Completed Research
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COMPLETED
Communication in Adolescence
Background
This major project was undertaken at TSA between 1996 and 1998. It was funded by a grant from the BT Forum.
The background to the project lay in a belief that good communication is fundamental to good relationships, both between young people and between young people and adults, whether parents, employers, friends, teachers, etc. Despite the importance of communication, relatively little research has been conducted to look at how easy or difficult young people find it to talk about certain issues, or to certain people. The aim of this project, therefore, was to provide research-based evidence about the realities of young people and communication.
The project
The project involved a large-scale study involving a broad range of young people. In total 4,000 young people aged 12-19 completed a detailed questionnaire. The questionnaire explored young people's views about, and approaches to, communication, across different social contexts. These included in the home, with peers, and with unfamiliar adults. In addition, a number of focus groups were conducted, in order to explore these issues in more detail.
Outcomes
A detailed research report was produced from the project:
Catan L, Dennison C, and Coleman J (1996) Getting Through: Effective Communication in the Teenage Years. TSA/BT Forum.
In addition a variety of journal articles and reports have been written using this information. These are available from TSA. The key practice outcome from the project was a set of training materials:
Brody R (1998) Getting Through: Young People and Communication. Video and training materials pack. TSA.
Project staff
Liza Catan had overall responsibility for this project. Others involved in the research and the production of materials were Roz Brody, Cathy Dennison, and John Drury.
More information:
Please contact Young People in Focus
Email: info@youngpeopleinfocus.org.uk
Tel: 01273 693311