Youth Thrive Survey
Description / Purpose:
The Youth Thrive Survey measures the presence and strength of the Youth Thrive Protective and Promotive Factors, specifically:
- Youth Resilience
- Social Connections
- Knowledge of Adolescent Development
- Concrete Supports in Times of Need
- Cognitive and Social-Emotional Competence
The Youth Thrive Survey™ is a valid and reliable youth self-report instrument that measures the presence, strength, and growth of protective and promotive factors as proxy indicators of well-being. Designed with significant input from youth and young adults, the Youth Thrive Survey can be an effective tool for informing case planning and practice, evaluation, and continuous quality improvement (CQI) purposes. The Youth Thrive Survey is free. It provides an array of data reports that can be used to inform policy and practice decisions and measure positive indicators of well-being for youth and young adults.
There are 77 items on the Youth Thrive Survey in total; 11 of those items are demographic questions.
The Youth Thrive Survey is appropriate for use as:
- An assessment instrument to identify strengths and areas that need strengthening to inform case planning with youth and young adults
- An evaluation instrument to measure the effectiveness of interventions or other programs for youth and young adults
- A continuous quality improvement instrument to measure and monitor progress; inform policy and practice decisions; and measure well-being outcomes for youth
Target Population: Any youth and young adult ages 12 to 26 years; especially those involved intervening public systems such as child welfare, juvenile courts, and behavioral health
Time to Administer: Less than 15 minutes
Completed By: Youth and young adults themselves
Modalities Available: Computerized; Pen and Paper; Online; Can be taken on cell phones
Scoring Information: Generated by the online platform maintained by CSSP and our partner Metis, the Survey yields two basic types of data. Responses to individual survey items. These can be useful if an organization is interested in learning about a very specific characteristic, such as a positive indicator of success (e.g., “I have learned how to make good decisions”) or a “red flag” (e.g., “I am sad most of the time”). Composite scores for each section of the Survey, which can be useful if an organization is interested in learning about the presence of a Youth Thrive™ protective and promotive factor (PPF). Both types of data can be obtained for individuals for assessment purposes or for entire groups or subgroups for evaluation and continuous quality improvement purposes. Scores are generated by assigning values of 1 to 5 to the rating scale (1 = not at all like me, 5 = very much like me) and calculating either the total or the average of the scored items within a section. Note that negative items (e.g., “I give up when things get hard”) require reverse scoring: the values of the rating scale choices must be reversed (1 = very much like me, 5 = not at all like me). Using this method, an average score can be generated across all items within a section, yielding a score ranging from 1.00 to 5.00. Because the same range is used for all sections, the user can make comparisons between sections. For example, by comparing two sections the user can detect that an individual is stronger in one Protective and Promotive Factor than in another. Missing data will not impact the average score since the number of items is accounted for in calculations. It is important to note that the Youth Thrive Survey has not yet been normed—that is, there is no national average, and a particular score or range of scores does not mean that an individual or group is strong or weak in a Factor. However, section scores are useful for comparison purposes, for example, to track change over time or to compare subgroups.
Languages Available: Arabic, English, Farsi, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Tigrinya
Training Requirements for Intended Users: There are no training requirements to use the Youth Thrive Survey tool. A user manual is available to support users in administering the Survey, and there are online videos available with instructions. The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) responds to individual questions and requests for information on the Survey. Training on the Youth Thrive Protective and Promotive Factors is available.
Availability: The Youth Thrive Survey is available online to be administered using CSSP’s Survey platform. The Survey may be completed using a computer, tablet, or other mobile device. The Survey is available free of charge to organizations that serve young people. There is a simple on-line registration process, open to all, to access the Survey and resulting data. The manual citation is: Center for the Study of Social Policy. (2018) Youth Thrive Survey user manual. https://cssp.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Youth-Thrive-Survey-User-Manual.pdf
Contact Information
- Company: Center for the Study of Social Policy
- Website: cssp.org/project/youth-thrive
- Name: Lisa Mishraky-Javier
- Email: lisa.mishrakyjavier@cssp.org
- Phone: (202) 866-6613
- Company: Center for the Study of Social Policy
- Website: cssp.org/project/youth-thrive
- Name: Francie Zimmerman
- Email: francie.zimmerman@cssp.org
Summary of Relevant Psychometric Research
This tool has received the Measurement Tools Rating of "B – Psychometrics Demonstrated" based on the published, peer-reviewed research available. The tool must have 1 published, peer-reviewed study that has established the measure’s psychometrics (e.g., reliability and validity, sensitivity and specificity, etc.). Please see the Measurement Tools Rating Scale for more information.
