1 YOUNG MEN IN WESTERN SYDNEY AND QUALITY SERVICE ...

1YOUNG MEN IN WESTERN SYDNEY AND QUALITY SERVICE PROVISION– ISSUES FOR CONSIDERATIONAbstractVanessa D’SouzaHigh Street Health Service, 65 High Street, Harris Park NSW 2150This paper reports on an analysis of the results of consultations with youth service providers and youngmen, as conducted by the Western Sydney Young Men’s Needs Assessment Forum (WSYMNAF). TheWSYMNAF comprised of community-based and government youth service providers from Parramatta,Blacktown and Holroyd Local Government Areas. It was formed to assess the current needs of, andresources available to, young men and youth service providers. The needs assessment that was conductedwas seen as an opportunity to assist the working party in determining strategies for developing newresources and/or better accessing existing ones.A final report documenting the project was made available to service providers and interested communitymembers in December 2000. The report documents the process and findings of the project. It alsoprovides feedback from consultations with young men and service providers, as well as a collection ofresources and literature that are specifically for young men.The findings of the WSYMNAF project suggest that young men and youth service providers havedifferent perceptions as to the needs of young men and the potential mediums for engaging them. Youngmen and youth service providers cited different issues as being important to young men and differentmediums for presenting and receiving information and support.Given the small sample size and different questions used to survey youth service providers and youngmen, the analysis is not representative of all service provision for young men in Western Sydney.However, a number of issues have emerged from this project. These issues include:• The need to ask young men for their opinions and ideas;• Strategies for effective group work with young men;• The problem with focusing on the ‘pathologies’ of young men;• Effective interventions for the development of resiliency in young people; and• The importance of family and school connectedness for positive youth development.The project findings highlight areas requiring further research and emphasises issues that requireconsideration when providing services to young men.THE WESTERN SYDNEY YOUNG MEN’S NEEDS ASSESSMENT PROJECTBackgroundThe Western Sydney Young Men’s Needs Assessment Forum (WSYMNAF) projectstemmed from youth service providers sharing their concerns that there were limitedresources specifically targeting young men in Western Sydney. Workers were aware ofservices and resources for working with young women in a variety of settings but couldnot locate any such resources for young men. However, current literature and researchdemonstrates the high rates of morbidity and mortality in men (NSW Chief HealthOfficer’s Report, 1999) 1 .1 Cited in Woods et al (2000:1).

2A working party of youth service providers from various parts of Western Sydneyconducted a preliminary needs assessment to assess the current needs of, and resourcesavailable to, young men and youth service providers. The needs assessment was seen asan opportunity to assist the working party in determining strategies for developing newresources and/or better accessing existing ones.Final documentation of the project and its findings form the report titled ‘Young Men inWestern Sydney and Quality Service Provision – A Needs Assessment’ (2000). Itprovides feedback from consultations with young men and service providers, as well asa collection of resources and literature that are specific to young men.A survey was conducted to assess the needs and concerns of youth service providersworking with young males in Western Sydney. The survey for youth service providerswas completed by thirty-one different services. A total of twenty young men wereconsulted by utilising data from the Wentworthville Youth Needs Survey, a survey beingpiloted by youth service providers in the Parramatta LGA. A wide representation of agegroups completed the survey, ranging from 11–20 years of age.The project’s consultations were limited due to the changing membership of theworking party, the departure of the initial coordinator, and the diversity of servicesrepresented at working party meetings.An analysis of the survey findingsThe survey findings indicated that the few services specifically for young men tended totake the form of group workshops. Service providers also indicated that they would liketo see the development of more group work projects. Sixteen services listed group workas the preferred medium for working with young men. Other mediums that weresuggested included individual support; camps and outdoors activities; streetwork/outreach; education; and drop-in/youth groups.However, information from the Wentworthville Youth Needs Survey indicates thatyoung men may be more likely to speak to ‘nobody’ or parents and friends, rather thanspeak to a youth worker. The surveys also indicate a preference for posters to presentinformation. Information cards and workshops received some interest from only a fewrespondents.Based on the information gathered from service providers about what they perceived tobe important issues for young men, the highest four responses (based on their meanscores) were as follows: Drugs and Alcohol; Violence and Aggression; Family Issuesand Relationships and Education.However, the information gathered through the initial implementation of theWentworthville Youth Needs Survey indicated that young men, in contrast to serviceproviders, identify police, security guards and work as being issues of importance tothem. It is difficult to translate the answers from the young men to those of the youthservice providers, as the surveys are dissimilar. Nevertheless, the difference between theresponses of the young men and the youth service providers indicates the need forfurther consultation with young men regarding their needs and experiences.

