Reframing Developmental Relationships
A set of tools organizations can use to reframe communications around developmental relationships and move toward becoming a relationship-rich organization.
Reframing Developmental Relationships is a set of tools that used together can help organizations continue their journey toward prioritizing and deepening the developmental relationships that all young people need to grow and thrive.
Virtually everyone in education and youth work agrees that relationships are vital. Yet as a society and in communities we continually underinvest in and even undermine developmental relationships — especially when it comes to young people from marginalized communities who most need and want them.
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Reframing Developmental Relationships
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Three Tools for Reframing Developmental Relationships
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This report is the result of a two-year study from FrameWorks Institute. It calls for “a profoundly different orientation toward relationships and—specifically—how our society should approach them collectively, through policies and programs.” It outlines seven tested recommendations for communicating developmental relationships in a way that moves the public beyond preconceptions of relationships toward new, broader understandings of—and investments in—the kinds of relationships young people need to thrive.
Download Report here
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This qualitative study looks at the communication challenges that emerge in the gap between researchers’ understanding of developmental relationships and public understandings of relationships in young people’s lives.
Download Report here
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This toolkit provides guidance for communicators on what points to emphasize and what to leave unsaid — for experts, advocates, and practitioners to make an effective case for investing in relationships.
Find the toolkit here
Related Resources for School and Youth Program Staff
Guide
Survey Communication Guide
Report / Brief
Research Brief: Developmental Relationships in Schools
Discover how developmental relationships between students and adults in school settings enhance attendance, motivation, and engagement for student success.
Podcast
Rooted in Relationships: Episode 1.4 Ashley Whillans
Episode 1.4 - Dr. Ashley Whillans - Creating space for what matters most
Related Resources for School and Youth Organization Leaders
Video
Developmental Relationships in Real Life
A video highlighting the effects of implementing Search Institute’s developmental relationships framework with five organizations working with young people.
Activity
Roses and Thorns
A check-in activity that invites participants to share the highs and lows of their week.
Video
We Meet Them Where They Are
A 5-minute video introducing five Search Institute partners working in marginalized communities.