Harper Browne, C. H., & Mishraky-Javier, L. (2021). Validation of a protective and promotive factors measure: The Youth Thrive Survey. Journal of Youth Development, 16(4), 70–87. https://doi.org/10.5195/jyd.2021.933
Sample:
Participants — Participants: Focus groups (N= 32), cognitive interviews (N=11), and field testing (Round 1 N=316, Round 2 N=204)
Race/Ethnicity — Focus groups - LGBTQ+ youth and young adults (eight participants, ages 18 to 22); two groups of African American youth (11 participants involved in a church group, ages 11 to 18 and 14 participants involved in a community organization, ages 11 to 17); and
Summary:
This article describes the background, development, and validation of the strengths-based, youth-driven Youth Thrive Survey, which measures the five protective and promotive factors delineated in the Youth Thrive Framework, specifically: youth resilience, social connections, knowledge of adolescent development, concrete support in times of need, and cognitive and social-emotional competence. Draft instruments were created that included new items and adapted items from existing validated instruments. Revisions were based on feedback from young people who participated in focus groups, cognitive interviews, and field testing. Cronbach’s alpha was calculated to measure the internal consistency and reliability of the full instrument and the five protective and promotive factor subscales. Principal component analyses revealed items that did not fit well within the instrument structure and subsequently were eliminated. Analyses of the final version of the instrument showed that the Youth Thrive Survey has high levels of internal consistency and reliability. All alphas for the subscales were greater than 0.80, and the alpha for the full instrument was 0.963. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) yielded a measurement that indicated that the instrument achieved marginal discriminant validity (0.088). This finding suggests that although the items in each subscale measure a separate protective and promotive factor, there is also considerable overlap among the items in the subscales. This result is not surprising because the Youth Thrive protective and promotive factors are interrelated, as are the items that were selected to measure them.
Kennard, B. D., Hughes, J. L., Minhajuddin, A., Slater, H., Blader, J. C., Mayes, T. L., Kirk, C., Wakefield, S. M. & Trivedi, M. H. (2023). Suicidal thoughts and behaviors in youth seeking mental health treatment in Texas: Youth Depression and Suicide Network research registry. Suicide and Life‐Threatening Behavior, 53(5), 748–763. https://doi.org/10.1111/sltb.12980
Sample:
Participants — N=1000
Race/Ethnicity — 66% White, 11% More than one race, 10% African American, 10% Other, and 2% Unknown
Summary:
Suicidality in youths is a serious public health problem. The Texas Youth Depression and Suicide Research Network (TX- YDSRN) was initiated in 2020 to create a research registry for youth with depression and/or suicidality in Texas. This report presents baseline clinical/demographic characteristics of the first 1000 participants, focusing on suicidal thoughts and behaviors. The registry includes 8–to 20-year-old youth receiving treatment for depression, or who have screened positive for depression and/or suicidal ideation/behavior. Baseline data include diagnosis, depression/anxiety severity, suicidal ideation/behavior, trauma history, and measures of resilience. Most (79.6%) of the sample had a primary depressive disorder. The sample had moderate to severe depression (Patient Health Questionnaire for Adolescents, PHQ- A; 12.9 ± 6.4) and anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder, GAD- 7; 11.3 ± 5.9). Nearly half reported ≥1 lifetime suicide attempts, and 90% reported lifetime or current suicidal ideation. Participants with past/current suicidality (attempts and/or ideation) had greater illness severity (depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts/behaviors), lower resilience, and higher rates of trauma exposure than those without suicidality. On the Youth Thrive Survey™, there was greater resilience, connectedness, and competence in those without suicide ideation nor attempt compared to groups with suicidality (ideation and attempt, or ideation only), demonstrating the validity of the measure, although the difference was small.
Date Reviewed: March 2025