3Service providers requested educational resources and training to provide them withcurrent information and effective strategies to work with young men. Some serviceproviders also suggested training in group work facilitation; making assessments; andensuring youth participation. Other ideas included the provision of a list of supportservices and continuing to lobby for resources.In addition, the literature and resources gathered through the survey of youth serviceproviders, indicated that there are a number of programs, networks, services andresources that seek to address the needs of young men and service providers, throughvarious means.SummaryThe findings of the WSYMNAF project suggest that young men and youth serviceproviders have different perceptions as to the needs of young men and the potentialmediums for engaging them. Young men and youth service providers cited differentissues as being important to young men and different mediums for presenting andreceiving information and support.In summary, the project findings indicate that:1. Youth service providers may not be aware of the number of resources andservices currently available for increasing their skills and abilities to supportyoung men effectively.2. The brief comparison between the responses of the young men and the youthservice providers indicates the need for further consultation with young menregarding their needs and experiences. Service providers may have to review thepresenting problems and explore their determinants in greater detail.3. Youth service providers may not necessarily be a part of a young man’s primarysupport network. Further exploration of this issue may result in service providersbeing able to identify and support the people and services that young men moreregularly access.KEY POINTS FOR CONSIDERATION1. “We’re not listening to young men”The findings of the WSYMNAF report represent an interesting dilemma for peopleworking with young men. However, the discrepancy between the perceptions of youngpeople and youth service providers is not a new concept. In 1992 a series ofconsultations were facilitated with young people of non-English speaking backgroundsand youth workers in Western Sydney 2 . In this case, when asked to identify the majorproblem they faced as young people from ethnic minority groups, the young men andwomen nominated racism and discrimination. In contrast, the youth workers and otherservice providers who worked with ethnic minority young people placed racism seventh2 The findings of these consultations form the document titled NESB Youth Needs inBlacktown and Parramatta (1992), cited in Zelinka (1995).

4on a list of eight major problems. Other issues such as unemployment, lack of trainingopportunities and poor public transport were ranked as more important.The need to genuinely listen to young men is an issue not foreign to other sectors. Sladeand Trent’s paper (2000) summarises the views of 1800 year 9 to year 11 male studentsabout declining rates of achievement and retention in schools. Their multi-stage projectutilised questionnaires and focus groups to collect valuable feedback, which indicatedthat male high school students believe that the adult world is ‘not listening’, and ‘notreally interested’.Understandably, the role of the school system and teachers in the lives of young menplays a different role to that of youth service providers and youth workers. Nonetheless,parallels can be drawn. Just as in Slade and Trent’s research (2000), if time and effort istaken to ask young men about the issues that are currently facing them and their peers,so too could youth service providers learn much about the reality of young men and thestrategies required to provide quality community services.However, responding to people’s needs requires some critical analysis and thought.That is, ‘needs’ are shaped by various social and political forces and the satisfaction ofthe perceived need may not necessarily be good or helpful for the person identifying it.According to Flowers (1998:34), youth workers should not only be wary of imposingtheir own view and expectations on the client’s needs, but they must also recognise thedanger involved in articulating a need at face value — without some analysis of theunderlying complexities.2. An analysis of group work as a medium for working with young menThe survey for youth service providers asked them to identify the most appropriatemedium and subject matter for their service’s target group. In relation to medium,sixteen out of the twenty-two respondents for this question stated ‘group work / groupactivities’ as the preferred medium for addressing the needs of their target group ofyoung men.This contradicts the findings of projects such as The Game, whereby group workactivities for young men rate poorly. Critchlow (1998:45) describes the success of TheGame, the result of an 18-month project in the United Kingdom aimed at increasingopportunities for young men to meet and communicate their feelings, frustrations andconcerns. The theme for the project developed from the realisation that young menpreferred to speak on a one-to-one basis to speak about the difficulties they faced in life,love and work. However, group-based situations were found to be avoided by youngmen. In fact, one of the three major factors relevant to the Salisbury project was that“young men are very reluctant to join groups” (Critchlow 1998:45).It must be acknowledged that there are different forms of group work, each havingdifferent aims, such as therapy, the provision of health education, or focus groups toelicit information. In addition, whether a group work session is voluntary or compulsorymay have an impact on participation.

