Unleashing the power of community to strengthen the well-being of children, youth, and families: an asset-building approach.

Search Institute's decade-plus emphasis on the elements of positive human development and community approaches to asset building can make a meaningful contribution to the field of child welfare. The institute's framework of developmental assets identifies a set of interrelated experiences, relationships, skills, and values that are associated with reduced high-risk behaviors and increased thriving behaviors. Its community-building work emphasizes the human relations and developmental infrastructure children, youth, and families require for their health and well-being.