RESILIENCY IN ADULTHOOD

Resiliency in Adulthood

Resiliency in Adulthood

Introduction

Any media specialist in the profession for any length of time has worked with principals and teachers who wondered out loud, “What exactly is it that you do?” To answer them, we eagerly seek out research and anecdotal evidence that validates the importance of the media program. While researching a book I am writing on teen issues and young adult literature (Helping Teens Cope, Linworth, June 2003), I became intrigued by a research project, the Kauai Longitudinal Study, that provides substantial proof that what media specialists do does make a difference.

Discussion

Mental health experts often ask why some people are able to surmount great obstacles—why they are resilient—while others are not. Resiliency is defined as the ability to “bounce back successfully despite exposure to severe risks” (Benard, 1993). The Kauai Longitudinal Study, an important piece of social science research, answers this question. All the children born in 1955 on the Hawaiian Island of Kauai became part of this study to assess the long-term consequences of prenatal complications and adverse rearing conditions on the individual's development and adaptation to life. The children were followed from before their birth until they were about 31 or 32 years old.( Benard, 1993)

In this well-designed research study, Emmy Werner and Ruth Smith (1992) found that resilient children had good temperaments and were easy to get along with; they had supportive caregivers, good physical health, and self-esteem; and they had an internal locus of control, which means they felt in control of their lives. Werner and Smith identified many adverse conditions such as poverty, prolonged absence of mother and father because of separation and divorce, and school failure that put children at risk, but they also identified many factors that protect children and teens from the effects of these adverse conditions. Even though Werner and Smith, both social scientists, did not intend to make a strong connection between resiliency and the media center, that is, in fact, what they did. Three resiliency factors that they identified in their research are integral to a strong media center program.

First, Werner and Smith found that “during adolescence, a caring teacher was an important protective factor for boys and girls who succeeded against the odds.” To the adolescent, this caring adult became a strong role model, a confidant, an important figure in the student's life.

Media specialists have opportunities to connect with children and teens in ways that classroom teachers do not because we tend to work with students in a one-on-one supportive relationship, helping them find and use information on a variety of topics, both academic and personal, that are of interest to them. The reference interview, in which we are all schooled, encourages us to ask questions to determine the information that the student needs and how this information will be used. Once a relationship of trust and confidence has been established, the student may be comfortable coming to us with further information and personal ...