5From High Street Youth Health Service’s experience, young men have particularpreferences in the format of group work sessions. The evaluation of collaborative groupwork projects such as The Self Image Project 3 indicate that group work facilitators forgroups with male high school students often require different types of activities topromote discussion. Group work evaluations completed by young men tended toindicate a preference for small group activities that have competitive and/or creativeaspects to them. Small group discussions, group games and ‘hands-on’ activities weregreeted with greater enthusiasm by the male students, rather than brainstorming andlarge group discussions (High Street Youth Health Service 1999:21).Hence, current strategies employed by youth service providers for engaging young menand providing them with information and support may require further exploration toensure that they are meeting the needs of the target group and are the preferred mediumfor meeting the aims of the project.3. The ‘pathologies’ of young menThe survey for youth service providers also asked them to identify the topic areas ofneed for their service’s target group. The most commonly identified issue related toviolence and aggression.There is concern that identified men’s health issues tend to be focussed on theprevention of illness and/or negative presenting behaviours. This trend is demonstratedby the survey responses from youth service providers who articulated the need forprograms targeting violence and aggression for young men. However, other streamssuch as health and education also have a tendency to focus on the negative presentingbehaviours of men. For example, Macdonald, McDermott and di Campli (2000:2) voicetheir concern about health’s ongoing interest in the pathology of men’s health such astesticular and prostate cancer. However, of even more concern to the authors is theongoing social pathology of men — for example, the apparent focus on men’s violenceand the prevention of abuse.Slade and Trent (2000:204) also identify a trend in pathologising young men in theeducation system by treating them in terms of ‘problem boys’ who are not coping,rather than problems that male students are generally facing while trying to fulfil theirlearning needs. In recent group work sessions with year 7 students at a local coeducationalhigh school, High Street Youth Health Service staff reported that a numberof the male students also disclosed that several teachers described female students as“the lovely girls”, whilst male students were described as “the troublemaking boys”.Furthermore, Slade and Trent’s (2000:211) findings indicate that the male studentsbelieve that teachers tend to misinterpret behavioural problems because “they don’t askhow and why something happened, and with an open mind”. The students suggestedthat teachers needed to listen more and recognise the variety of factors that are involved.3 The aim of The Self Image Project (High Street Youth Health Service 1999) was toraise awareness of and increase the potential for young people in Year 9 from two localco-educational high schools, to deal effectively with societal pressures to conform toparticular images, roles and expectations.

6This highlights the need to recognise the existence of both individual and contextualvariables, which influence young people’s engagement in crime and violence. Lerner etal (1998:11) cites other research, which demonstrates that aggressive conduct has beenlinked to individual variables such as an aggressive personality (Cairns and Cairns1994); poor judgement (Graham et al 1997); and the sex of the young person(Ketterlinus et al 1994). Yet, Lerner et al (1998:11)) also cites research thatdemonstrates contextual variables such as peer and family influences. These includerigid family relations that lack cohesion and the existence of highly aggressive peers(Baske et al 1989).Thus, there is some concern that the type of interventions proposed by service providersin Western Sydney may tend to focus on individual factors only. Research indicates thatyouth service providers tend to focus on day-to-day issues the individual client presentrather than on the structural issues that underpin the presenting problems (Flowers1998).Effective programs for dealing with youth crime and violence have been found to bethose that involve all the people with a role in the positive development of theindividual young person, including the young person himself or herself (Lerner1998:11). Subsequently, rather than focusing on ‘anger management’, programs shouldattempt to deal with the various other problems facing the young person, in anintegrated approach.Hence, further consultations and analysis of current programs in Western Sydneyaddressing ‘anger management’ is required. It would be of great concern if youthservice providers were only providing programs that failed to address the social, culturaland familial influences impacting on young men in relation to violence and aggression.4. Effective interventions for the development of resiliency in young peopleStrategies for modifying negative presenting behaviour, such as anger managementgroups and so on, tend to be focused on reducing the likelihood or risk of a negativebehaviour or outcome. However, research indicates that projects that focus on riskreductiondo not work (Blum 1998). There is a movement away from a focus on riskfactors. Current research and literature now focuses on resiliency and the importance ofthe adaptation of individuals, families and communities through the development ofprotective factors.Blum (1999:2) argues that interventions that focus on the attainment of knowledgeand/or used fear as a means for motivation are unlikely to reduce the problem beingtargeted and are even likely to exacerbate the problem. This is namely due to lack ofconsideration about the factors that motivate behavioural change.Dusenbury et al (1997, cited in Blum 1999:5) identify the following themes and featuresof unsuccessful interventions:• Scare tactics• Segregating aggressive students

