Impact of Psychosocial Empowerment Training on Curbing High-risk behaviors in At-risk male adolescents

Background and Objective: Adolescence represents a critical developmental period characterized by a heightened susceptibility to high-risk behaviors, which can significantly impede healthy psychosocial progression and future well-being. The present study aimed to assess the effectiveness of psychosocial empowerment training, specifically when delivered by adults, in the mitigation of various high-risk behaviors among at-risk male adolescents. Materials and Methods: This research employed a quasi-experimental two-group pretest-posttest design with a follow-up. The study was conducted during the ۲۰۲۲-۲۰۲۳ academic year, drawing its statistical population from male public secondary school students located in high-risk areas of Tehran, Iran. A purposive sample of ۳۹ at-risk male adolescents was identified based on predefined criteria and subsequently randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n=۱۹), which received adult-led psychosocial empowerment training, or a control group (n=۲۰), which remained on a wait-list. The experimental group participated in eight ۹۰-minute sessions of the intervention. Data were collected using the High-Risk Behaviors Questionnaire. Statistical analysis involved descriptive measures (means, standard deviations) and inferential repeated measures ANOVA, supplemented by Bonferroni post-hoc tests. Results: The findings indicated that the adult-led psychosocial empowerment training significantly reduced high-risk behaviors in the experimental group compared to the control group across the assessment phases (P<۰.۰۱). Conclusions: This study underscores the substantial benefits of adult-led psychosocial empowerment training for at-risk male adolescents, affirming its potential to mitigate a range of high-risk behaviors and promote healthier developmental trajectories.

Keywords:

Adolescent , Empowerment , Health promotion , Psychosocial intervention , Risk-taking behavior