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INSTRUCTORS MANUAL
Welcome to the instructors’ manual! This document is meant to help you in several
ways. It serves as an advanced organizer, outlining all the resources available to you in
the e-manual and connecting these resources with the appropriate chapters in the book.
Part 1 AT-RISK CHILDREN AND YOUTH: THE ECOLOGY OF PROBLEMS
Part 1 consists of two chapters. In Chapter 1 we discuss and define the term at risk,
provide an overview of the book, describe a metaphor, and present an ecological model
for unifying various concerns for children and adolescents who are at risk. In Chapter 2
we provide an overview of environmental and societal issues that impact young people
CHAPTER 1
An Introduction to At-Risk Issues
SUMMARY
In this chapter we highlight the problems that threaten children and youth and that put
young people at risk. We present data to illustrate the severity of problems and
personalize these data by describing one family. We then provide an overview of the
entire at-risk arena, using the metaphor of a tree as an organizational device. The tree
with the gardener (counselors, social workers, psychologists, and other human service
professionals) who provides pruning (intervention) and nurturing (prevention) is a
conceptual metaphor for understanding the complex interrelationship of risk and
OUTLINE
The Scope of the Problems: An Overview of the Ecology of At-Risk Youth
♦ Facts of an At-Risk Society
♦ The Use of the Term At Risk: Definition Problems
o Minimal Risk
o Remote Risk
o High Risk
o Imminent Risk
o At-Risk Category Activity
♦ Assess the Context of Problems, Such as Poverty and Racism
At-Risk Problems and Issues
♦ Cyber Technology
Case Study: The Andrews Family
Vulnerable and Underserved
o Children and Adolescents of Color
o Remote Risk
The At-Risk Tree: A Metaphor
o The Soil
o The Roots
The Ecological Model
Box 1.1 Carrie
Helper Interface
Conclusion
SUPPLEMENTS
PowerPoint: Chapter 1 Summary Points
ACTIVITY
1) Have students watch a film or TV show and write out a case study for one of the
characters using the ecological model as a guide.
2) Have students use both written and visual material to demonstrate how the
ecological model has influenced their development.
3) Ask students to discuss how they conceptualize their future role as a “gardener”
of at-risk trees. What problems might they face in this role?
ESSAY QUESTIONS
1. Choose one person from a book or movie to be a client of yours. After outlining
2. What are some of the factors contributing to the vulnerability of youth of color?
3. Describe the metaphor of the At-Risk Tree. How does this metaphor enhance your
understanding of at-risk youth, and the organizational factors that could play a
role in aiding them? In answering this question you should outline both what each
4. In what ways are the risk factors that affect LGBT youth similar to those that
affect youths from the African American community? In what ways are they
different?
5. What are the problems associated with identifying a person as being at risk? In
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
The following questions conform to the standards required by CACREP, EPAS, and other
accrediting agencies.
1.The use of the term “at risk” in various contexts indicates that:
A. it is an important term.
B. there is a lack of consensus regarding its meaning.
C. there is widespread agreement regarding its meaning.
D. it is a recent phenomenon.
2. Chapter 1 defines “at risk” as:
A. current engagement in problem behaviors.
B. previous engagement in problem behaviors.
C. a set of cause-effect dynamics that place an individual in danger of future
negative outcomes.
D. a medical diagnosis.
3. A young child who has loving stable relationships and attends a well-funded school
will face:
A. no risk.
B. minimal risk.
C. moderate risk.
D. high risk.
4. What developmental factors concerning the adolescent brain place adolescents at (at
least) minimal risk?
A. Alcoholism and addiction
B. The ability to understand another’s perspective and alcoholism
C. The ability to understand another’s perspective and an increase in risk-taking
behavior
D. An increase is risk-taking behavior and addiction
5.The final push toward a young person’s being at High Risk is given by the person’s:
A. own negative attitude.
B. social status.
C. abuse status.
D. poor school.
6. Cyber abuse:
A. only includes the online presentation of illicit material, such as pornography.
B. includes the misuse of innocent information posted online.
C. only affects adolescents.
D. includes a wide range of negative activity.
7. What are the three primary roots in the At-Risk Tree metaphor?
A. Microsystem, exosystem and macrosystem
B. Parents, grandparents and child
C. Family, neighborhood, workplace
D. Family, school and peers
8. The branches of the tree metaphor represent youths’ individual adaptations to society.
All but one of the following are examples of healthy branches:
A. a strong connection to cultural heritage.
B. good school attendance.
C. prosocial peers.
D. internal locus of control.
9. Which system represents our “social blueprint” (cultural values, belief systems, etc.)?
A. Microsystem
B. Macrosystem
C. Exosystem
D. Mesosystem
10. Which system describes the relationship between school and home?
A. Microsystem
B. Macrosystem
C. Exosystem
D. Mesosytem
11. LGBT youth are particularly vulnerable in regards to all but one of the following:
A. alcohol and drug abuse.
B. depression.
C. parental pathology.
D. suicide.
12. Youth of color are a vulnerable population due to all but one of the following:
A. historical marginalization.
B. contemporary institutional racism.
C. underfunded schools.
D. authoritative parenting.
13. The fast technological rush of society leads us metaphorically to be:
A. sprinters.
B. mechanics.
C. gardeners.
D. atheletes.
14. The image of a gardener is supposed to represent the quality of:
A. haste.
B. outdoorsy-ness.
C. competence.
D. patience.
15. Being at risk should be viewed as a:
A. problem only for racial and social minorities.
B. diagnostic category.
C. series of steps along a continuum.
D. guarantee of failure.
16. Meaning and purpose of life is guaranteed by:
A. affluence.
B. social status.
C. peer approval.
D. nothing.
17. Causal pathways are:
A. static.
B. dynamic.
C. clear.
D. simple.
18. The term “at risk” could indicate that risk is:
A. orthogonal to success.
B. inherent in a person.
C. inherent in an environment.
D. ontologically identifiable.
19. The ecological model posits that humans develop and grow:
A. in precisely the way that trees do.
B. within a number of monadic systems.
C. within a number of dyadic systems.
D. within a number of reciprocal systems.
20. What assumption concerning individuals is made in the ecological model?
A. That humans are subject to Fate.
B. That determinism is incompatible with free will.
C. That the individual is an active participant.
D. That the individual is a passive participant.
21. What sort of relationship does the ecological model assume person-environment
interactions have?
A. Bidirectionality
B. Unidirectionality
C. A dyadic relationship
D. A nomadic relationship
22. The best interventions are:
A. made in schools.
B. stand-alone for their effectiveness.
C. fully integrated into other services.
D. cost little but achieve much.
23. An at-risk youth can make choices:
A. only passively.
B. only actively.
C. actively and passively.
D. only with help.
24. The term “transculturation” was coined to capture the processes navigated by:
A. transgender youth.
B. immigrant youth.
C. youths from ethnic minorities.
D. abused youth.
25. The Internet always exerts a negative influence on youth.
A. True
B. False
