200 - Community Service Participation is Associated with Greater Flourishing among US Children

Publication Number: 1189.200

Uma Raman, UMass Memorial Children's Medical Center, New Haven, CT, United States; Yorghos Tripodis, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, United States; Sarah L. Albert-Rozenberg, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA, United States; Janet Mariadoss, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, United States; Anne Fuller, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada; Arvin Garg, UMass Memorial Children's Medical Center, Worcester, MA, United States

Background: Flourishing is a measure of a child’s interest and curiosity in learning new things, persistence in completing tasks, and capacity to regulate emotions. Children who are flourishing demonstrate greater capacity to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally; however, prior studies have found only half of children aged 6 to 17 in the US are currently flourishing. The Healing Centered Engagement approach posits that community service has the potential to enhance flourishing by promoting key traits of resilience and addressing root causes of trauma. Qualitative findings from youth participatory action research studies support this approach. However, little is known about this relationship among children across the US.

Objective: To assess whether participation in community service is associated with flourishing among US school-aged children.

Design/Methods: This study was a secondary analysis of participants ages 6-17 years old from the 2023 NCHS dataset. Community service was dichotomized as yes or no participation. Flourishing was measured out of 3 points and was dichotomized as low (Score 0-1) or high (Score 2-3) Analysis included descriptive statistics, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression to examine the association between community service and flourishing. The multivariable model adjusted for potential confounders including age, sex, race, education level of parent, poverty level, special health needs, adverse childhood event (ACE) exposure, and language spoken at home.

Results: Out of a total 55,162 participants, 32,992 were between the ages of 6 to 17 (60%), 51% percent of participants were male, 69% were non-Hispanic white, 54% had high flourishing scores, and 34% volunteered. A significantly higher proportion of children who volunteered had high flourishing scores, compared to children who did not volunteer (86.5% v. 78.4%, p< 0.001). In the multivariable logistic regression model, community service was associated with flourishing (aOR 1.7 [95% CI: 1.5-2]). ACEs (aOR 0.91[95% CI: 0.89-0.93]); and children requiring special health needs (aOR 0.232 [95% CI: 0.207-0.260] in contrast were associated with less flourishing.

Conclusion(s): Community service was associated with increased levels of flourishing after adjusting for sociodemographics and ACE exposure. These findings reinforce qualitative literature on youth engagement and support further investigation of the role of community-service programs in enhancing children’s flourishing.

Table 1. Multivariable Logistic Regression Predicting Flourishing Among Children Ages 6-17
PAS 2026 Table 1.pdfResults from a multivariable logistic regression analysis showing the relationship between community service participation, special health needs, ACE exposure, age, gender, race, poverty level, language spoken at home, and level of education of parent on participant flourishing (N=33,992). The table presents adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).