhealthy behaviour (Swartz, 2009; Turner & Shepherd, 1999). Peer pressure is a focal topic of peer education programmes for scholars and youth (Baptiste et al., 2006) which attempt to harness peer influence positively (Frantz, 2015).
2.3.2.5. Significant relationships.
For many youth, in particular younger adolescents who find it difficult to regulate emotions and behaviour, there is a lack of clarity about what constitutes a healthy relationship.
Adolescents may embark on inappropriate relationships, which might result in risky or dangerous behaviour. Violence and gender inequality are dominant discourses in youth dating and intimate relationships (Mason-Jones et al., 2011) with coercion and abuse often reported. Although sexual behaviours are acknowledged as starting in early adolescence (Zuma et al., 2010), not all
adolescent relationships involve sex (Stellenberg & Corfield, 2013).
2.3.2.6. Sexual health.
In many communities there is little or no discussion about sex and sexuality between parents and youth and sexual practices of the adolescent may be in contradiction of cultural and social norms or, of that of their family (Gouws, Kruger, & Burger, 2008). This can cause disruption in parent-youth relationships, as the media constantly promotes sexual awareness and contrasting social norms among peers invite sexual experiences (Reddy et al., 2010). In a bid to avoid parental disapproval many adolescents may hide their dating and sexual practices (Bray et al., 2010). Teenage pregnancy is common, with distribution correlated to communities of poverty and nearly one third of births in South Africa attributed to young mothers (Morrell et al., 2012). Obtaining contraceptives is often difficult for girls in particular, who cannot talk to their mothers and who report prejudice at local clinics (Bray et al., 2010). There is a strong awareness of sexually transmitted diseases, such as HIV/Aids gained through governmental policy
awareness campaign at schools and in public media. However, youth directives such as peer pressure, poor impulse control and feelings of invulnerability challenge initiatives, with an estimated nearly 50% of new HIV/Aids cases generating from youth (Sharp, Ph, & Dellis, 2010).
2.3.2.7. Gangs.
Gang membership is a reality of youth culture within South Africa, associated with
negative factors including violence, crime, drug use and death. Reasons for joining a gang appear to be exacerbated by association with delinquent peers and the lack of positive developmental influences in adolescent lives (Gilman, Hill, David, Howell, & Kosterman, 2014).
2.3.3. Addressing youth problems.
Working with youth toward achieving optimal health has become a critical project of Government intervention, with mental health instability, substance abuse and potential chronic diseases identified as prevalent risk factors in the youth population. Identified strategies target health promotion and encourage education initiatives to address morbidity and mortality factors that affect youth (Reddy et al., 2010), and that implement intervention and support that will enable the youth to make “informed choices regarding behaviours that impact on their health and quality of their life” (Reddy et al., 2010, p.82). There is a stressing of the importance for
adolescents to develop competencies that will enable them to become well-functioning adults in a demanding and changing society (Larson, 2011). Organised youth activities have empirically been shown to impart a number of developmental and social skills (Barnett, 2005; Pearce & Larson, 2006) and peer, family and community social connections are highlighted as key
protective factors in contexts affecting health and wellness outcomes in youth (Viner et al., 2012).