Dimensions of organized activity involvement among Latino youth: Impact on well-being

Well-being, including self- and academic perceptions, is a key element of Latino adolescents' experiences. One factor that may be related to well-being among Latino adolescents is organized activity (OA) involvement. Drawing on a risk and resilience framework and utilizing principles of positive youth development, the current study aimed to examine this relation using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) with nested data from 660 Latino-identified youth in the National Education Longitudinal Study: 88 (NELS:88). Furthermore, home language, sex, and family SES were explored as possible moderators of relations between dimensions of OA and well-being. After accounting for prior levels of well-being, results suggest that OA participation, particularly OA intensity, is related to greater self-worth, locus of control, and educational expectations, and that the4se relations may be even stronger for youth from low-SES backgrounds. Implications for future research and policy are discussed.