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Evidence of non-economic indicators as markers of success for youth in youth employability programs: Insights from a South African study.

ABSTRACT: Evaluation studies of youth employment programs prioritize employment and earnings outcomes and use these indicators to determine what labor market interventions are most successful. Evidence from pre and post data of a cluster randomized controlled longitudinal study, consisting of 1 892 youth between 18 and 25 years who participated in Youth Employability Programs (YEPs) in South Africa, confirms the importance of the inclusion of non-economic indicators to measure success for youth. This study provides evidence that non-economic markers of success such as job-search resilience, self-esteem, self-efficacy and future orientation are potentially important in the transition to employment in the longer term and points to the need for more evaluations that use these markers to predict youth's success in employment. The findings further suggest that these non-economic outcomes, which were conceptualized as intermediary outcomes, can influence how young people manage the increasingly protracted and difficult transition to work. The study enlarges our understanding of the non-linear and protracted pathways of youth transitions to work in a development context, and how to best support youth in this transition period. These findings have implications for rethinking YEP evaluation outcomes that could lead to adaptive programming and management of interventions.

SUBMITTER: Patel L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7449934 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Evidence of non-economic indicators as markers of success for youth in youth employability programs: Insights from a South African study.

Patel Leila L Graham Lauren L Chowa Gina G

Children and youth services review 20200827

Evaluation studies of youth employment programs prioritize employment and earnings outcomes and use these indicators to determine what labor market interventions are most successful. Evidence from pre and post data of a cluster randomized controlled longitudinal study, consisting of 1 892 youth between 18 and 25 years who participated in Youth Employability Programs (YEPs) in South Africa, confirms the importance of the inclusion of non-economic indicators to measure success for youth. This stud ...[more]

PMID: 32868958

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Project description:Facilitated learning approaches are increasingly being used as a means to enhance climate and sustainability collaborations working across disciplines, regions, and scales. With investments into promoting and supporting inter- and transdisciplinary learning in major programs on complex global challenges like climate change on the rise, scholars and practitioners are calling for a more grounded and empirical understanding of learning processes and their outcomes. Yet, methodologies for studying the interplay between learning and change in these initiatives remain scarce, owing to both the "hard to measure" nature of learning and the complexity of large-scale program implementation and evaluation. This paper proposes a new method for studying social learning in the context of large research programs. It aims to analyze the social learning of researchers and practitioners engaged in these programs and assess the contributions of this learning to the resilience of the natural and social systems that these programs seek to influence. We detail the theoretical basis for this new approach and set out six steps for developing multi-layered contribution pathways and contribution stories with stakeholders to document both the process and outcomes of social learning. The proposed method, we argue, can strengthen our analytical capacity to uncover the structural drivers and barriers to social learning that are often masked by the complexity of large-scale programs. An illustrative example, drawn from a large-scale climate adaptation research program, provides evidence on how this method might advance our methodological strategies for studying learning in these programs. We conclude by highlighting two key methodological contributions brought about through this approach, and by reflecting on opportunities for further methodological development. Enriching our understanding of learning and change processes, we argue, is an important avenue for understanding how we can pursue transformations for sustainability.

Project description:IntroductionImplants are a new dosage form in development for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with potential for high adherence given that they are provider-administered and are intended for long-acting protection. Integrating end-user preference into early stage product development may further overcome challenges with future product uptake and adherence. Hence, we sought to optimize the design of a PrEP implant in early-stage development by gathering opinions about implant attributes from potential end-users in South Africa.MethodsWe conducted 14 focus group discussions (FGDs) with young women and men aged 18 to 24 in Cape Town and Soshanguve, South Africa, inviting participants into discussion as co-designers. FGDs were homogenous by gender and previous implant experience. During FGDs, we showed prototype devices and followed a semi-structured guide with questions on history of contraceptive implant use, preferences for physical characteristics of an implant, implant biodegradability, insertion process, participant-driven ideas for implant design, and social adoption considerations. FGDs were facilitated in English, isiXhosa, Tswana, isiZulu, or Tsonga, audio-recorded, transcribed into English, and qualitatively coded and analysed.ResultsIn this qualitative sample of 105 youth (68 women and 37 men), 58 participants were from Soshanguve and 47 from Cape Town, and 23% had previously used contraceptive implants. Participants expressed preferences for several implant design features; specifically, longer duration (≥6 months) was more important to most participants than the size or number of devices implanted. A majority preferred a flexible versus stiff implant to minimize palpability, thereby increasing discreetness and comfort. Nearly all participants favoured a biodegradable implant to avoid removal and thus reduce clinic visits. Concerns about the implant centred on its possible side effects and the "plastic" look of the prototype displayed for demonstration.ConclusionsThis study offers preliminary insights into an implant for HIV prevention that provides long-lasting protection may be well received among young South Africans. Additionally, flexibility, discreetness, and biodegradability may increase acceptability of the implant. Such end-user feedback is being incorporated into current implant designs in the hope of creating an effective long-acting PrEP product that is likely to achieve high uptake and adherence in target populations.

Project description:High adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is essential for achieving viral suppression and preventing HIV transmission. Yet adherence is suboptimal among adolescents who face unique adherence challenges. Little is known about the role of conditional economic incentives (CEIs) for increasing ART adherence in this population. During 2017-2019, we conducted a mixed-methods discrete choice experiment in Cape Town, South Africa to inform the optimal design of a CEI intervention for ART adherence among youth. In-depth interviews were conducted with n = 35 adolescents (10-19 years old) living with HIV and prescribed ART, to identify attributes of a youth-centered CEI intervention for ART adherence. A discrete choice experiment was subsequently conducted with N = 168 adolescents to elicit preferences for intervention components. A rank-ordered mixed logit model was used for main results; marginal willingness-to-accept (mWTA) was then estimated. Five attributes emerged from the qualitative research as important for a CEI-based intervention for youth ART adherence: (1) incentive amount, (2) incentive format, (3) incentive recipient, (4) delivery mode, and (5) program participants. Youth had a high probability of acceptance of any incentives program (88-100%), yet they did not have a strong preference of a quarterly over a monthly program. From a maximum incentive amount of R1920 (~US$115), youth were willing to forgo up to R126 per year (~US$9) if the incentive was given in cash (versus fashion vouchers); R274 (~US$19.6) if it was open to both previously adherent and non-adherent youth (instead of non-adherent only); and up to R91 (~US$6.5) to receive incentives at a clinic setting (instead of electronically). The use of incentives over the short term during the critical age- and developmental-transition, when adolescents begin to take sole responsibility for their medication-taking behaviors, holds great promise for habituating adherence into adulthood.

Dataset Information

Evidence of non-economic indicators as markers of success for youth in youth employability programs: Insights from a South African study.

Publications

Evidence of non-economic indicators as markers of success for youth in youth employability programs: Insights from a South African study.

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