7• Short-term interventions• Identification of pre-violent adolescents• Providing knowledge and information (which are insufficient to changebehaviour, i.e. there is a difference between access and utilisation)• Building self-esteemIn contrast, successful and effective programs for young people do not solely focus ondecreasing the risk. According to Lerner et al (1998:16) successful programs focus onthe strength and assets of young people. That is, there is a balance between the attentiongiven to a young person’s individual character and to the social context within whichthey live. That is, the protective factors such as individual attributes like self-esteem,religious values, knowledge, skills and motivation to do well; and contextual attributeslike family, peer connectedness and social support.Blum (1998:372) stresses the importance of resiliency-based strategies, which “build onindividual strengths and aim at addressing those factors that predispose an individual toone or multiple risks”.Resiliency has been defined as:“… the capacity of individuals, families, groups, and communities to cope successfullyin the face of significant adversity or risk. This capability changes over time, isenhanced by protective factors in the individual/system and the environment, andcontributes to the maintenance and enhancement of health” (Mangham, McGrath, Reidand Stewart 1995:4).Dryfoos (1990, cited in Lerner et al 1998:16) identifies that effective programs have thefollowing eleven features:• Intensive individualised attention• Community-wide, multi-agency collaboration• Early identification and intervention• Locus in schools• Administration of school programs by agencies outside of schools• Location of programs outside of schools• Arrangements for training• Social skills training• Engagement of peers in interventions• Involvement of parents• Link to the world of workHigh Street Youth Health Service 4 (HSYHS) provides programs that feature the abovementionedelements of effective intervention. For example, the Education Programsinclude educational case management and advocacy; a Certificate in Adult FoundationEducation (roughly equates to year 9 Literacy and Numeracy); a Statement in4 HSYHS is a unit of Western Sydney Area Health Service and was established toprovide a holistic service for young people 12–25 who are homeless or at risk ofbecoming homeless.

8attainment in Adult Foundation Education (Basic Literacy and Numeracy); Child Care;First Aid; Distance Education supervision and Certificate in General and VocationalEducation (Year 10 equivalent). The prime objective of these programs is to reconnectyoung people back into education. The programs target young people who are eitheralienated from, or have tenuous links with, their school or the education system (Ziegleret al 2001).The Education Program recognises that traditionally, young people with behaviouralissues have had their presenting behaviours pathologised. As a result, these youngpeople have been moved to specialised behavioural programs, which have highlightedand often worsened the presenting behaviour. However, HSYHS’s Education Programdoes not focus on these presenting pathologies, as may be the case in the traditionalschooling system. Instead, through the provision of flexible and supportiveenvironments and the reinforcement of the positive aspects of education, students of theEducation Programs subsequently do not present with behavioural disorders and alsoare more likely to continue with their education (Ziegler et al 2001).Resnick et al (1997) advocate for community-based services such as HSYHS, whichcan deliver educational, social and health services to address the needs of young peoplewho are at a high risk of engaging in behaviours that place them at serious risk of harmand ill-health.5. The importance of family and school connectedness for positive youthdevelopmentThe results from the Wentworthville Youth Needs Survey indicate that some young menwould prefer not to speak to anyone about their problems. This is an area for concernand possibly further research. However, young men also indicated that they would belikely to speak to their parents and/or friends, hence, confirming the importance of thesesocial supports in the lives of young men. The importance of social support and goodrelations in terms of an individual’s health is well-documented (Macdonald, McDermottand di Campli (2000:5).In particular, parent-family connectedness and perceived school connectedness havebeen shown to be powerful protective factors. Resnick et al (1997) found that parentfamilyconnectedness and perceived school connectedness were protective againsthealth risk behaviours such as violence, substance use, suicidality and sex. In short, thisstudy provided evidence that perceived caring and connectedness to others areimportant to young people’s health and well-being.The survey results from the WSYMNAF project demonstrate that young men may notdirectly access youth service providers for information or support. Hence, serviceproviders need to acknowledge and support the crucial roles that parents/families andsignificant others play.In addition, youth service providers may need to work collaboratively with other sectorsin order to better meet the needs of their young men. Lerner et al (1998) emphasise thata comprehensive approach across services and sectors is required in order to address theinterconnected issues facing young people. Sawyer and Bowes (1999:4) also recognise

