Leadership, teamwork, and cooperation, for example, are important for participating in groups,
organizing groups, and making cooperative decisions.

Key research findings include

• Participation in programs that target civic engagement and service can lead to
  increases in important interpersonal skills that are necessary to later participation
  in civic activities and organizations.
• Youth who participated in the civic education program Kids Voting USA developed increased deliberative habits such as listening
  to opponents and the willingness to disagree with others.
• Teamwork and leadership lead to positive outcomes among middle
  school students. Both teamwork and leadership foster social skills and leadership
  skills help prevent internalized problem behaviors.

Promising practices

• Kids Voting USA is a program (K-12) integrated in the school curriculum in the months leading
  up to Election Day. The curriculum includes peer discussions (e.g., classroom
  debates), opportunities to analyze political media, service-learning, civic
  activities, and activities inside the home with parents and siblings.
• A longitudinal study found that the program
  had both short-and long-term effects on civic development.
• YouthBuild is a 9- to 24-month full-time program targeting disadvantaged youth. It integrates
  education and community service (i.e., building homes), job training, leadership
  development, individual counseling, and mentoring.
• In addition to boosting high school graduation rates, YouthBuild increased civic engagement among its participants.