IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/cysrev/v92y2018icp48-55.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Creating reasons to stay? Unaccompanied youth migration, community-based programs, and the power of “push” factors in El Salvador

Author

Listed:
  • Roth, Benjamin J.
  • Hartnett, Caroline S.

Abstract

An emerging literature explores the experiences of Central American unaccompanied youth en route to the US border and a growing number of studies examine what happens once they arrive. However, we know less about their pre-migration context or the effectiveness of in-country youth development programs thought to deter them from migrating. We address this gap by drawing on survey data gathered from young people in El Salvador who participate in Youth Outreach Centers (n = 445). These Centers are local community-based entities that provide youth services in precarious neighborhoods across El Salvador. The majority of respondents reported feeling unsafe where they live, and 61% reported that at least one murder occurred in their neighborhood in the previous year. Amidst these neighborhood conditions, many respondents report that participating in the Centers had a positive impact on key developmental outcomes, academic performance, and employment. However, 42% reported that they still intend to migrate within the next three years, and younger respondents are significantly more likely to have these intentions. Their intentions to migrate are positively associated with risky behavior, and are unaffected by the quality of their experience in the Centers. These findings confirm the importance of investing in youth development programs in Central America, but they also attest to the potency of ‘push’ factors prompting youth migration, particularly from violent neighborhoods.

Suggested Citation

  • Roth, Benjamin J. & Hartnett, Caroline S., 2018. "Creating reasons to stay? Unaccompanied youth migration, community-based programs, and the power of “push” factors in El Salvador," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 48-55.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:92:y:2018:i:c:p:48-55
    DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.01.026
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190740917308538
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.01.026?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anastario, Michael P. & Barrick, Kelle & Gibbs, Deborah & Pitts, Wayne & Werth, Rose & Lattimore, Pamela K., 2015. "Factors driving Salvadoran youth migration: A formative assessment focused on Salvadoran repatriation facilities," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 97-104.
    2. Wendy Cunningham & Linda McGinnis & Rodrigo García Verdú & Cornelia Tesliuc & Dorte Verner, 2008. "Youth at Risk in Latin America and the Caribbean : Understanding the Causes, Realizing the Potential," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6483.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Clemens, Michael A., 2021. "Violence, development, and migration waves: Evidence from Central American child migrant apprehensions," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    2. Kassahun Habtamu & Abebaw Minaye & Fantahun Admas & Messay Gebremariam Kotecho & Abera Tibebu & Yohannese Adigeh & Seleshi Zeleke, 2021. "Exploring Potential Intervention Strategies to Reduce Unsafe Youth Migration in Ethiopia: a Mixed Methods Study," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 1285-1312, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. World Bank, 2011. "Violence in the City," World Bank Publications - Reports 27454, The World Bank Group.
    2. Székely,Miguel & Karver,Jonathan George, 2015. "Youth out of school and out of work in Latin America : a cohort approach," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7421, The World Bank.
    3. Monica Parra-Torrado, 2014. "Youth Unemployment in the Caribbean," World Bank Publications - Reports 18999, The World Bank Group.
    4. Marjan Petreski, 2018. "Is Informal Job Experience of Youth Undermining their Labor-Market Prospects in Transition Economies?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 29(4), pages 751-768, September.
    5. Seema Joshi, 2012. "‘Youth Bulge’: Calling for Higher Public Investment on Child and Youth Development for Greater Future Returns," Working Papers 2012/19, Maastricht School of Management.
    6. Wendy V. Cunningham & Paula Villaseñor, 2016. "Employer Voices, Employer Demands, and Implications for Public Skills Development Policy Connecting the Labor and Education Sectors," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 31(1), pages 102-134.
    7. repec:idb:brikps:73138 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Erika E. Atienzo & Susan K. Baxter & Eva Kaltenthaler, 2017. "Interventions to prevent youth violence in Latin America: a systematic review," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 62(1), pages 15-29, January.
    9. Adelman,Melissa Ann & Szekely,Miguel, 2016. "School dropout in Central America : an overview of trends, causes, consequences, and promising interventions," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7561, The World Bank.
    10. Cunningham, Wendy & Salvagno, Javier Bustos, 2011. "Youth employment transitions in Latin America," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5521, The World Bank.
    11. Menezes-Filho, Naercio & Scorzafave, Luiz, 2009. "Employment and Inequality of Outcomes in Brazil," Insper Working Papers wpe_200, Insper Working Paper, Insper Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa.
    12. Christian Bodewig & Reena Badiani-Magnusson & Kevin Macdonald & David Newhouse & Jan Rutkowski, 2014. "Skilling Up Vietnam : Preparing the Workforce for a Modern Market Economy," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 18778.
    13. Cunningham, Wendy, 2009. "Unpacking youth unemployment in Latin America," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5022, The World Bank.
    14. Peter J. Glick & Crystal Huang & Nelly Mejia, 2015. "The Private Sector and Youth Skills and Employment Programs in Low and Middle-Income Countries," World Bank Publications - Reports 23260, The World Bank Group.
    15. Joana Silva & Rita Almeida & Victoria Strokova, 2015. "Sustaining Employment and Wage Gains in Brazil," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 22545.
    16. Emma Aguila & Nelly Josefina Mejia Gonzalez & Francisco Perez-Arce & Alfonso Rivera Illingworth, 2013. "Pobreza y Vulnerabilidad en México El caso de los Jóvenes que no Estudian ni Trabajan," Working Papers WR-991, RAND Corporation.
    17. Bentaouet Kattan,Raja & Székely,Miguel, 2015. "Analyzing the dynamics of school dropout in upper secondary education in Latin America : a cohort approach," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7223, The World Bank.
    18. Baron,Juan & Popova,Anna & Sanchez Diaz,Angelica Maria, 2016. "Following Mexican youth : a short-run study of time use decisions," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7534, The World Bank.
    19. Cunningham, Wendy & Villasenor, Paula, 2014. "Employer voices, employer demands, and implications for public skills development policy," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6853, The World Bank.
    20. Renata Gukovas & Miriam Muller & Ana Claudia Pereira & Maira Emy Reimao, 2016. "A Snapshot of Gender in Brazil Today," World Bank Publications - Reports 25976, The World Bank Group.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:92:y:2018:i:c:p:48-55. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/childyouth .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.