9the importance of building partnerships with other sectors working with young peoplesuch as education, youth, welfare or juvenile justice, in order to achieve sustainableresponses and better health outcomes for young people. This requires acknowledgementof the wide range of contextual social, economic and developmental factors, whichinfluence young people’s health and well-being.CONCLUDING COMMENTSThe WSYMNAF report provides service providers with an opportunity to consider:! Networking with other services to share ideas and develop innovative programsand services for young men;! Conducting further consultations with young men to further explore their needsand experiences;! Researching and developing alternative forms of service delivery to target youngmen;! Recognising the need to acknowledge and support the social systems andservices that young men may currently access; and! Developing programs that enhance protective factors through the school, familyand community.This paper aims to encourage further research into current service delivery and the selfdescribedneeds of young men. It also highlights the need to view service deliveryoptions through resiliency-based strategies that acknowledge the complex social,familial and environmental structures that underpin the presenting behaviours of youngmen.Much research has been conducted overseas reviewing practice and suggesting modelsfor effective intervention. The youth sector in Australia lacks such an evidence base thatwould guide and support the development and implementation of quality serviceprovision for young men. Further research and support from policy makers is requiredin order to provide comprehensive and effective programs that address the needs ofyoung people, and young men in particular.We have the opportunity to tackle these challenges head on and to potentially witnesspositive developments in service provision for young men, and contribute to asubsequent improvement in the health and well-being of young men.REFERENCESBlum, R. W. (1998) ‘Healthy Youth Development as a Model for Youth HealthPromotion’, Journal of Adolescent Health, Vol. 22, pp. 368-375.Blum, R. W. (1999) Positive Youth Development: Reducing Risk, Improving Health,paper prepared for the Child & Adolescent Health & Development Health Systems &Community Health, World Health Organisation, Geneva, December 1999.Critchlow, J. (1998) ‘Freedom of Speech: an Innovative Project from the UK’, YouthStudies Australia, Vol. 17, No. 1, 1998:43-45.

10Flowers, R. (1998) ‘How Effective are Youth Workers in Activating Young People’sVoices’, Youth Studies Australia, Vol. 17, No. 4, 1998:34-40.High Street Youth Health Service (1999) The Self Image Project, Sydney.Lerner, R. M. and Galambos, N. L. (1998) ‘Adolescent Development: Challenges andOpportunities for Research, Programs, and Policies’, Annual Review of Psychology,Vol. 49 (1998), pp 413-446.Macdonald, J.J., McDermott, D. and di Campli, C. (2000) Making it OK to be Male:The Role of a Positive Approach to the Health and Well-being of Boys and Men,presented at the 8 th National Australian Suicide Prevention Conference, 2000.Mangham, C., McGrath, P., Reid, G. and Stewart, M. (1995) Resiliency: Relevance toHealth Promotion, discussion paper submitted to the Alcohol and Other Drugs Unit,Health Canada, Atlantic Health Promotion Research Centre, Dalhousie University,Canada.Resnick, M. D., Bearman, P. S., Blum, R. W., Bauman, K. E., Harris, K. M., Jones, J.,Tabor, J., Beuhring, T., Sieving, R. E., Shew, M., Ireland, M., Bearinger, L. H. andUdry, J. R. (1997) ‘Protecting Adolescents from Harm: Findings from the NationalLongitudinal Study on Adolescent Health’, Journal of the American MedicalAssociation, Vol. 278 (10), September 1997, pp. 823-832.Sawyer, S. M. and Bowes, G. (1999) ‘Adolescence Health on the Agenda’, The Lancet,Vol. 354, September 1999, pp SII 31-SII 34.Slade, M. and Trent, F. (2000) ‘What the Boys are Saying: An Examination of theViews of Boys about Declining Rates of Achievement and Retention’, InternationalEducation Journal, Vol. 1, No. 3, 2000:201-229.Western Sydney Young Men’s Needs Assessment Forum (2000) Young Men inWestern Sydney & Quality Service Provision: A Needs Assessment, Sydney.Woods, M., Macdonald, J., Campbell, M. and Gardiner, J. (2000) ‘General Practitionersand Men’s Health – Perceptions and Practicalities’, presented at the inaugural GeneralPractitioners’ Health Conference on Gender, October 2000.Ziegler, V., D’Souza, V. and Kohn, M. (2001) Strategies to Re-engage ‘At Risk’Young People into Education, High Street Youth Health Service, Sydney.Zelinka, S. (1995) ‘Racism and One Response’ in Ethnic Minority Youth in Australia:Challenges and Myths, eds. C. Guerra and R. White, National Clearinghouse for YouthStudies, Tasmania.